the USA's involvement in Europe -> The launch of the Marshall Plan, June 1947 Flashcards
when was the Marshall Plan launched?
5 June 1947
outline the main events of the Marshall Plan:
- May 1947
-> Under-Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, Clayton returned from a fact-finding tour of Europe
-> concludes that European economies need to be revived to prevent damage of US economy
-> Kennan’s Policy Planning Staff (PPS) group states US should focus on rebuilding Europe rather than combatting communism - 5 June 1947
-> George Marshall reveals Marshall Plan aka European Recovery Program (ERP) - September 1947
-> Cominform is established
what did the PPS group think of the state of Europe?
- Economic, political and social structure of Europe more affected by WWII than communist activities
- US should focus on restoring Europe’s economic strength, rather than combating communism
who was George Marshall?
US Secretary of State from 1947-1949
what was the Marshall Plan?
- The Marshall Plan was a loan package intended to kickstart the economies of Europe
- by bringing out about economic recovery, the USA hoped to lessen the appeal of communism in Western Europe and promote European unity
what was a condition of receiving Marshall Aid?
A condition of receiving the aid was that recipients had to spend a proportion of it on American goods, allowing American companies access to its markets, and allow an international body to access economic information
How much money did the US provide as part of the Marshall Plan?
$13.5 billion to 16 different countries
-> Japan given $500 million to keep its economy going
-> 1946-54: Americans give the French $46 billion to fight the Vietnamese communists
Give an example that contributed to the US’ concern of political and economic stability in Europe
In 1947, French Communist Party had 1.7 million members
when was the Paris Peace Conference?
July-October 1946
what was the aim of the Paris Peace Conference?
- To draw up settlements for the defeated European powers (Hungary, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Germany, Italy and Romania)
- treaties included territorial adjustments, reparations and anti-fascist requirements for the post war governments
- settlements were not reached over Germany or Austria
how did Stalin view himself?
- the Pope of communism and its sole interpreter
- as a decider of shifts
- the ‘life-giving force of socialism, and the father of the people’s’
how did Stalin view Tito (Yugoslavian leader)?
‘the fascist intriguer and running dog of the imperialists
- ultimately, an agent of Western imperialism
- those communists who objected to developments were vilified as his supporters
Outline the events of the Prague (Czechoslovakia) coup:
- Soviet troops left Czechoslovakia in 1946
- Communists gained popular support (won 36% of the vote in the elections that year so played a leading role in the country’s coalition government.
- after the Czech government’s willingness to embrace Marshall Aid, Stalin instructed Klement Gottwald to secure a government freed of non-communist forces
- on 25th February 1948, the President, Edvard Benes gave way, forming a cabinet dominated by communists and their allies
- merely required a farcical election on 30th May to complete Czechoslovakia’s ‘delayed revolution’
what was Stalin’s main goal during the Prague Coup?
To stamp out the idea that there could be different ‘roads to socialism’ depending on local conditions in each nation
- this meant that communist leaders who believed they could follow their own socialist policy, independent from the Soviet model, were removed from office (Wladislaw Gomulka, Imre Nagy)
what did Stalin do when the Czech government announced an interest in the Marshall Plan in 1948?
- Stalin orders Klement Gottwald, a Czech communist and President after the coup of Feb 1948 to impose the Stalinist Soviet model of government on the country
- frames Laszlo Rajik as a Titoist who is executed for Titoism in October 1949
what did Molotov, the Foreign Minister criticise the Marshall Plan as being?
- Molotov, the Foreign Minister, criticised the Marshall Plan as ‘dollar imperialism’
- he believed that this US influence might start to spread into Eastern Europe and thereby undermine their sphere of influence and security
Which countries under partial communist control wanted Marshall aid?
Czechoslovakia and Hungary
How did Stalin respond to Eastern European states wanting Marshall aid?
- He believed it would result in the states committing themselves to a restoration of market economies and a degree of integration of their economies with those of Western European states
- so he ordered them to reverse their decision to receive Marshall Aid
why is the Soviet decision to reject the Marshall Plan a turning point
because Stalin and the Soviet leadership were initially enthusiastic about Marshall Aid as they wanted access to a source of funds to undertake post-war reconstruction and economic modernisation
when was the Paris Conference?
June-July 1947
what did the Soviets realise at the Paris Conference?
the Marshall Plan was effectively an anti-Soviet device
What did Molotov do during the Paris Conference on the 2nd July 1947?
On 2nd July 1947, Molotov left the conference and publicly rejected the offer of Marshall Aid
What were the Soviets angry about in regard to the Marshall Plan?
The Soviets were angry that the USA as assigning a central role to Western Germany in the reconstruction of Europe, and disliked the idea that a central organisation, controlled by the USA would have the power to intervene in and regulate the economies of the Communist bloc
what did the Soviet’s refusal to participate in the Marshall Plan signal?
- The Soviet’s refusal to participate in the Marshall Plan - and its refusal to allow its satellite states to do so - effectively signalled an end to the policy of co-operating with the USA
- it also signalled a deep-seated fear of not being able to contain US influence - and marked the start of attempts to both exert even greater control over the satellite states and bring the western powers back to the negotiating table
what was the overall effect of the Marshall Plan?
The Marshall Plan simply accelerated the division of Europe and further undermined the possibility of international relations being based on some degree of cooperation and consensus between the superpowers
