American History Chapter 15 Section 1

Yalta Conference In February 1945, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yalta. While at the Yalta Conference, they discussed Poland.

Poland As the Soviets liberated Poland from the Germans, they encouraged Polish Communists to set up a new government. Churchill and Roosevelt wanted the Poles to be free to choose their own government. Stalin however wanted a communist friendly Polish government which it had set up during the war.

Polish Compromise Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin compromised. The Communist government stayed, but Stalin agreed to include members of Poland's prewar government and hold free elections as soon as possible.

Dividing Germany The big three also agreed to divide Germany and the capital, Berlin into four zones. Great Britain, the United States, the Soviet Union, and France each controlled a zone.

War Reparations The Soviet Union and Stalin also demanded that Germany pay heavy reparations for the war damage it caused. Roosevelt suggested that Germany pay their war reparations with trade goods, industrial machinery, railroad cars, and other equipment.

Romania and Poland Just two weeks after Yalta, the Soviet Union forced Romania to form a Communist government. They also refused to allow elections in Poland.

Cold War Relations between the United States and the Soviet Union were strained from 1946 to 1990, an era known as the Cold War.

Different Goals & Ideas The conflict arose because the countries had different goals. The Soviet Union was worried about its security and wanted to keep Germany weak (Germany had twice invaded their land over the past 30 years). The Soviets also wanted to spread communism to other nations. The United States focused on economic problems. Americans believed economic growth and democracy were important in order to keep world peace.

Harry Truman and his views Vice President Harry S. Truman became the president after Roosevelt died in 1945. Truman was anticommunist and did not trust Stalin. He also did not want to appease Stalin. He demanded that Stalin hold free elections as promised.

Potsdam Conference Truman finally met Stalin in July 1945 at the Potsdam Conference (Potsdam, Germany), where they worked out a deal on Germany. Truman believed that Germany’s industrial economy had to be revived. He thought this was necessary for all of Europe’s recovery.

Potsdam Truman also thought that if its economy stayed weak, Germany might turn to communism. Stalin wanted reparations from Germany. He felt that the Germans should pay for the damage they caused to the Soviet Union.

Potsdam Truman suggested that the Soviet Union take reparations from the zone under its own control while the Allies would allow industry to revive in the other zones.

Compromise at Potsdam Truman also offered additional industrial equipment from the other zones in exchange for food from the Soviet zone, and offered to recognize the new German-Polish border. Stalin really did not like that proposal. However, Truman hinted that he had an atomic bomb. Stalin accepted!

Eastern Europe = Communism The Soviets refused to uphold the Declaration of Liberated Europe. They set up pro-Soviet Communist governments in Eastern Europe (Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia). These countries were called satellite nations. They had their own governments, but remained Communist and friendly to the Soviet Union.

Iron Curtain Churchill later called the Communist takeover of Eastern Europe an, “Iron Curtain” that separated Eastern Europe from the West.