What was the direct impact of the dropping of the Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to rela...

1. The Cold War: What Do "We Now Know" By: Melvin Leffler

1.1. Soviets wanted to prevent Germany from rising after defeat and spread communism

1.2. United States wanted to revive European economy and prevent spread of communism

1.3. Stalin’s decisions derived from his pursuit of Soviet security

1.4. Stalin had no desire to start the Cold War, but was stuck in a position where it was necessary to react in an aggressive manner in order to defend all that had been accomplished regarding communism and post war world policy

2. Potential New Question: What was the direct impact of the existence of the Atomic Bombs to relations between the U.S.A. and the U.S.S.R. immediately following the Second World War? Following decade?

3. Martin Leffler and the Origins of the Cold War By: Marc Trachtenberg

3.1. United States intent was not to provoke the Kremlin but they knew the consequence of their actions.

3.2. United States goal was not slowing down to care to the concerns of other nations but rather just wanted to show their power and spread democracy

3.3. Neither side wanted to harm each other, however each took steps with aroused the others apprehensions. Their actions "fueled the cycle of distrust as neither could comprehend the fears of the other, perceiving its own actions as defense.

4. Stalin and the Bomb: The Soviet Union and Atomic Energy 1939-1956 by David Holloway - a review by Amy Knight

4.1. After the bomb was dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki Stalin made creating an Atomic Bomb top priority for the Soviet Union. He dedicated tremendous economic and scientific resources to its development.

4.2. Stalin did not realize the implications pf the bomb until it was dropped on Japan.

4.3. Nothing could deter Stalin from the goal of developing thermonuclear weapons

5. Book Review of The Atomic Bomb and the Origins of the Cold War by Campbell Craig and Sergey Radchenko

5.1. The Cold War arose as a byproduct of the increased tension between the United States and the Soviet Union during World War II.

5.2. the dropping of the atomic bombs on Japan was a wake up call to the Soviets that they needed to push to become a world superpower.

5.3. The backfiring of the Baruch Plan at establishing effective international atomic control, was one of the first acts of the Cold War

6. Book Review of Stalin and the Bomb: The Soviet Union and Atomic Energy By Odd Arne Westad

6.1. Stalins decimation of Soviet scientists and engineers during his purge detered quick progress in the development of the Atomic Bomb.

6.2. Soviet scientists did not show the same concern for how the bomb would be used in comparison to the scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project. They just kept their heads down and built the bomb.

6.3. Stalins interventions in Poland, Germany, and in relation to nuclear polices was the main reason behind the disagreements with the U.S. which led to the Cold War.

7. The Atomic Bomb and the Origins of the Cold War: U.S. Atomic-Energy Policy and Diplomacy by: Martin J. Sherwin

7.1. As soon as the bomb started to be developed it became a essential part of the war effort for the U.S.

7.2. The bomb began having a diplomatic impact as earlt as 1943 with Roosevelt and after a successful test in 1945 it gave Truman an extreme amount of confidence in his postion as a World Leader and America as a World Power.

7.3. Roosevelt feared the reaction of the Soviets when they discovered that the bomb was being developed behind their back. However, Truman had no such thought and was more concentrated on winning the war rather than making the Soviets happy.

7.4. The bomb could have been used to initiate a diplomatic effort to work out a system for its international control, or it could remain isolated during the war from any cooperative initiatives and held in reserve should cooperation fail.

7.5. The failure of the United States Presidents to form a world-wide atomic-energy policy prior to using the bombs led to the distrust between the U.S. and the Soviet Union and was the ultimate reason behind the start of the Cold War.