After the Yalta and Potsdam conferences in 1945, with the increasing Soviet and British-US tensions, the expansion of the Soviet Union became a pressing concern for the West. The Soviet Union, an already communist society, was planning on spreading its influence throughout Western Europe as well as Eastern; to create "friendly states" along its border for various reasons. It was unclear where the Soviets would draw the line as to their expansion, so to combat the growing USSR-controlled communist monopoly, the US introduced a containment policy, intended to cause the collapse of the USSR and its satellite nations. The US had various reasons for implementing containment, mainly relating to the military, geo-politics/social issues, historical occurrences, and economics.
One of the main reasons that the United States decided to follow the containment plan and the Truman doctrine was due to potential military problems that Soviet expansion would present. The Truman Doctrine's main principle was that the USSR was to be stopped from expanding any further. If the USSR were to spread so far as the Mediterranean, and gain control of states there, their military powers would extend all the way to the Suez Canal. Even though two oceans border the US, giving it substantial protection against invasion, if Stalin obtained control of the Suez Canal, the US would be much more susceptible to attack by the Communist states, as navy navigation would be greatly facilitated by that particular feather in Stalin's cap. Furthermore, once the Soviets expanded their military by amassing their collection of "friendly" Communist States on their border, their aim of protecting themselves from invasion would be accomplished. For the US, this would present a problem further along the line if war were ever to be an option, unless they used nuclear power. Even though the Americans were in possession of the A-bomb, devastating the entirety of Europe, were it to be completely in Stalin's hands, was simply not an option, as destroying it would mean no chance of its resuscitation to perhaps democratize it again. Additionally, the Soviets' already formidable Red Army, a force to be reckoned with in the US' eyes, would expand along with territorial gains, and this was not something Truman wanted. Already, the USSR was perceived as "paranoid and neurotic", predisposed towards violence, and after the Potsdam conference, was regarded as untrustworthy. The notion of having the Soviet military grow even further with these attributes was unthinkable for Truman and his new doctrine. Also, the fall of Greece and Turkey in 1946 showed the Americans the extent to which expansion was occurring, and the possibilities of approaching war. After just having fought one war, the notion of encountering World War III was not something the US wanted to entertain. Military reasons were an enormous factor when the US decided to implement containment.
Further issues that the US considered when implementing containment were related to geo-political and social problems Soviet expansion would pose. If the USSR were allowed to expand into the Mediterranean, as previously stated, the Suez Canal would then fall into Soviet possession. As a key passageway, the Soviet Union would then have complete control over the traffic through this channel between the East and the West. This would give them untold power over the rest of the world, not excluding the US, a power the US was extremely unwilling to hand over to the Soviets. Moreover, control over the Suez Canal would mean having a monopoly over the abundant oil resources in the area. Oil, a vital commodity in world politics, practically represents political immunity for the state in control of it. Were Stalin to expand to the Suez, these resources would then fall into his hands, giving him further power over nations importing this precious commodity--nations like the US. In addition, control over regions such as the Middle East, an area torn by war and strife, already crumbling and corrupt, would be simple to secure; extending Soviet influence to the Middle East would mean great trouble for the Americans--another large area of the globe coming under Communism. As China was falling to the Communists, a neighbor of Japan--a rising world power--communism in the East was becoming a major issue for the US. If the entire Middle East were added to the mix, the "domino effect" would then ensue: the effect of allowing one regional state to fall to Communism means the imminent threat of the entire region, like a row of dominoes toppling. As mentioned beforehand, the possibility of WW III was also present, something which would present a massive social problem. Furthermore, if the Soviets actually had control of territory all the way to the Middle East, the USSR would have a huge advantage over the US in warfare terms, because of the geography of the regions in Soviet possession. Because of significant geo-political/social issues, the US felt compelled to apply containment to the Soviet Union.
The US also felt that if they sat back and let the USSR expand, history would repeat itself in a manner not in its best interests. After World War 1, when the US began to develop its isolationist policy, and allowed the appeasement of Hitler in 1939 and succumbed to his demands, Hitler then grew to conquer the world and cause much destruction throughout Europe. If the US were to take this same attitude with the Soviets, there would be no telling that similar situations would not occur. Truman especially held faith in this theory, and felt a strong hand was needed to deal with the Soviets. Although the rest of America wished to remain isolationist, Truman believed that if the US employed that strategy, they would have a replay of the aftermath of World War 1, which then lead to the devastation of World War 2. Repetition of history was something Truman fervently wanted to avoid, and felt that the way to do that was to establish the containment policy.
Lastly, it can be argued that the main reason that the US implemented containment was the economic consequences the US would be made to suffer were the Soviets to successfully expand their Communist territories. As the most powerful economy in the world, as a capitalist economy, the US was a firm advocate of free trade and open markets. If Stalin were to convert half the world into Communist states, states which the US had previously traded with, such as Italy, and the Middle East, who provided oil, the US' economy would be extremely adversely affected. The US would then have practically no new markets to discover, and could not have their own economy grow. The Marshall Plan of June 1947, one of the facets of the US' containment policy, involved giving $ 17 billion to revive the weak countries of Europe. Marshall had previously said that Europe was a "breeding ground for hate" due to its weak economic constitution, and those weak states were highly susceptible to adopting Communism. Because of its appeal to the average working man, Communism could possibly have been integrated into many of the post-wartorn nations of Europe, such as Turkey, Bulgaria, Austria, and Hungary. By providing economic aid, the US was essentially halting the spread of Communism, so that Europe could get back on its feet and so resume free trade with the US. Furthermore, if the Soviets were to gain control of such key points of global trade such as the oil monopoly and strategic trade locations such as the Suez Canal, the US would be economically answerable to the Soviets. As a major importer of oil, who used the shipping routes through the Suez, allowing the Soviets control of these aspects of global trade would be detrimental to the US' own economy.
The US' containment policy towards the Soviet Union was intended to limit the spread of Communism before it made its way through Western Europe and perhaps further. If the Soviet Union had been allowed to expand, the effects would have been disastrous to the US in their eyes, militarily, geo-politically/socially, historically, and economically. Because of these reasons, Truman and the Americans felt it was essential to take preventative measures and implement the containment policy.
Sources:
http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/aureview/1986/jul-aug/leonard.html
http://www.hfienberg.com/irtheory/contain.html
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/article_display.cfm?HHID=485
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