Question

What was Truman’s policy of containment?

Answer 1

Hint: Truman became alarmed about the quick growth of communism in Eastern Europe after the war. He announced that America would help and support any country that was fighting communism.

Complete answer:
American leaders answered to the Soviet control of Eastern Europe by creating a policy of containment – the United States would prevent communism from expanding to other countries, even though it would not question communism where it already existed.

In 1945, after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Vice President Harry Truman became President. At Potsdam, he met Stalin and made the decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan, ending the war. Truman became alarmed about the quick growth of communism in Eastern Europe after the war. In 1947, when communist rebels intimidated the governments of Greece and Turkey, President Truman provided those countries with military aid. Due to this, the Greek and Turkish government were able to defeat the communist rebels.

Truman announced that America would help and support any country that was fighting communism. This announcement, referred to as the Truman Doctrine, marked the start of America’s policy of containment.

Note:
- Truman was convinced that communism was attractive to people only when they were desperate and miserable.
- Therefore, he thought that he could make Europeans more resistant to communism by fighting poverty in Europe.
- As a result, Secretary of State George Marshall proposed that aid will be given to countries of western Europe to help them rebuild their economies.