Cold War - Consolidation

Western bloc:

• A historian called Hogan argues that the US intended to rebuild EUR in the image of the US, making them politically and economically united. This would defer people from Communism and boost trade
• FRA saw this as a way to harness resources from the FRG in order to prevent a powerful DEU
• BR sought closer links with the US, and saw NATO as a way to rearm FRG and align it with the West

Eastern bloc:

• From 1948, Communists dominated E.EUR governments
• Theoretically all remained independent, but all except YUG adopted cultural, military, economic and social policies

• By 1949, division appeared in E.bloc between USSR and YUG
• Tito, Communist leader, had been praised in 1947 as a loyal and effective ally to the USSR. However, Stalin had reserves about him. He was critical of YUG attempts to play independent role in the Balkans
• Winter 1947-8 - Tito talked of forming a Balkan Federation, including GRC, BUL and ROU. This alarmed Stalin. Tito also placed troops in ALB to protect GRC Communist guerilla camps without consulting Stalin or the ALB leader, Hoxha.
• Stalin worried it would make the YUG Comm. Party the most powerful in the Balkans and one that he could not manipulate, and feared it would provoke the US when tension was already escalating over DEU.

• Communnist party officials from BUL and YUG were summoned to Moscow in Feb 1948. Stalin rejected the idea of stationing YUG troops in ALB and proposed a BUL-YUG union, instead of the Balkan Federation. The two states would also be expected to commit to consult with Soviet officials concerning foreign policy
• Tito refused to subordinate foreign policy to the USSR, and rejected union with BUL
• Stalin therefore removed advisors and personnel from YUG and accused leaders of being political and ideological criminals. 
• June meeting 1948 of Cominform (after pressure by USSR), the eastern bloc and Western EUR communists expelled YUG from the organisation. 
• YUG was the first state to defy Stalin

Tito turned to the west for help...

• Abandoned support for GRC communist rebels. In return, the US and BR sent arms and financial assisstance
• The CIA worked with the YUG secret service
• 1954 - YUG, GRC and TUR (latter two both in NATO) signed Balkan Mutual Defence Pact, aimed at the USSR and allies
• Distanced himself ideologically - broke with Soviet model of centralised and controlled economy. 
• 1950 - experimented with workers' self management of factories. In 1952, they stopped fixing prices and business could export without gvt interference. However, they still controlled banks and investment.
• NATO was encouraged to explore ways of weakening the USSR's position in E.EUR by: financially helping E.EUR refugees, encouraging other to flee the Soviet bloc; giving assisstance to YUG etc. 
• But NATO, USSR and USA were not ready to risk war