blog




  • Essay / The role of the "Cold War" in the establishment of the international order

    The Cold War was a period of historical confrontations which took place between 1947 and 1991. Many international researchers, however, believed that the Cold War began with the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was between America and its allies (Western countries) against the Eastern Bloc by the USSR. However, surprisingly, the two superpowers did not fight. Instead, it was a fight fought through proxy wars, a nuclear arms race, ideological influence and propaganda warfare that had a decisive impact on the world. This essay will examine the ways in which the Cold War brought about international order. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayThe Cold War brought international order in many ways. For example, most of the Cold War divided the world into three distinct camps, the First World (US, UK and its allies), Second World (USSR and its allies) and Third World. The first 2 camps were heavily armed with nuclear weapons. The fierce rivalry between the two superpowers quickly intensified and spread to the rest of the world. The United States has strongly encouraged other friendly regions to form their own alliances, such as SEATO in Southeast Asia and CENTO in the Middle East. The goal suggested by (Derrick Murphy, Collins Frontline History – The Cold War 1945-1991, 2003) was to surround the USSR with a military alliance, which in turn would have increased tensions. Additionally, both superpowers possessed nuclear missiles capable of reaching Washington and Moscow. As a result, the Cold War became global and directly affected stability (Derrick Murphy, Collins Frontline History – The Cold War 1945-1991, 2003). The two superpowers resorted to confrontation and propaganda which spread to the rest of the world. The use of three separate camps allowed powerful countries to have greater power than less powerful countries, which in some ways enabled international order. The Cold War resulted in the division of Europe in general, and Germany in particular. (David Cornwell, 2001) stated that the modernization and reintegration of defeated countries such as Italy, Germany and Japan meant that its impact was felt strongly in Africa. Where possible, the emergence of new states meant that colonial masters were no longer able to control these colonies. The Cold War hit Europe hard, where it was born, and the entire world. This caused the Berlin Blockade, which therefore created divisions between Vietnam and Korea, which led to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. This clearly damaged relations between the West and the Union Soviet Union, which fueled further conflicts and wars in the Middle East. , another reason why the Cold War had such an influence on international relations was the protective sphere of interest used by both powers globally. For example, during the Hungarian uprising of 1956 and the subsequent intervention of Soviet troops, this was caused by Soviet dislike of the fact that Hungarians intended to leave the Warsaw Pact . Likewise, the United States has also shown great interest in other less dominant regions of the world, for example Latin America. The Cold War caused fear of the spread of communism, which forced the United States to deploy military forces in Latin America. For example, America was instrumental in providingarms and various other aid to anti-communist rebels in El Salvador and Nicaragua, also using force to further safeguard its interests in the region. (Jefferson Adams, Strategic Intelligence in the Cold War and Beyond). A good example of this is the United States armed intervention in the Dominican Republic in 1965. The goal of the United States, as suggested (John W. Young and John Kent, International Relations Since 1945: A Global History, 2004) , was to stop the spread of the disease. of communism in the region, in other words, it was a proactive attack on communism. Finally, another example was the overthrow of Jacobo Arbenz of Guatemala and the attempt to overthrow Castro's government in Cuba because America feared Castro would be a dangerous enemy during the Cold War. This brought about international order as both powers created allies with other nations, meaning the countries were much less vulnerable since they had the support of America and the USSR. Both superpowers also had a great interest in the new nation states and used them for their own interests, for example for oil and minerals. Some would say that this interest in the new countries and states of the two superpowers has not changed, for example the US interest in Iraq, Libya, Iran or Russia's interest in Syria or Ukraine. On the other hand, experts would say that the Cold War hasn't changed. a huge impact on the international order as there was a fierce, if not certain, rivalry between the superpowers taking place in some parts of the world, for example in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly Angola, which was a huge battleground for the superpowers. The USSR and Cuba supported the Angolan government with the artillery they needed to defend themselves, while America and South Africa supported the UNITA rebels. There have been many instances where America and the USSR provided military and economic support to several governments and rebels in Africa, resulting in countless civil wars that affected the continent. Due to the rivalry between the two third world superpowers, millions of people died due to the Cold War. . Numerous civil wars and other conflicts still haunt parts of Africa, Asia and Latin America today. As Jefferson Adams, Strategic Intelligence in the Cold War and Beyond, chapter 6, suggests, a clear majority of those killed during the Cold War were from the Third World, suggesting that the Cold War did not restore international order . The Cold War also increased tensions within the international community because America and the USSR were very interested in pursuing ideological and political goals and did not hesitate to use other, less dominant countries to achieve them. . In fact, some political and ideological goals were even more opposed to the ambitions of others. For example, the Soviets viewed the United States as an imperialist power and therefore tried to spread capitalist ideology in an attempt to take control of the country. world. On the other hand, America viewed the Soviet Union as an ideologically motivated evil empire bent on spreading communism around the world. Even by force. Both superpowers preached that their belief system was the right way forward for a better world, but this didn't really create an international order because countries were divided on who to believe. Statistically, the world is less murderous, less peaceful and more stable..