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Representatives of 50 nations met in San Francisco and signed the charter establishing the UN. It was intended to promote peace, but instead it became an arena in which the U.S. and the Soviet Union competed.
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The U.S., Great Britain and the Soviet Union met at the final wartime conference in Potsdam, Germany. Agreements were reached regarding occupation of former Nazi territories and reparations for wartime costs.
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Vice President Harry S. Truman became President following the death of FDR. Despite skepticism from many Americans, Truman proved that he had willingness to make tough decisions and high integrity.
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George F. Kennan, an American diplomat in Moscow, proposed a policy of containment. By this he meant to prevent the spread of communism to other nations.
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Secretary of State George Marshall proposed that the U.S. provide aid to all European nations that needed it. He justified it as a way, not to oppose the Soviet Union, rather to oppose human suffering.
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Truman asked Congress for $400M in economic and military aid to help Greece and Turkey resist communist takeover. This established a policy of supporting people who are resisting subjugation.
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Stalin closed all transportation routes into West Berlin, preventing food, medicine and other supplies from reaching the 2.1M residents. American and British planes dropped supplies into West Berlin for 327 days.
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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a defensive military alliance, the first ever joined by the U.S. during peacetime. Twelve nations joined initially. Three more joined within the next several years.
