How important was the formation of NATO in the development of the Cold War?

Discuss with reference to 1945 - 1955.

The Cold War was said to be triggered due to a change in perceptions of both the
US and the Soviets, which further escalated to them not wanting to cooperate
with one another due to factors like ideological conflicts, and this leads to a
breakdown in cooperation between the US and the Soviets. During the period of
Cold War, there are events such as the Truman Doctrine, sovietisation, Warsaw
Pact and the formation of NATO that contributed to the development of the Cold
War, some of them even escalating it.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949 may have a part to play in
the development of the Cold War, as it had actually resulted in the military
divide. NATO began the military split, but nevertheless NATO remained nothing
more than a political association until the Korean War of 1950 when an
integrated military structure was set up. Hence, NATO was not very important in
the development of the Cold War as it provoked no direct Soviet response and
was not taken seriously as a military alliance until 1980. There, the formation of
NATO still had a role to play in the development of the Cold War, but not quite an
important role.
The Warsaw Pact may be important in the development of the Cold War as it is
formed in response to the West Germany entry into NATO in 1955 which
formalized this scheme, however it was not an immediate response to NATO.
Hence it does not actually indicate a turning point in the US-Soviet relations and
it was actually less important in the development of the Cold War.
Sovietisation may be important in the development of the Cold War, as it was
practiced by the USSR in a bid to seize control of the Eastern European
governments by local communists backed by Soviet troops which were currently
occupying the various countries. This transpired in 1945 and lasted till 1948 and
occurred through the use of 'salami tactics'. Examples include in Romania, where
the National Peasant Party was suppressed and its leader, Iuliu Maniu was
sentenced to prison for life in June 1947. However, sovietisation in these two
countries did not constitute Soviet aggression for the case of Romania justifies
the Soviet Union in that there is at least tacit agreement on the part of the West
in what they are doing. Thus sovietisation there was not really seen as
threatening to the West. In addition, sovietisation did not result in a shift of
Soviet-controlled territory as Soviet troops had already been in the countries
during WWII. In January 1946, in view of the sovietisation of Romania and
Bulgaria, Truma had already concluded that they should not compromise any
longer and that he was tired of 'babying' the Soviets. Therefore, this shows that
sovietisation may not cause the start of the Cold War, but it had indeed
contributed to the development of the Cold War.
Truman Doctrine may have an important role in the development of the Cold
War, as it had changed perception of both parties towards each other, hence
leading to a breakdown in cooperation. The Truman Doctrine demonstrated the
Americans' first statement to combat Soviet aggression. When the British

withdrew from Greece having been unable to sustain operations in Greece while
there was communist involvement in the Greek Civil War, with the Soviets
demanding Turkey the right to access the Straits of Bosphorus and Dardanelles,
the Americans perceived the Soviets as wanting to expand. Thus, the Americans
wanted to end such an occurrence by providing aid to Greece and Turkey which
the Americans deemed as a fight towards totalitarianism. Coupled with the
Truman Doctrine, there was increased military preparedness in the Americans.
However, the Truman Doctrine elicited no response from Stalin and there was no
change in the US-USSR relations. IT was significant in laying the foundation of
the Marshall Plan in 1947. However, it did not directly cause the start of the Cold
War and instead, contributed to the development of the Cold War. The Truman
Doctrine might has signaled an intent by the Americans to fight against Soviet
aggression, however it did not elicit any response nor change in their
relationship.