Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was also introduced in 1947, which provided economic assistance in Western Europe. Europe’s political and economic weakness provided Communists the opportunity they needed to spread their ideology. The United States offered aid to its allies and the Soviet Union to rebuild their devastated economies. The Soviet Union balked at the opportunity, but many other nations took the aid and rebuilt themselves.
One area in particular need after World War II was West Germany. Discussions during the Yalta Conference had centered on breaking up the country into specific zones. By 1984, Western Allies wanted to merge their three zones to form the Federal Republic of Germany, or West Germany.
Additionally, the western side of Berlin, which was technically in the Soviet region, was designated to become part of West Germany. Citizens living in Communist territories decided to flee to West Berlin. Stalin responded by blocking Allied access to Berlin and denying shipments of supplies to the area.
Map of Germany after WWII