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1 - The Postwar World

from Part I - Ambition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 May 2024

Sergey Radchenko
Affiliation:
Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe
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Summary

Was the Cold War inevitable, and who is responsible for its outbreak? This chapter argues that, as the Second World War neared its end, Joseph Stalin was shopping for a great bargain with the Allies, in keeping with Russia's realpolitik tradition. While the details of Stalin's vision remain blurry, evidence from internal Soviet deliberations in 1944–45 points to a broadly imperial, nineteenth-century, conceptualization of the Soviet role in Europe. Stalin sought both power and legitimacy, and understood that the Americans could endorse or reject his postwar claims. He could and did measure his appetites in pursuit of legitimate gains—those that had Washington’s imprimatur. Despite his efforts to achieve legitimacy at Yalta, Stalin’s hopes for a Soviet–American agreement to divide the world soon began to run aground, largely owing to his own rapacity and bad faith.

Type
Chapter
Information
To Run the World
The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power
, pp. 17 - 38
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • The Postwar World
  • Sergey Radchenko, Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe
  • Book: To Run the World
  • Online publication: 30 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108769679.003
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  • The Postwar World
  • Sergey Radchenko, Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe
  • Book: To Run the World
  • Online publication: 30 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108769679.003
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • The Postwar World
  • Sergey Radchenko, Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe
  • Book: To Run the World
  • Online publication: 30 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108769679.003
Available formats
×