Truman's Foreign Policies

Question 1

What was Truman’s character like?

Answer 1

• plain speaking, hard working Southerner
• presidency characterised by desire to continue the success of Roosevelt’s ‘New Deal’ whilst easing the transition from a war time economy
• staunch anti communist and had no experience of international relations: therefore less willing to deal with Stalin
• inclined to lean on the advice of those he trusted, such as secretary of state Dean Acheson and Churchill

Question 2

What happened at the Yalta Conference?

Answer 2

• loose agreements made to split Germany into four zones to be controlled by the US, USSR, France and Britain
• this was to allow free elections in liberated countries in Europe and for the USSR to join the war against Japan after Germany’s defeat
• Stalin invited to join the United Nations
• conference halted a success by Roosevelt

Question 3

What happened at the Potsdam Conference?

Answer 3

• Truman determined to establish his reputation on the world stage and stand up to Stalin but resulting tension meant little was agreed.
• Stalin had to be persuaded into conceding free elections
• decision made to hold trials of leading Nazis
• Truman failed to mention the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, partly to prevent the need for promised Soviet aid and therefore denying them a place in future negotiations over Japan

Question 4

What was the Truman Doctrine?

Answer 4

• a military commitment to defend any country that was faced with a takeover by an armed minority
• triggered after soviets failed to leave Iran and Greek communists being supported by the USSR while destabilising the monarchy
• as a result, in 1947 Truman asked Congress for $400 million in military and economic assistance
• the Truman Doctrine, backed by an increase in defence spending promised by the NSC-68, was to inform US foreign policy for the next 40 years

Question 5

What was the Marshall Plan?

Answer 5

• offered financial aid to all European countries, including communist ones, to help rebuild their shattered economies
• Congress reluctant but approved plan after communists seized power in Czechoslovakia in 1948
• gave $17 billion, with bulk of the money going to the UK, France, Germany and Italy for four years from 1948

Question 6

What was the impact of the Marshall Plan?

Answer 6

• four years after created saw the fastest period of growth in European history, with industrial production rising 35%
• established the USA as the protector of Europe and further alienated Stalin

Question 7

What events triggered the Berlin airlift?

Answer 7

• in 1948, the USA, Britain and France discussed creating a West German government by combining their zones and reforming the currency to the Deutschmark
• people could easily cross from East to West Berlin and the presence of wealthy West Berliners in the communist East eroded Stalin’s control
• led to Stalin blockading Berlin, citing ‘technical difficulties’ as a reason for shutting down routes into the city

Question 8

What was the Berlin airlift?

Answer 8

• any attempt to enter Berlin by foot would have been considered an invasion
• instead, supplied the needs of 2.5 million people entirely by air
• over the next 324 days, 1.5 million tons of supplies were flown in on 275,000 flights

Question 9

What was the result of the Berlin airlift?

Answer 9

• Stalin lifted the blockade in May 1949
• Truman won the moral and propaganda victory
• justified the creation of NATO and the deployment of B-29 bombers in Europe
• established the Truman Doctrine as the basis of US foreign policy

Question 10

How was communist China established?

Answer 10

• after Japanese defeat, Jiang Jieshi and Mao Zedong met for talks on the construction of a post war government, coming to a fragile truce - meant by 1946 they were fighting a civil war
• Truman was unconvinced of the strategic importance of supporting the Nationalists given their inability to previously create a stable China
• still aware of potential political impact of losing China to communism, so sent in limited financial and military aid
• however, aid insufficient - Jieshi and the Nationalists fled to Taiwan with the gold supply and Mao established the People’s Republic of China

Question 11

How did the USA become involved in Indo-China?

Answer 11

• prior to the war, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam were part of the French empire
• during the war, occupied by Japanese who were fighting a guerilla force organised by Ho Chi Minh, who had formed the Indo-Chinese Communist Party to fight for French independence
• after Japan defeat, Ho Chi Minh expected US support for independence, given the US professed commitment to self-determination
• however, Truman supported France, covering 78% of the costs of their involvement

Question 12

How did the Korean War begin?

Answer 12

• after the war, Korea split along an arbitrary line called the 38th parallel, the USSR controlling the North and the USA controlling the South
• efforts to reunite the country were blocked the the USSR, so the US held elections in the South and the Soviets installed Kim Il Sung in the North
• when US troops were removed, 100,000 North Korean troops invaded the South and faced little opposition
• US led UN intervention began in July 1950

Question 13

What impact did the Korean war have?

Answer 13

• cost 14% of US GDP in its final year
• resulted in 138,000 US dead and injured
• drop in Truman’s approval rating: only 22% in his final year, leading him to not stand for reelection