U.S. Foreign Policies (College Board AP® US History)

Study Guide

Kristin Marciniak

Written by: Kristin Marciniak

Reviewed by: Bridgette Barrett

Updated on

Summary

The United States had three main ways of dealing with the growing threat of communism and its possible expansion throughout the world:

  • Containment

  • Collective security

  • Military confrontations

The U.S. also restructured and increased its domesticdefenses to adequately handle homeland and international threats.

Containment

  • The United States adopted a containment policy toward communism in 1947

  • Its purpose was to prevent the spread of communism without starting a war

    • Containment was suggested in a document known as "The Long Telegram" by Soviet affairs expert George F. Kennan

The Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan

  • The Truman Doctrine (1947) was the first test of the containment policy

  • It responded to a communist-led uprising in Greece, and Soviet demands for some control of a Turkish water route

    • Congress approved $400 million in economic and military aid to help the “free people” of Greece and Turkey against communist regimes

  • The Marshall Plan (1947) was a $12 billion economic aid program meant to help war-torn Europe recover from the physical and political effects of World War II

  • The plan worked in Western Europe, where economies grew and communists didn’t find any political success

    • Of the countries in Western Europe, 17 accepted Marshall Aid

    • The Marshall Plan ultimately helped the U.S. economy by increasing American exports to Europe

    • Eastern European nations and the Soviet Union refused aid

      • They felt it would make them dependent on the United States

      • The Marshall Plan increased the bad feelings between the Soviet Union and the United States

Building Domestic Defenses

  • The United States government did some internal restructuring so that it could better handle the growing threat of communism

The National Security Act

  • Congress passed the National Security Act in 1947. This law created:

    • a centralized Department of Defense that coordinated the operations of the different military branches

    • the National Security Council (NSC), which makes foreign policy

    • the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), which gathers information on foreign governments

The arms race

  • The U.S. was also in an arms race against the Soviet Union to create the most destructive arsenal of weapons in the world

    • The Soviets successfully tested an atomic bomb in 1949

      • This prompted U.S. President Harry Truman to authorize the creation of a hydrogen bomb, which was completed in 1952

  • Simply having nuclear weapons was a deterrent

    • If one side launched theirs, the other side would too. Both countries would be destroyed.

    • This is known as mutually assured destruction

Collective Security

  • The United States adopted a policy of collective security during the Cold War

    • This is a system where countries agree to defend each other against aggression from any nation

    • An attack on one member state is considered an attack on all member states

  • The United States became a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949

    • This military alliance is an example of collective security

    • It consisted of the United States, Canada, and 10 European nations

      • U.S. troops were stationed in Western Europe to intimidate the Soviet Union against invading

  • The Soviet Union retaliated by creating its own collective security alliance, the Warsaw Pact

Military Confrontations & Détentes

  • There were times when the United States and the Soviet Union were on the brink of a physical war that ultimately didn’t happen

The Berlin Blockade

  • In June 1948, the Soviets cut off all land access to Berlin, Germany

    • The Soviet Union controlled East Berlin

    • The United States, the United Kingdom, and France held West Berlin

  • U.S. President Harry Truman had American planes fly in supplies to the residents of West Berlin

    • Knowing this would upset the Soviets, Truman also sent 60 bombers that could carry atomic weapons to air bases in England

    • Soviet leader Joseph Stalin didn’t challenge the Berlin Airlift

    • Had he done so, the Cold War may have become a full-blown "hot" war

    • The blockade ended after 11 months

    • The result was the official creation of two Germanys: the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (East German)

The Cuban Missile Crisis

  • In April 1961, U.S. President John F. Kennedy authorized the invasion of communist Cuba by CIA-trained Cuban exiles

  • Cuba is 90 miles from the southernmost point of the United States

    • American leaders were very nervous about how close communism had come to America's shores after the country's communist revolution in 1959

    • Cuba and the United States had a fairly close relationship prior to the revolution 

      • Cuba was a popular spot for vacations and growing businesses that would be illegal in America, such as casinos

  • The Bay of Pigs invasion was a failure

    • Cuban leader Fidel Castro got even more support from the Soviet Union after that

    • U.S. relations with the Soviet Union became even worse after the Bay of Pigs Invasion.

      • The U.S. refused to leave West Berlin during subsequent peace talks, so East Germany built the Berlin Wall

  • After the Bay of Pigs Invasion, Castro had the Soviets build underground missile launchers aimed toward the United States

    • The U.S. learned about this in October 1962 after a U.S. spy plane took pictures of the bunker construction

    • Kennedy announced a naval blockade against Cuba until the weapons were removed

      • Cuba and the U.S. were on the verge of nuclear war for 13 days

      • This is known as the Cuban Missile Crisis 

The Korean War     

  • There were also indirect proxy wars between communist and non-communist nations

  • The Korean War was a proxy war between communist North Korea and non-communist South Korea

  • North Korea invaded South Korea in June 1950

  • U.S. President Truman called a special meeting of the United Nations Security Council

    • The Security Council agreed to send UN forces (mostly U.S. soldiers) to help the South Korean army

  • Communist China became involved when UN forces got too close to China’s border with North Korea

    • Chinese troops drove UN forces out of North Korea

  • American General Douglas MacArthur wanted to expand the war and invade China

    • This plan did not follow America’s policy of containment, so Truman prevented MacArthur’s plan

  • Neither side won in the Korean War

    • The containment policy worked, but many Americans thought Truman wasn’t hard enough on communism

The process of détente

  • There were also periods of détente

  • U.S. President Richard Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger wanted to reduce the tensions of the Cold War

    • They did this by being critical of communist China while improving diplomatic relations with the Chinese

    • They used this new relationship with China to pressure the Soviet Union to sign a treaty that limited the development of antiballistic missiles (ABMs) that would carry nuclear bombs

This first round of Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (SALT I) dramatically slowed the arms race

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Foreign policy can be difficult to understand, especially when agreements and plans are spread out over several decades. Here’s a quick overview of America’s foreign policy goals during the Cold War and how some of them were fulfilled.

America’s primary foreign policy during the Cold War was containment. It pursued this goal through economic institutions, international aid, and collective security. The formation of NATO fulfilled the collective security piece of the circle. The Marshall Plan gave billions of dollars in economic relief to Western Europe after World War II, so that covered the economic institutions. The Truman Doctrine provided international aid for nations threatened by communism.

Worked Example

Which action by the U.S. government ultimately de-escalated the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union?

A. Threatening to overthrow the revolutionary leader of a Soviet ally nation

B. Using a Soviet enemy to pressure the Soviets to sign a nuclear treaty

C. Pulling United Nations’ forces out of a proxy war in Korea

D. Injecting billions of dollars into war-torn Western Europe

Answer:

B) Using a Soviet enemy to pressure the Soviets to sign a nuclear treaty. President Richard Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger did this after re-establishing diplomatic relations with China. China and the Soviet Union weren’t on the best of terms, and the U.S. used that to their advantage when negotiating the ABM treaty with the Soviets.

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Kristin Marciniak

Author: Kristin Marciniak

Expertise: History Content Creator

Kristin is a freelance writer and editor with 15 years of experience in educational publishing, specializing in grades 2–12 English Language Arts and Social Studies. She has authored 21 school library books, including LGBTQ Discrimination in America and The Revolutionary War: Why They Fought, and created over 40 study guides for literature and historical documents. Kristin also writes and edits textbooks, teacher’s editions, and test questions. A graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia with a degree in journalism, she enjoys teaching creative writing and hosting book clubs for tweens and teens.

Bridgette Barrett

Author: Bridgette Barrett

Expertise: Geography Lead

After graduating with a degree in Geography, Bridgette completed a PGCE over 25 years ago. She later gained an MA Learning, Technology and Education from the University of Nottingham focussing on online learning. At a time when the study of geography has never been more important, Bridgette is passionate about creating content which supports students in achieving their potential in geography and builds their confidence.

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