Which was the most effective analysis of the early cold war period, NSC-68 or NSC-162/2

Essay , 2005 , 8 Seiten , Note: 72%

Politik - Region: USA

In the period after the end of World War II, America struggled to find a sustainable, coherent strategy to address the Soviet threat. It is without doubt that both NSC-68 and NSC-162/2 were important documents of their time. It is the aim of this essay to examine the circumstances of their creation, their differences and ultimately, assess which was a more coherent and effective analysis of the early Cold War Period, placing particular emphasis on the perception of international order in the papers. NSC 68 was produced in 1949 by a study group from the Departments of State and Defense under the leadership of Paul Nietze. Its primary concern were the implications of the Soviet possession of the atomic bomb, the uncovering of the spy ring around Fuchs that had infiltrated the Manhattan Project, the recent creation of the German Democratic Republic and the fall of China to Communism. The paper rested on the premise that the decisive struggle in foreign affairs was between the United States and Soviet Russia, and that there could only be one winner. One of the main arguments put forward was that the totalitarian nature of Soviet Russia allowed nothing but an expansionist foreign policy, “driven to follow this policy because it cannot (…) tolerate the existence of free societies.” According to the paper, the Soviets were motivated by “a new, fanatic faith, antithetical to our own”, seeking to “impose its absolute authority over the rest of the world.” Wolfe makes the point inThe Rise and Fall of the Soviet Threatthat NSC 68 denied that the Russians were capable of acting like other great powers, unable to strike a balance between maximizing their power in some places and minimizing their losses in others, instead expanding everywhere driven by their internal character.3The policy of NSC 68 was, in its own terms, a “policy of calculated and gradual coercion” in order to “check and roll back the Kremlin’s drive

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• In the period after the end of World War 11
• NSC 68 'vas produced in 1949 by a Study group from the Departments of State
• After Stalin's death in January 1953
• The end result of Project Solarium was the formation ofNSC 162/2.
• Having looked at the basic policies advised by NSC 68 and NSC 162/2, it is now
• With regard to Europe, the policies laid out in NSC-68 provided a solid
• Howewer accurate the authors ofNSC-68 were in describing Europe, they failed
• In contrast to NSC-6S, Project Solarium and the resulting NSC 162/2 has been
• Fazit
• Literaturverzeichnis

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte

Der Essay untersucht die Entstehung und die Unterschiede zwischen den beiden wichtigen Dokumenten der frühen Nachkriegszeit, NSC-68 und NSC-162/2, um festzustellen, welche Analyse der frühen Cold War-Periode kohärenter und effektiver war. Der Fokus liegt dabei auf der Wahrnehmung der internationalen Ordnung in den Dokumenten.

• Analyse der Entstehungsgeschichte von NSC-68 und NSC-162/2
• Vergleich der in den Dokumenten dargestellten Sichtweisen auf die sowjetische Bedrohung
• Bewertung der Kohärenz und Effektivität der in den Dokumenten vorgeschlagenen Strategien
• Untersuchung der Auswirkungen der Dokumente auf die amerikanische Außenpolitik
• Diskussion der Rolle der Wahrnehmung der internationalen Ordnung in den Dokumenten

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel

• In the period after the end of World War 11: America struggled to find a sustainable: coherent strategy to address the Soviet threat_ It is without doubt that both NSC-68 and NSC-162/2 were important documents of their time. It is the aim of this essay to examine the circumstances of their creation, their differences and ultimately: assess which was a more coherent and effective analysis of the early Cold War Period, placing particular emphasis on the perception of international order in the papers_
• NSC 68 'vas produced in 1949 by a Study group from the Departments of State and Defense under the leadership of Paul Nietze_ Its primary concern were the implications of the Soviet possession of the atomic bomb, the uncovering of the spy ring around Fuchs that had infiltrated the Manhattan Project: the recent creation of the German Democratic Republic and the fall of China to Communism The paper rested on the premise that the decisive struggle in foreign affairs Ivas between the United States and Soviet Russia: and that there could only be one Ivinner_
• After Stalin's death in January 1953 , in a time of ongoing Korean conflict and the continuous rise of the Soviet influence in Eastern Europe Eisenhower organized a foreign Policy planning exercise called "Operation Solarium": directing three task forces to draft competing approaches to national security policy_ His aim 'vas to reassess America' s position in the face of the Soviets and consequently compare alternative, economically more sustainable policies and opportunities open to America and its allies_
• The end result of Project Solarium was the formation ofNSC 162/2. While NSC 162/2 did not represent a radical shift in policy•: just as NSC-68 was not a radical departure from NSC 20/04, the exercise itself forced policymakers to justiör a number of key assumptions about Soviet objectives and American capabilities_ This not only strengthened the intellectual basis for containment as a long-term policy, but confeffed legitimacy on the President's ultimate decision to follow the basic recommendations of Team A Ivith samples from the Other groups_ From Group C came Eisenhower's third-world policy_ uålile the United States would not roll back established communist states in Europe but rather adopt active and various military against lesser adversaries_
• Having looked at the basic policies advised by NSC 68 and NSC 162/2, it is now necessary to determine how precise the analyses presented in the papers turned out to be_ The following paragraphs will try to answer: at least in Part, how effcient the policies advised by the comrnittees were_ It will be investigated whether US decision makers misperceived Soviet defensiveness as expansionism or even created and exaggerated such claims for various domestic political reasons_
• With regard to Europe, the policies laid out in NSC-68 provided a solid theoretical basis for the success of U.S actions in Europe In Europe, the Communist states of Eastem Europe apart from fonner Yugoslavia were completely dominated by Moscow. Russian troops ivere stationed in Eastem Europe until the end ofthe Cold War, ensuring that the Kremlin would maintain an active role in the internal affairs of the occupied nations_ Generally: then_ it is fair to say that NSC-6S accurately assessed the state of affairs in Communist Eastem Europe_ In Western Europe, the United States were able to help build strong: prosperous and democratic states as buffer zones against the very real and dangerous Soviet threat, as shoun by the Berlin Crisis.
• Howewer accurate the authors ofNSC-68 were in describing Europe, they failed when it came to Asia. The Communist govermnents of China and Vietnam irre certainly not pawns of the Kremlin: and there Ivas ample evidence to reåLte the idea of monolithic intemational Communism: Mao went against the founders of the Communist Party in China when he decided to make peasants, not factory workers: the basis of his revolution_ In 1949 the U.S. backed Chinese Kuomintang was forced to flee to Taiwan by Mao s Communist Party: which consequently succeeded them Apart from the incorrect political statements about Asia: NSC 68 has several Other flaws_ hen in a time of heightened threat avvareness, it is questionable to determine national security requirements first and then adjust the fiscal Policy to finance the measures envisaged_
• In contrast to NSC-6S, Project Solarium and the resulting NSC 162/2 has been called a rare and valuable example of usehul strategic planning at the highest of the executii.e branch_ It is striking though: and seems to not have been taken into consideration that, while the acquisition of nuclear weapons by both the U_S_ and the U SSR created a condition of mutual deterrence in which both Sides were strongly inhibited from initiating general war, the Soviets consequently went on to pursue their objectives through a succession of local aggressions, either ovat or coven all of which could not be successftlly opposed by the allies th-ough localized counter-action Ivithout unacceptable commitment ofresources_

Schlüsselwörter

Die Schlüsselwörter und Schwerpunktthemen des Textes umfassen die frühe Cold War-Periode, NSC-68, NSC-162/2, die sowjetische Bedrohung, die Wahrnehmung der internationalen Ordnung, die Containment-Strategie, die amerikanische Außenpolitik, die Rolle der Ideologie, die militärische Aufrüstung, die nukleare Abschreckung und die Auswirkungen der jeweiligen Dokumente auf die amerikanische Außenpolitik.

• Hochschule: Lancaster University
• Veranstaltung: POL 320 American Foreign Policy
• Note: 72%
• Autor: Philipp Studt (Autor:in)
• Erscheinungsjahr: 2005
• Seiten: 8
• Katalognummer: V53223
• ISBN (eBook): 9783638487337
• ISBN (Buch): 9783656785521
• Sprache: Englisch
• Schlagworte: Which, NSC-68, NSC-162/2, American, Foreign, Policy