As with World War I, so too with World War II did the political geography of Europe change dramatically following the end of hostilities. In this case, there were adjustments in the Far East as well. And in both Germany and Japan, occupying forces held sway after the war. Germany was sectioned into various “zones” that were controlled by different Allied powers. Japan was put under the control of the United States, principally, with support from the British Commonwealth. Throughout Western Europe and parts of East Asia, the US-sponsored Marshall Plan for economic recovery went into effect, providing billions of dollars in aid. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union, having expelled Hitler’s forces from the east in Germany, played a major role in the German occupation and ultimately incorporated East Germany into the so-called Iron Curtain of communist Eastern Europe. In Japan, however, the Soviets were left out of the postwar occupation and rebuilding plan. A situation thus developed whereby political tensions increased between the Soviet Union and the West, producing the so-called Cold War. During the Cold War, Soviet and Eastern Bloc leaders continually challenged American and other Western leaders on the world political stage, only to be counter-challenged by the West in return. Adding fuel to the fire were growing caches of nuclear weapons on both sides. As the Cold War continued, positions hardened, ideologies (communism versus capitalism) took root, and proxy wars eventually erupted across the globe. The American strategy of “containment,” or limiting the spread of communism, became the order of the day in US politics and all US spheres of influence.

As with World War I, so too with World War II did the political geography of Europe change dramatically following the end of hostilities. In this case, there were adjustments in the Far East as well. And in both Germany and Japan, occupying forces held sway after the war. Germany was sectioned into various “zones” that were controlled by different Allied powers. Japan was put under the control of the United States, principally, with support from the British Commonwealth. Throughout Western Europe and parts of East Asia, the US-sponsored Marshall Plan for economic recovery went into effect, providing billions of dollars in aid. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union, having expelled Hitler’s forces from the east in Germany, played a major role in the German occupation and ultimately incorporated East Germany into the so-called Iron Curtain of communist Eastern Europe. In Japan, however, the Soviets were left out of the postwar occupation and rebuilding plan. A situation thus developed whereby political tensions increased between the Soviet Union and the West, producing the so-called Cold War. During the Cold War, Soviet and Eastern Bloc leaders continually challenged American and other Western leaders on the world political stage, only to be counter-challenged by the West in return. Adding fuel to the fire were growing caches of nuclear weapons on both sides. As the Cold War continued, positions hardened, ideologies (communism versus capitalism) took root, and proxy wars eventually erupted across the globe. The American strategy of “containment,” or limiting the spread of communism, became the order of the day in US politics and all US spheres of influence.