The world that emerged after the second world war was characterized by the

emergence of two power blocs - USA and USSR.

even though during the world war both worked together as a team even though they
had some rivalries n power struggles between
them.
After the 2nd world war the two countries started facing hostility and mutual
suspicion.
The USA had it's own powers like it accounted for the world's 50% industrial
outputs , 46% of the world's electric supply
and 48% of the world's radios. It had the largest navyand air force in the world.
By making atom bombs it displayed it's technological
powers
The soviet union had it's own special traits like it made an impressive
contribution to defeat hitler and his allies though it suffered
alot of human and material resources loss.
Though its power base was not comparable to the US, it represented an ideology of
social justice and all round progress.

After the second world war these two superpowers emerged as the two power blocs .
The US was reffered to as the American bloc
or western alliance It had the capitalist idoelogy
The other power bloc was the USSR who was known as the eastern alliance or soviet
bloc . It followed the communist ideology
it had the advantage of a vast size .
USSR was able to install communist regimes in 7 east european countries : East
germany, poland,czechoslovakia , hungary, bulgaria
, romania and albania.
The USSR influenced cuba, north korea and north vietnam also .
The intense rivalry that developed between these two blocs and enveloped the whole
world from 1956-1991 known as the cold war

WHAT WAS THE COLD WAR?

It was a power struggle between the two superpowers because to each the other
seemed to have hegemonic ambitions and was
perceived as a threat.
Each side tried to increase its own influence by denouncing the other and the
conflict took place at several levels like proxy war,
arms race etc. Each side developed weapons capable of destroying all civilised
human life.
The war remained cold and and they made conscious efforts to avoid war between
themselves and tried not to behave like enemies
The cold war was centered in Europe where the confrontations seemed to be the
closest . The fierest struggles took place place
outside Europe- In Korea, Vietnam and in African countries.
The American scholars did not hold the soviet union solely responsible for the
cold war and pointed out a range of policies that
had alienated the soviet union since 1945.
Some even argued that it was America's aggresive intent that aroused soviet fears.
The cold war system is seen as a system in which policy makers at Washington and
Moscow mobilised their own populations to
support harsh and brutal measures directed against the victims .
In the name of defending free people from the soviet threat, The United States
invaded Korea,cuba,indochina and made moves to
overthrow the governments in the Latin American countries and Iran .
Similarly the Soviet Union sent tanks in East Berlin , Hungary, Czechoslovakia and
Afghanistan for defending it's own versions of
socialism and preventing the US from intefering.
The effect employed on both sides were similar.