Question

The 1914 and 1939 Wars that engulfed almost the entire world, were known as World Wars due to its unprecedented impact and damage. In this context answer the following.
Explain the consequences of the Second World War with reference to the Cold War.

Answer 1

Hint: After the end of the Second World War, a conference was held in Potsdam, Germany, to set up peace treaties. The countries which fought with Hitler lost their territories and thus had to pay compensations to the allies. Germany and its capital Berlin were separated into four zones.

Complete answer: The four zones of Germany and Berlin were to be in the control of the Soviet Union, Great Britain, the United States and France. The three western allies and the Soviet Union had discrepancies over many things. The world was divided into two blocs of the capitalist bloc and the communist bloc, headed by the United States and the Soviet Union, respectively. These situations constituted the foundation of the Cold War.
Though the end of the Second World War marked democratic changes around the world, end to colonialism, establishment of the United Nations Organization and so forth, the Cold War was a period of geopolitical crisis of silent rivalry between the two superpowers.
The United States and the Soviet Union avoided direct military encounters in Europe and engaged in actual combat operations throughout the Cold War and it was only to keep allies from defecting to the other side.

Note: During 1948-53, the Cold War reached its peak. It was the doctrine of mutually assured destruction (MAD) that prevented an attack by either side of the power blocs during the cold war times. The struggle for dominance among each power was displayed through indirect ways including psychological warfare, propaganda campaigns, espionage, sports and technological competitions.