In March 1946, then British Prime Minister Winston Churchill delivered the Iron Curtain Address, which marked the beginning of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. Since then, U.S.-Soviet relations have entered a frozen period, and it can even be said that the two countries are hostile to each other and are looking for opportunities to suppress each other. But at this time, the United States had 100 aircraft carriers and tens of thousands of bombers, so why didn't they choose to attack the Soviet Union?
First, the Soviet Union suffered heavy losses in World War II, but the United States achieved certain development
On September 1, 1939, Germany launched a "blitzkrieg" against Poland, marking the beginning of World War II. Later, Germany continued to win, defeating the Netherlands, Belgium, France and other countries in succession, and these victories increased Germany's confidence. On June 22, 1941, Germany unilaterally tore up the Soviet-German Non-Aggression Pact and attacked the Soviet Union, from which point the Great Patriotic War began.
At the beginning of the war, the Soviet Union did not expect the Germans to attack suddenly, so they were caught off guard and suffered heavy losses. Fortunately, the Soviet Union showed the reaction that a great power should have, quickly organized its army to counterattack, and successfully stopped the pace of the German offensive. On December 7, 1941, the German army attacked the Soviet capital Moscow, the Soviet army put up stubborn resistance, and finally repelled the German army, and this defeat gave the Soviet Union a huge boost in morale, laying the foundation for the subsequent victory in the Battle of Stalingrad. On July 7, 1942, the Germans, who had lost several times, were so angry that they launched an all-out attack on the Soviet Union, and this war was the Battle of Stalingrad, but the German desperate attack failed. On February 2, 1943, the Battle of Stalingrad ended with the total annihilation of the Soviet Union in the Stalingrad area. Since then, the Soviet side has begun to launch a comprehensive counteroffensive. In April 1945, the Red Army captured berlin, the capital of Germany. In April 1945, Germany read out the armistice. Although the war ended in a Soviet victory, it was a crushing victory for the Soviet Union. Throughout World War II, the Soviet Union lost nearly 20 million people, and much of the country had been turned into wasteland. What about the United States? The United States has always been a very good at calculating countries. In the early stages of World War II, the United States was not affected by the war, they chose to stand by and watch, just as the so-called matter did not care about themselves, hanging high, this is the most true portrayal of the United States at that time. Even the United States sold weapons to countries in need, which made the total economic volume of the United States at that time reach one of the best in the world. But at this time, the little brother of the United States, Japan, they did something that surprised the whole world, that is, they launched the Pacific War. In 1941, the Japanese army attacked Pearl Harbor, the American army suffered heavy losses, the Japanese army that attacked Pearl Harbor did not immediately withdraw, but attacked the US air base stationed in the Philippines, and captured a large number of American troops and American civilians, most of whom were tortured and killed by the Japanese army.
This infuriated the United States, which split into two routes, helping the Soviets to repel the remnants of the German army on the one hand, and carrying out a frenzied retaliation against the Japanese army on the other, and in August 1945, the United States dropped two atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan. On August 15, 1945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender. Therefore, compared with the Soviet Union in World War II, the losses of the US military were very small, and because it obtained a large amount of war wealth, the United States also achieved certain development. So after the end of World War II, the U.S. military still had 100 aircraft carriers and tens of thousands of bombers, so why didn't the U.S. army attack the Soviet Union at the beginning of the Cold War?
Second, the domestic reasons why the United States did not attack the Soviet Union
At the end of World War II, the U.S. army still had more than 8.3 million troops, but most of the American people were reluctant to continue the war, because only civilians were harmed in the war. At that time, after the United States was attacked on Pearl Harbor, it chose to participate in World War II, and this proposal was opposed by some Americans. However, the territorial sovereignty of the United States was violated, and most of the American people were still very angry, so the US military later participated in World War II. But now that the Soviet Union has not provoked the United States, the American people will certainly not choose to attack the Soviet Union because of the deception of some American politicians.
And the United States wants to start a war, not the President of the United States decided in a word, but also with the consent of the United States Congress, and another reason why Congress also wants to listen to the opinions of the American people is that although the United States lost relatively little in World War II compared to the Soviet Union, it also suffered millions of casualties. And these people are the relatives and friends of ordinary Americans, and the American people are not willing to bear the pain of losing their loved ones again. Therefore, after the end of World War II, the United States carried out a major disarmament, and some military personnel also chose to retire, so the number of American soldiers was also reduced.
Third, the external reason why the United States did not attack the Soviet Union
The second reason why the United States did not attack the Soviet Union was because although the Soviet Union suffered serious damage in World War II, its strength should not be underestimated. Although the war caused the Soviet Union to suffer huge losses, the Soviet army that experienced the baptism of war had a certain improvement in personal ability, so although the number of Soviet troops was reduced, the quality was improved a lot. After the end of World War II, the total strength of the Soviet Union was still about 12 million, which was no less than that of the United States. Moreover, the Soviet Union collected a lot of weapons from Germany, so the number of Soviet tanks in the post-war Soviet Union was still about 20,000, and there were still about 20,000 fighters, which was not much less than that of the United States, and even a little more than the Soviet Union in some aspects. Then one might say, didn't the United States have an atomic bomb? By 1947, the United States ostensibly possessed only 25 atomic bombs, and the Soviet Union had an area of more than 22 million square kilometers.
The last reason was that Britain was greatly weakened in World War II, and instead of attacking the Soviet Union, the United States should eat away at Britain's strength. Although the Soviet Union lost some strength in World War II, it still had the strength of World War I, but Britain was different, Britain was completely destroyed by Germany in World War II, and the former empire that never set was gone. The British, on the other hand, were so badly damaged that they were completely incapable of taking care of the colonies they had previously established, and if they did not take any measures against britain, britain would soon be able to recover from the colonies. But this period of British weakness gave the United States the opportunity to encourage the people of the British-occupied colonies to resist in the name of freedom, and secretly gave assistance to the people of these colonies to help them gain independence. Britain, which was unable to protect itself, had no heart to manage these colonies at all, and could only allow them to become independent.
Britain's supply line was cut off, and it could no longer regain its status as an empire that never set, and the United States took the opportunity to become a world superpower. So although the United States did not attack the Soviet Union, they still gained huge benefits, which was still very profitable for them.