BreakupofSovietUnion

The Soviet Union had been formed not long after WWI. It was a communist state but had never really been in conflict with the West (other than Germany). This is because during the inter war years there had always been a large buffer zone between the Soviet Union and the West, stretching from the defeated Germany to the eventual Russian satellite states in the East. At the end of the war in Europe, however, the Soviet Union had its chance to form its satellite states and force them into having communist governments. This pushed Soviet control until it was bordering with the West which caused mistrust between the two powers. The Soviets felt they were simply creating a larger buffer zone between Moscow and the West. The West believed them to be making a direct threat to Western Europe.

One area of the talks at Yalta that show this mistrust between parties best is the discussion over Poland. The Soviet Union wanted firstly to have the Lublin Committee recognised (the Lublin Committee was a communist friendly government as a pose to the actual Polish government in exile in London). They also wanted to take a section of Poland bordering them and allow Poland to protrude into Germany. Both of the Soviets wishes were accepted. What was important was that the Lublin Committee was accepted as the current government Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin considered that the Eastern frontier of Poland should follow the Curzon Line.

Mistrust of the West by the Soviet Union is easy to understand. Germany, who they considered part of the "West", had invaded them. In the Second World War Soviet deaths numbered over 20 million. The Soviets attitude was that it should never be allowed to happen again. By creating their buffer zone they could prevent another invasion.

Mistrust of the Soviet Union by the West is very clear and reasons can be given for it. Firstly, the Soviet creation of their buffer zone was seen as a threat to Western Europe. The West feared the Domino Theory, that communism would spread West. The Americans felt that perhaps Western Europe would be swallowed and a massive communist state would form stretching from ocean to ocean. The West also looked at the Soviet Union’s history, in particular to events. Firstly when the Russians dropped out of the First World War and secondly when the Soviet Union signed the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact with Germany. Both these events made the West weary of the Soviet Union.

The final event that ended the Grand Alliance was the death of Franklin Roosevelt. Roosevelt’s replacement, Truman, was not as good as Roosevelt when dealing with the Soviet Union. He felt that the Soviets should be talked to as if they were inferior. As Molotov said after his meeting with Truman on 25th April 1945, "I have never been talked to like this in my life!".