George Kennan

George Kennan

George Frost Kennan was arguably one of the most influential policy makers in American history. As a graduate of Princeton University, Kennan spent most of his life a voracious learner, developing an interest in Soviet affairs from his time spent at the University of Berlin. He then became a third secretary and eventually a part of the United States embassy in the Soviet Empire. This history with and intense study of Soviet affairs led Kennan to be better qualified than most in the way to go about creating policy with the Soviets. Even so, Americans were hesitant to listen to what he had to say.

His policy was simple; the idea of containment. He believed that any further negotiations with the Soviets were futile and that America needed to halt diplomatic relations with the country. Rather than trying to appease Soviet powers, he believed that the creation of spheres of influence should be made, so that America could stop communism from seeping into other countries that could then rise up against them and the rest of the world. As this was one of Marxist, leninist, and Stalinist goals, this idea was developed from solid ground. Overall, Kennan wanted to contain communism and stop it from spreading by either force or ideological draw. While Kennan may not have realised what he was asking for with his idea for a sphere of influence, his policy could arguably be the reason behind the cold war.

When dissecting the influence of the policy of containment, it is important to understand that it was the background for the Cold War, the Vietnam War, and the Korean War. In the Cold war, the development of a sphere of influence and a halt to diplomatic relations led to two hostile spheres, one communist and the other “democratic”. These spheres were developed through both the ideological influence that either side had over a specific region, such as the ties between many European countries and the United States, as well as through forceful backing of new political parties, such as the American backing of a coup in Guatemala. However, as discussed in many historical documentations as well as in our own AP US history class, these coups rarely worked out well. As a matter of fact, these coups never worked out well. Two very important examples would be the US “aid” which led to full out war in both Korea and in Vietnam. In Korea, the United States were fearful of the communist North invading South Korea. They sent troops to help the South defend itself, and then under General Douglas MAcArthur, they tried to invade the North to unify Korea under the American democratic influence. However, the North, backed by China, retaliated and eventually forced the US to withdraw troops. A very similar occurrence plagued the US foreign appearance, but in Vietnam the Vietcong were the ones to force an end to US occupation. Overall, it is clear to see that Kennan’s influence in the West was incredibly powerful.