4.2.1 Conflicting Ideologies

When World War II ended, the Nazi regime was destroyed fundamentally, but the communist Soviet Union was still strong. As the map of Europe was redrawn to reflect the victories of the Allies, including capitalist Western Europe, the United States, and the Soviet Union, two distinct spheres of influence evolved driven by very different ideological beliefs.

Conflict between the two superpowers  of the United States and the Soviet Union dominated world politics from 1945 until 1990 when the Soviet Union collapsed. During this period, capitalism and communism competed. Each side tried to prove that its political and economic system was better at achieving national goals and meeting the needs of their citizens. Economic influence and propaganda were used to promote support for both sides.

Not only did the two sides try to become powerful in terms of influence and wealth, they also built up huge arsenals, supposedly to defend themselves in case of attack from one another. Also, nuclear weapons were built and stockpiled, and the possibility of a nuclear attack that could destroy the entire world brought fear to people everywhere, including neutral or non-aligned nations. The sketched image to the left shows a bomb shelter built by an American family to protect itself in the case of a possible nuclear war.

Face-to-face conflict also occurred in many parts of the world in which the militaries of small nations were supported with weapons and personnel from both the Soviet Union and the United States.

In this section, you will explore the conflicts that occurred during the twentieth century between the two world superpowers of United States and Soviet Union.

Watch this 2 minute review of Communist ideology before beginning this section.