Containment was a policy pursued by the United States and its allies to limit the expansion of Soviet power after World War II (1939-1945). The world’s first Communist country, the Soviet Union, had risen to become a global superpower. The Soviet Union encompassed all of Russia, along with the territories of 14 other present-day countries. The Soviet Union sought to expand its power through the spread of Communism. The United States and its allies tried to contain Soviet influence by working against Communist movements in other countries. The American diplomat George Frost Kennan is credited with developing this containment policy. The policy became the central U.S. strategy of the Cold War, a period of intense rivalry between Communist and non-Communist nations.
In 1947, President Harry S. Truman declared that the United States would help any free nation to resist Communist aggression. Congress approved his request for $400 million to aid Greece and Turkey in resisting Communist influence. Truman’s stance became known as the Truman Doctrine. The Truman Doctrine marked the beginning of the containment policy.
Containment expanded into the Far East with the Korean War (1950-1953). The war began when Communist-controlled North Korea invaded South Korea. The United States and its allies supplied troops and equipment to beat back the invasion and contain the Communist threat. The Vietnam War (1957-1975) marked another example of the containment policy.
In 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed, and Congress approved, a policy called the Eisenhower Doctrine. The policy pledged U.S. financial and military aid to any Middle Eastern nation that asked for help against Communist aggression. The Eisenhower Doctrine expanded the containment policy to include the Middle East.
The Cold War came to an end in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union. This marked the end of the containment policy.
