ABSTRACT
The cold war started right after the end of World War II or, rather, after the Potsdam Conference. President Truman, with the help of Dean Acheson and George F. Kennan, developed the "policy of containment" as a counterstrategy. The Marshall Plan was crucial for Europe and the regeneration of the European economy. The assault of, Afghanistan was surely one of the worst miscalculations the Soviet Union ever made. The Politburo was convinced the rest of the world would be indifferent about the identity of the Afghan communist leader, whether his name was Amin or Karmal. In any case, the peace movement, together with the Greens and the Alternatives, is a new component of the European political culture. The best example is actually the Middle East where the danger of a war of surrogates between Syria and Israel is very real even though neither country accepts too much influence from its respective allies.
