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What is foreign policy? 621

During this period the United States implemented several measures to build

and strengthen alliances against the Soviet threat. The first was the Marshall Plan,

a series of aid and development programs enacted in the late 1940s to restore the

economies of Western European countries devastated during World War II.^17 The

United States was also instrumental in the formation of the World Bank and the

International Monetary Fund (IMF), as well as international trade agreements such

as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (we will discuss these institutions in

more detail later in this chapter).

The Marshall Plan, which helped

European nations rebuild their

economies after World War II, was part

of America’s strategy to build alliances

against the Soviet Union.

The United States also formed alliances with other countries, including

the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949. The goal of these

organizations was the maintenance of collective security, based on the principle

that “an attack against one is an attack against all.”^18 The aim was to deter Soviet

attacks throughout the world by formalizing America’s commitment to defend its

allies. The Soviets formed their own alliances, most notably the Warsaw Pact, with

nations in Eastern Europe.^19

The United States was also behind the 1945 creation of the UN, an international

organization with the aim of preventing wars by facilitating negotiations between

combatants and, if necessary, sending military forces from member states to stop

conflicts. The UN has also been instrumental in administering relief efforts for

refugees, running development efforts, codifying international law, and publicizing

and condemning human rights violations.

Clearly, the goal of containment influenced every aspect of American foreign policy

after World War II.^20 The Korean War, in which American troops defended South

Korea against invasion by North Korea, was motivated largely by containment—North

Korea’s efforts had the strong support of the Soviet Union and China.^21 America also

supported brutal dictators in other countries, such as the Shah of Iran during the 1970s,

and overlooked these governments’ dismal human rights records on the grounds that

their leaders would be valuable allies against the Soviets.^22

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