The Formation of NATO

1. Look at Source 2. What did NATO members agree to do?    
They agreed to keep up defenses on an armed attack against them, and that they would defend each other if any one of them were attacked. 


2. The members of NATO argued that this was a defensive alliance. Explain why Stalin was not convinced about this.    
Stalin believed that the Western Powers were trying to spit the world into two military blocks right at each others throat. He saw it as a threat on Soviet control in Eastern Europe as they prepared for "defense". 


3. Study the cartoon in Source 4. Does the cartoon give the impression that Stalin feels threatened by NATO?     
The cartoon gives the impression that Stalin does feel threatened. He has a whole group of leaders against him and doesn't seem to know what to do. In the cartoon he looks perplexed and unsure about what to do with his hand. 


4. Explain how Sources 4 and 5 present NATO in different ways.   
Source 4 shows NATO as a delicate card game in which the leaders of NATO have the upper hand. Source 5, on the other hand, shows NATO as a vicious animal ready to attack the Soviet Union at any time. 


5. Now explain why they present NATO in different ways.     
The cartoons present NATO in different ways because Source 4 was made in America and therefore shows a more favorable view of how the leaders are handling the evil Communists. Source 5 was made in the Soviet Union, therefore they wanted portrayed the NATO, the vicious capitalists, as being much more aggressive than reality.