How Did the Soviet Union View the Berlin Wall?
The barbed-wire barrier was constructed by the ‘German Democratic Republic in 1961 dividing East and West Berlin. This wall was a symbol of cold war and produced a major impact on the soviet union which was major partner who was mainly responsible for the construction of the wall and its operations. It would be important to look at the case of Soviet Union’s about the construction of the Berlin wall as this will help the student understand the politics of the region during that period.
The Cold War and Berlin Wall Context
Nevertheless, here are some essential facts to understand the Soviet Union’s perspective on this issue: In order to understand the Soviet point of view, there is one vital fact that has to be known – the Cold War. After the end of the Second World War the country was split into four zones that were occupied by United States, Great Britain, France and Soviet Union regimes. Berlin, situated in the middle of Soviet occupied area, was divided into four sectors as well.
During the post-war period, the political and ideological struggle between the Allies and the Soviet Union ensued to the extent that the Germany was divided into two within 1949; what was Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). This made the division of Berlin even worse as more and more of its residents moved from the eastern part to the western part where they could snapped better jobs and no intrusive rule of law.
Formerly known as East Germany, in 1961, the GDR built the infamous Berlin Wall with the support of the USSR to prevent citizens’ flight to the West. It also played an important aspect of propaganda and showed the difference between the Free World and the communism.
The Soviet Union’s Motivations
To explain the events concerning the perception of the Berlin Wall in the Soviet Union, several factors will be discussed below.
1. Preserving Ideological Control
The Soviet Union intended to remain in control over eastern Germany, its well-developed satellite state, to stop extension of the capitalist threat and influence. When constructing the wall, the Soviet Union aimed at preserving the socialism within its sphere of influence and the prevention of internal power weakness. Hence the wall represented the divide by two different systems of the world and the Soviet Union’s stand for its set ideology.
2. Halting the Brain Drain
The unification also meant East Germany lost a huge number of qualified personnel through emigration for better opportunities in the West. It resulted to shortage of human resource and experienced some economic challenges in the eastern countries. Thus, the construction of the wall was designed to stop this process and keep the talented and capable people in the East Germany.
3. Avoiding Escalation or Confrontation
The Soviet Union social goal was not to directly confront the nationalists in the west as this could lead to a nuclear warfare. Thus the Soviet Union tried to cool out the situation and really freeze the region by building the Berlin Wall that could protect the area from potential devastating battles that could happen.
Living with the Wall
It is in the same period after the construction of the Berlin Wall that the Soviet Union contributed politically militarily to maintain the GDR. It was complemented with watchtowers, guards, and various barriers, as well as a fairly significant width. Recalcitrantly, any attempted to tried to cross the walls would result to very serious consequences.
Such wall was symbolic barrier called the Iron Curtain, which was very real and easily recognizable by its residents. To do this, the Soviet Union used this division to first point out where the capitalist world went wrong and the advantages of the socialist system.
However, the formation of the Berlin Wall also had some negative impacts on the side of the Soviet Union as well. It was also a hostile act to the West which angered the international community and raised question over its capacity to manage this divided city. It also became symbolic of the inability to bring the people of Berlin together under communism.
The Fall of the Wall
At this time the political turmoil in Europe changed and there were potentials for the new development. During the 1980s, people in countries within the so called Eastern Europe craved for political freedoms and opposing communism. This is a period that saw civil unrest rise in Eastern Germany, thus presenting a major crisis for the Soviet Union to deal with.
Thus, the years of pressure led to the breakdown of the Berlin Wall on November 9 in 1989. This move finally marked a sign of fading Soviet control and eventually marked a turning point for the complete dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Conclusion
The Soviet Union considered, the wall as an essential barrier to control the influence of their region and to stop the growth of capitalist nations. Though the constructions served some of these purposes, the wall represented failure of the Soviet system. Symbolically, the fall of the wall signaled a change with reference to history signifying the end of the East bloc, the Soviet Union in particular, the weakness in the policy of the division of people by ideologies and the triumph of people’s desire to be free.
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