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The beginning of the Cold War could be traced back to Churchill's use of the term "Iron Curtain", on 3 May 1946. This came to symbolise the beginning of the Cold War because it was the period marked by political tension and military rivalry, stopping just short of escalating into full-scale war, between the West as represented by the USA, and the East headed by the Soviet Union.

However, the Cold War did not have an "official" start date with a single day in mind. Some historians feel it began at the end of World War II, in late 1945, when Josef Stalin of the USSR refused to let the Eastern European nations go after the war. The US, Britain and France demanded the nations be allowed to chose their own types of government. Stalin was not going to let that happen, and his actions escalated the arms race of the Cold War. Some historians suggest it began in 1949, after the Yalta Conference.

The Cold War could really only truly be seen to have ended with the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of the two Germanys - one symbolising the East and the other symbolising the West - in 1990. Shortly after this, many Russian states began to break free, seeking independence from Russia.

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13y ago

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