Predestination of Postsocialism

The article highlights the main policy directions of the Western powers, especially the USA, towards the socialist countries in the second half of the 20th century. The beginning of the Cold War predetermined the strategy of the West in the Soviet region and in Eastern European countries. The formation of this strategy, reflected in Gorge Kennan’s "Long Telegram" to Washington from the American Embassy in Moscow, is considered. The views of the author of this telegram and their transformation are detailed in the article. Not only the principle of "containment" formulated in G. Kennan’s "Long Telegram", but also the foreign policy practice itself, undergoing some temporary changes, persisted for more than seven decades. None of the American, and indeed, Western strategies towards the Soviet Union and its allies in the socialist camp did not do without the idea of "containment". And yet the "Long Telegram", its content and purpose, continue to attract special attention even now, many decades later. The importance of this strategy cannot be overstated: it influenced the development of the American foreign policy doctrine for the next forty years, determined the policy of other states towards America and, finally, formed the basis of many important diplomatic and political initiatives, such as the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, NATO, and the Berlin Airlift. American historians link the origins of the Cold War with the USA policy in Eastern Europe. In the 70s-80s of the last century there was a tendency of weakening the "Cold War", which is reflected in a series of Soviet-American discussions between diplomats and historians from both countries. However, the subsequent development of international relations led to the hardening of positions on both sides of the "Cold War", the intensification of the policy of "containment", the realisation of the destiny of post-socialism planned in the 50s of the 20th century.

Keywords

USSR, USA, сontainment, Kennan, Long Telegram, Soviet-American conferences, post-socialism

Received

22.11.2019

Publication date

05.12.2019

Number of characters

59079

Cite

GOST	Orlik I. Predestination of Postsocialism // Novaia i noveishaia istoriia – 2019. – Issue 6 C. 102-121 [Electronic resource]. URL: https://nni.jes.su/S013038640007612-1-1 (circulation date: 26.04.2024). DOI: 10.31857/S013038640007612-1
MLA	Orlik, Igor "Predestination of Postsocialism." Novaia i noveishaia istoriia 6 (2019):102-121. DOI: 10.31857/S013038640007612-1
APA	Orlik I. (2019). Predestination of Postsocialism. Novaia i noveishaia istoriia (6), pp.102-121 DOI: 10.31857/S013038640007612-1

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