Originally posted by Davo: but you'd think they'd at least remember that without America's nuclear umbrella, the USSR would have invaded, or at least attempted to invade, most of Europe.
Davo, would you mind citing your sources por favor.
I'm not sure I can bring up the invasion plans, but Kruschev pounding his shoe on his desk in the UN in 1956 and shouting to the US delegation, "We will bury you." doesn't fill me with a sense of love and well wishes from the then Soviet delegation.
I do admit, there were a good number of US generals and other leaders (US and her allies) who felt like perhaps after getting done with Germany in WWII we should have continued east...
TB
1945 to 1956 is 11 years and the fundamental change in the Soviet leadership (after Uncle Joe death in 1953). Also, the spread of Communism wasn't quite a simple matter for them - since more or less during the same period Red Communist China became one of their most significant adversaries - culminating in the border clashes around 1968.
But all of the above is besides the point. As I said, I didn't know whether such plans did exist - according to Davo's previous post - and our assumptions don't click right with the history.
Knowing and experiencing the afflictions of Communism first hand - I would still be inclined to say that the post WWII occupation of the Eastern Europe had more to deal with creating a buffer for the future wars than spreading Communism world wide. That's why the Soviets agreed to pull their troops from Austria (good for Wien Sean LOL) around 1953.
