Introduction

Studying important historical moments, one can pinpoint the primary event which raises the veil of the Cold War standoff – the Berlin Blockade. Indeed this article seeks to offer the reader a complete picture of the Berlin Blockade and an insight of the factors that actually culminated to the formation of this explosive event in the history of world politics.

The Cold War and division of Germany

Following World War II, Germany was divided into four zones controlled by the victorious Allied powers: presumably the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain and France. The four sectors of this part of the city included the American, British, French and Soviet zones, although this capital of the country was right in the middle of Soviet control of East Germany.

Declaration on Germany and Berlin represented a Cold war perspective – ideological warfare between the capitalist West and the communistic East. The status of the USA, Great Britain, France aimed at building Germany in the format of a united democratic state but the USSR wanted to keep the power over East Germany and build a socialist state.

The Emergence of West Germany

In 1948, the western Allies who administered the zones resolved to combine and the issuing of a new currency called the Deutsch Mark in western Germany. With the addition of the Deutsche Mark, the western powers were able to declare a policy to stabilize the economy and employment in it, to help spur the economy in their territories.

The plague of the Soviet Union is conceived in the introduction of the Deutsche Mark as a threat to the control of German capital. The new currency had the possibility to make West Germany more competitive and weaken the position of the Soviet supported East Germany authorities. In response the Soviet Union launched what is known as the Berlin Blockade.

The Causes for the Berlin Blockade

Soviet Perspectives of a United West Germans

The fact that the Deutsche Mark was introduced and the economic zones of the West were consolidated was regarded as a direct incitement in the Soviet Union. They believed that their West Germany would join the West and they saw themselves as a powerful military force. Joseph Stalin, the leader of Soviet, was of the opinion that he could stop the flow of influence of Deutsche Mark to East Germany by sealing off West Berlin.

Tensions and Broken Bargaining.

Injection In attempts to seek peaceful framework for the conflict between the Soviet Union and the Western powers failed due to escalating tension. Negotiations pertaining to the forthcoming fate of Germany failed, this mainly stemmed from the fact that both parties held ideological opposing views and political power and control over Germany.

The Impacts and Implications

The Berlin Airlift

As a result of this blockade, the Western allies embarked on an immense airplane food drop campaign to feed and fuel the cut off population in West Berlin. For almost a year airplanes of USA, Great Britain and other countries were delivering supplies while flying over the territory controlled by the Soviet Union. Performing this muscularity and unity are indispensable in unearthing that the blockade by the Soviet Union must give way.

 Cold War II and the Formation of NATO

The Berlin Blockade also increased the tension between the East and the West therefore making the Europeans divided. In the following year 1949 the west countries group together and created a military alliance called North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as the Soviet threat was seen by the western countries. The event [the blockade] turned into the image of the Soviet threat; it served to rally the West into one camp and to bolster determination to avoid further Soviet encroachment.

Conclusion

Hyped by the Soviet Union’s concerns about the united West Germany the Berlin Blockade underlined the ruptures of the Cold War period. They showed how intense the ideological conflict between the West which was dominated by capitalists and the East which was dominated by communists. Therefore, the consequences of the blockade were a part of the general formation of the Post World War II history and, undoubtedly, amplified the division between the West and East.

Significance of Studying Berlin Blockade There is need for students to make use of their knowledge in studying about the Berlin Blockade in order to understand the essence of Cold War as well as events that followed in the geopolitical realm. As such, it is creates awareness to the turbulence and helpfulness that prevailed in the history of Europe as well as the usefulness of peaceful settlement to fight between nations.