4.2.8 The Use of Proxy Wars

The statement reveals the the perspectives each side has in a conflict and that the cause one person sees as illegitimate is seen as the pursuit of freedom by another.

All over the world during the Cold War as the two superpowers battled for supremacy, they fueled wars on the ground in countries far away. They supported guerilla warfare, assassination attempts, funding for mercenaries, and overthrow of both elected and non-elected governments.

Many of these nations had been colonized during the Age of Imperialism. Others had been oppressed by neighbouring nations. These people wanted the freedom to choose their own forms of government, and after World War II, they had been promised self-determination.

Liberation movements occurred all over the world. Both the United States and the Soviet Union wanted to obtain the allegiance of these nations. USSR and US became involved in providing funding, military supplies, and human expertise to nations that were already allied with the opposing power or nations that were non-aligned.

When opposing powers use third parties as substitutes for fighting each other directly, a "proxy war" results. As the global media reported on the actions of the superpowers, people around the world, including those in the superpower nations, began to challenge the actions of the United States and the Soviet Union. If nations were entitled to elect their own governments democratically, what business did the superpowers have of interfering? Furthermore, when the superpowers were sending their own young men and women to fight in places such as Afghanistan and Vietnam, citizens protested the loss of life. Protest by citizens had a part in the involvement of the superpowers in the affairs of other nations.