Wars, Conflicts, and Diplomacy - Research Paper

 Introduction
The cold war defines a period between 1945 and 1991 that was dominated by political conflict and economic competition between the Soviet Union and the United States. To establish whether the cold war was inevitable, it is important to consider two points that are paramount to answering the question. The two questions include whether the conflict was inevitable and whether the nature of the conflict, which is the cold war was inevitable too. The United States political policies and other political events suggest that the cold war was inevitable. Some major US policies that helped fuel the cold war include the containment policy, which is a result of the domino theory. Other events that help fuel the cold war include the iron curtain speech by Winston Churchill, the Potsdam and Yalta conferences, the marshal plan, and the Truman doctrine. Such political differences help escalate the tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. Some events that involved both the United States and the Soviet Union but stopped short of a direct conflict include the Cuban missile crisis, the Berlin blockade and airlift, the nuclear arms race, and the proxy wars.

Wars, Conflicts, and Diplomacy - Research Paper
The inevitability of the cold war is because of the inevitability of a conflict between the USSR and USA. The root of the conflict is conflicting ideologies. The USSR wished to expand their communist ideologies to the rest of the world believing that only communist could ensure a better future for the world. The USA being a capitalist nation considered the expansion of the communist ideology in the world a threat to their way of life because it threatened the international climate in which the United States operated and thrived. This was a direct threat to individual material wellbeing. The opposing belief about which system held the best future for the world prompted both powers to strive worldwide ideological dominance (Harper, 2011). The ideological conflict between the USSR and USA dates back to before the Second World War during the Bolshevik revolution. The revolution took place in 1917 and saw the USA refuse to acknowledge the USSR as a sovereign state. This marked the beginning of the rivalry; however, the rivalry was suspended in 1933 when the USA recognized the Soviet Union as a sovereign state and in 1939 when the two countries became allies against the axis of evil. As the Second World War ended and Germany was defeated, the tensions because of the contradictory and incompatible nature of the ideologies resurfaced ultimately leading to conflict (Thomas, 2009).
The invention and advancement of nuclear technologies by both side contributed to the inevitability of the war. It was impossible for the USSR and USA to co-exist in peace because peace meant compromise. The tensions between the two countries could have led to an all out open conflict. However, neither was ready for this because the Second World War had taken a toll on the global economy. The highly advanced nuclear weapons also meant that a hot war would kill the human race. Compromise was not an option for the soviets because dropping their aspirations to convert the world into a communist community would be a fundamental compromise on their ideology. The USA was not ready for a compromise because the spread of communism threatened the American way of life, which placed the social and economic freedoms cherished by the Americans in jeopardy (Robert, 1994). The only logical option for the two superpowers was a cold war because it provided the only safe avenue for the countries to let-out tensions without engaging in mutually catastrophic actions.
The construction and implementation of major USA foreign policies also reveal the inevitability of the cold war. The Domino theory guided the united stated political policy towards the USSR. The term Domino theory was coined in 1950; however, the theory was articulated in July 1947. According to the theory, if one state in a region converts into a communist nation, it would have the Domino effect that would cause surrounding states to convert too. The Domino theory outline that steps the United States would take to contain the USSR sphere of influence. The intention is to contain the spread of communist and avoid the Domino effect from occurring in reality (Harper, 2011).
Other actions by the USA and its allies that helped fuel the conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union was the Yalta conference. The conference that was held in February 1945 was aimed at determining the fate of Germany after the conclusion of the Second World War. Although the conference was a success, the USA and the USSR disagreed over war compensations and the future of Eastern Europe. Most of the decisions reached at the conference contradicted soviet wishes. Another conference that contributed to the tensions is the Potsdam conference held on July the same year. During this conference, the allies were unwilling to soothe the soviets. This led to a disagreement on how much influence the soviets should have in Eastern Europe. Another event that contributed to the tension between the USA and USSR is a Winston Churchill speech. Although Churchill was the British prime minister at the time, he represented the allies and his speech reflects the feelings and opinions of the allies. Stalin, the head of the Soviet Union at the time claimed that the speech was a declaration of war. In the Iron Curtain Speech, Churchill criticizes the Soviet for using military might to control and influence Eastern Europe countries (Churchill, 1946).
The Truman doctrine was another critical policy that contributed to the inevitability of the cold war. The doctrine was created in March of 1947 when there was a communist attempt to take over Greece. In the doctrine, the United States promises to intervene in states that free people are coerced into communism by armed minorities or external forces. This policy convened the soviets that the United States was a direct threat to communism, which future accelerated the cold war. Another event contributing to the tension is the marshal plan, which is a manifestation of the Truman doctrine in July the same year (Truman, 1947). The marshal plan involves providing aid to people in Europe in the belief that a prosperous population is less likely to embrace communism. The soviets consider the marshal plan an act of war, which helped to fuel the inevitable cold war. The ideological conflicts between the two states crashed on many instances, especially in Eastern Europe. The USSR responded decisively to the two conferences that did not honor their wishes. By the end of 1945, the soviets had signed bilateral agreements that helped the enforcement of communism in buffer states, in Eastern Europe (Osgood, 1961).
The treaties limited the eastern European countries from cooperating with soviet enemies and ensured the continued presence of the red army in the countrys territories. The treaties that were concluded in 1949 led to the salami theory. According to the salami theory, countries were converted into communist little by little like slicing salamis. The countries engaged in election, however, the soviet filed the army and police positions with communist supports. Politicians who opposed communism were discredited and arrested. Little by little, the government became communist. The growing tensions between the USA and USSR were exemplified by proxy wars in Asia. The Vietnam and Korean wars brought the two countries in direct conflict with each other. Although the conflicts were different in many ways, they involved communist and capitalist factions. The United States supported the south in resisting a hostile takeover by the communist north while the soviet helped the north conquer the south (Robert, 1994).
The Cuban Missile Crisis is a Soviet response to the many advances that the United States made against its influence in Eastern Europe and third world countries. The Cuban Missile Crisis is the culmination of the nuclear arms race, which gave rise to Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). The USA and USSR had powerful nuclear weapons that if either engaged the other in a nuclear conflict, there would be no winners in the conflict, only losers. The placement of soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba was a direct threat to the United States. The missiles were significantly closer, which increased their accuracy and ability to reach a target. After a delicate negotiation, the USSR withdrew their missiles from Cuba on condition that the United States would not attack Cuba (David, 1999).
Conclusion
The ideological differences between the United States and the USSR contributed to the inevitable cold war. Neither of the countries could compromises on their stand because it meant forging the fundamental qualities in their respective society. The development of nuclear weapons eliminated the possibility of direct conflict because of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). The tensions that escalate after the conclusion of the second world war come at a time when neither country is financial ready for an armed conflict, therefore, the cold war provides the only viable avenue through which the countries let-out tensions. Other factors such as the US policy towards USSR and the USSR agenda of expansionism meant that the conflict was inevitable. Given the circumstances of the countries, the cold war was an inescapable result of their interactions.

 References
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Harper, J. L. (2011). The Cold War, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Osgood, C. E. (1961). An Analysis of the Cold War Mentality. Journal Of Social Issues, 17(3), 12-19.
Robert, H. J. (1994). Improbable Dangers: U.S. Conceptions of Threat in the Cold War and After. New York: St. Martins.
Thomas, M. (2009). The Cold War: a beginner's guide. Oxford: Oneworld.
Truman, H. S. (1947). Modern History Sourcebook: _ The Truman Doctrine, 1947.’