Collaspe of the Soviet Union Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Collaspe of the Soviet Union - Essay Example In understanding how the collapse affected the west it is important to understand what the collapse entailed. Until 1991 there had been two major superpowers battling for supremacy, this occurred in many areas; space travel, economics and the aggregation of various cultures and countries. This was accomplished through direct interference and outside pressure using various propaganda approaches as well as financial and physical methods. The West up to this point had been, at least in the West, the ideal of civilization, with a solid mixture of physical liberty and fiscal freedom and ability. With the vacuum that occurred as a result of the collapse of the U.S.S.R. There was now a direct competition between â€Å"western† influences to gather more abilities and support. The West had as a result gained the upper hand however, as a result of the militarization that occurred during the â€Å"cold war† the United States now has a large military force that is has no given obje ctive and needed to be put to use. As a result of the â€Å"cold war† defense spending in the United States had doubled in the 1980’s and the size and ability of the United States military had expanded to fill the roles needed as a front line and support in this â€Å"cold war.†