The Cold War was a conflict of values and ideologies between the United States and the United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR). Western countries wanted the liberated states of Eastern Europe to be ruled with a democratic government and a capitalist economy. Joseph Stalin felt entitled to rule the Eastern European countries it occupied in World War II. Stalin wanted these countries to be used as a buffer to protect USSR boarders. Communist governments in these …showed first 75 words of 1561 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1561 total…aggressive foreign policy. Prime Minister Malenkov and Foreign Minister Molotov warned against involvement in the Middle East, since British and US navies controlled the Mediterranean. However, Khrushchev and his allies prevailed and began secretly arming Nasser in 1955. Consequently the Soviet Union had an ally in the Middle East. This established a foothold for the Soviet Union beyond the Communist world. The West was being challenged in what was in its monopoly of the Third World.