The USA strategy on NSC-68 came as a result of the Cold war. In late January 1950, Truman requested an in-depth report on the continuing world crisis. Paul Nitze drafted the NSC-68 and submitted it to President Truman in April.  President Truman was receiving the NSC-68 set in motion measures to curb the Soviet Union’s influence. Of particular concern to the president was the Soviet explosion of an atomic bomb. The administration had not expected the nuclear bomb until mid-1950 at the earliest. Truman quickly decided that the United States should proceed with the development of a hydrogen bomb. The objective of the USA strategy on NSC-68 was to ensure they won the Cold war.  For more information on the USA strategy on NSC-68, click

PRESIDENT TRUMAN RECEIVING THE NSC-68 AND ITS IMPACT ON THE COLD WAR

President Truman receiving the NSC-68 from Paul Nitze was at a time the Soviet Union’s influence was growing tremendously. The report began by noting that the United States was facing a completely changed world. Additionally, World War II had devastated Germany and Japan, and France and Great Britain had suffered terrible losses. This situation left the United States and the Soviet Union as the only two great world powers leading to the Cold War. According to the report, therefore, the development of nuclear weapons meant, “Every individual faces the ever-present possibility of annihilation.” Finally, the USA strategy on NSC-68 sought to make it the superior global power.

For more information on President Truman receiving the NSC-68 and its impact on the cold war, click  

THE COLD WAR AND THE RISE OF THE SOVIET UNION

The cold war involved the battle for supremacy between the Soviet Union and the US. The second half of 1949 had been a tough time for the Truman administration on the foreign policy front. President Truman receiving the NSC-68 report ensured that the US took the necessary steps to combat the Soviet Union. In August, the Soviet Union detonated an atomic device for the first time. Then, in October, Mao Zedong declared the establishment of the communist People’s Republic of China. That set off a bitter debate in the United States over who “lost” China. Lastly, USA strategy on NSC-68 aimed at dealing with the imminent threat posed by the Soviet Union.

For more information on the cold war and the rise of the Soviet Union, click 

Additional attachments

>> Download