‘McCarthyism was responsible for moving US foreign policy towards a global rather than a regional focus during the years 1950 to 1954.’ Assess the validity of this view.

P1 - Mccarthyism

• Feb1950 speech in Mcclure hotel → Accusations of communists infiltrating US State Department caused fear in citizens & lack of trust with govt who thought Truman’s policies could be influenced by infiltrators → forced Truman to adopt 'Asia first' attitude' and take a more proactive approach to containment

• Anti-com due to the USA under pressure from the perceived threat of com: USSR bomb 1949, the same yr China became communist and 1950 Sino-soviet alliance

• Led to HUAC testifiers, death penalty of alleged com spies likes the Rosenberg’s June 19 1953 and suspected com in Hollywood actors and filmmakers. Even Hoover’s reeducators → Indirectly strengthened NATO bc Britain was afraid of communist takeover in Europe

• However:

• More domestic & internal investigations of suspected communists so lacked a global focus. Asia first had already begun under Truman

P2 - New Look Policy Oct 1953

• Wanted to reduce conventional troops so focused on nuclear expansion— global impact as it led to the arms and space race with countries like China and the ussr competing in a battle of firsts.

• Roll back- and extension of containment

• Massive retaliation - expansion of nuclear capacity seen in NSC 162/2 and the h bomb 1000 times more powerful than Hiroshima bomb → This intimidation & nuclear prowess of the US did have impact on the US’s relationships with other countries as it led to alliance system & nuclear umbrella to shield its allies whilst they provided ground troops.

• Underpinned the US FP that was used under Eisenhower and globalised containment

• However:

• Truman already shifted to Asia first as he saw Asia as a 2nd front & defended Taiwan.

• Massive retaliation already planned in operation unthinkable under Churchill in 1945 to push back communist forces after the Lublin govt was installed in Poland despite the valiant fighting of the poles

P3 - Korean war

• Korea was not included in the Acheson defensive perimeter speech jan 1950

• NSC-68 april 1950

• First hot conflict - 25th June 1950 to July 1953 Armistice ends war

• Paved way for proxy wars

• Involved the UN, china ,ussr, USA, nk and nk

• Globalisation of containment

• Led to SEATO Sept 1954 which also paved the way for alliance systems like CENTO in 1955

• However:

• NSC-68 was not a change in of itself because it was only a change approach to containment bc it did not rewrite the Truman doctrine or containment

Conclusion

• Kw Asia first set the style of every American - soviet fp in the Asian theatres of the CW