George Kennan can be considered the chief architect of the policy of containment against the spread of communism after WWII. According to Kennan, the Soviet Union had not abandoned its long-range goal of world domination but was unlikely to commit itself to a "do-or-die program" to overthrow capitalism since communist ideology dictated that capitalism was doomed to fall through its own internal divisions and contradictions. Since they believed time was on their side, the Soviets could afford to move cautiously and retreat in the face of superior forces. Thus Kennan suggested that "the main element of any United States policy toward the Soviet Union must be that of a long-term, patient but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies," together wit "the adroit and vigilant application of counterforce at a series of constantly shifting geographical and political points."
Containment: Truman's response to Soviet Expansion |