The Joint Chiefs of Staff and National Policy, 1945-1947

This volume was reviewed for declassification by the appropriate US Government departments and agencies and cleared for release. The volume is an official publication of the Joint Chiefs of Staff but, inasmuch as the text has not been considered by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, it must be construed as descriptive only and does not constitute the official position of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on any subject.

Washington, DC
August 1996

DAVID A. ARMSTRONG
Director for Joint History

Preface

This history is designed to present the actions of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in contributing to the formulation of national policy during the months following the end of World War II. The Cold War, which began in this period, was essentially a political struggle pitting the nations of the Western world, led by the United States, against the Communist bloc of nations under Soviet domination. Because this Cold War was not a shooting war and its main battles were political, the Joint Chiefs of Staff did not play a central part. Nevertheless, the presence of strong military overtones in any type of confrontation between two nations so powerful as the Soviet Union and the United States was inescapable. Hence the Joint Chiefs of Staff were concerned with almost every aspect of the Cold War to some degree. Political activities have therefore been described briefly but with every effort to avoid distorting the relative importance of JCS contribution in any particular case.

When the war ended in September 1945, most of the former belligerents experienced a traumatic reaction to the costly sacrifices and the terrible human suffering of the wartime years and looked forward to a resumption of peaceful pursuits. But as the armies of the Western world were being disbanded in haste and disarray, the Soviet Union kept its military strength almost at wartime levels, strategically deployed in Eastern Europe and in the Far East. This combination of factors created an extremely fortuitous climate for the realization of Soviet ambitions. Through the threat of military action, which they were fully capable of carrying out successfully, the Soviet Union imposed its will upon its neighbors and caused the Western nations to yield on important political issues. These developments had a profound effect on the postwar world.

There had been plain signs before the war ended that US and Soviet interests were moving into opposition. No one event, however, can be said to have marked the beginning of the Cold War, and few Americans realized that it had begun until it was well under way. They were slow to recognize, and reluctant to admit, that the wartime alliance with the Soviet Union was breaking apart and that the Soviets were, as a matter of national policy, taking unilateral actions directly against the interest of the West.

As shall be seen, the Joint Chiefs of Staff were among the earliest to recognize Soviet moves as a threat to US interests and to the peace and security of the world. This awareness of the dangers of allowing Soviet aggrandizement to continue unopposed is clearly evident in the few planning documents of the period. The growing Soviet capability and Soviet intentions inimical to the West are

frankly pointed out in these documents although they were embryonic and inconclusive and received only minimal approval and official sanction. The Joint Chiefs of Staff, although still functioning under the tenuous authority granted them in World War II, sought to promote military policies for the nation that would place it in the best possible military position to oppose Soviet actions. Their efforts were hampered by a massive reduction of US wartime strength and by service disagreements fomented and kept alive by special interests and rivalries for limited national resources.

American leaders were slow to react initially. But by the end of the period covered in this history they had become convinced that resistance to the Soviets was necessary. From this conviction stemmed such major national policies as the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan. By the nature of their advice to their superiors the Joint Chiefs of Staff were instrumental in bringing about these policies. Notable instances in which their counsel undoubtedly helped shape the national policy lie in their insistent warnings to the Secretary of State in the confrontation over the Turkish Straits and to the President in the matter of relations with the Soviet Union.

In preparing this volume the author has received invaluable assistance from experts in several fields. Among these have been Dr. Robert J. Watson, Chief of the JCS Historical Division and Mr. Kenneth W. Condit, Chief of the Histories Branch of the division, who have reviewed successive drafts of this history. Their judicious counsel has been instrumental in greatly improving the original manuscript and rendering a more balanced and readable presentation. In addition Mr. Condit has supervised all arrangements for physical production of this history to include its assembly and printing. Mrs. Janet W. Ball, Editorial Assistant of the division, performed typing, copy editing, and carried out other administrative requirements in connection with production. The extensive research in official files that was necessary in the writing of this history would not have been possible without the skillful and willing support of Mr. Sigmund W. Musinski, Chief of the Records and Information Retrieval Branch, Documents Division, JCS, and his very capable and responsive staff.

Since records for this period have been retired to the National Archives, it has been necessary to request the temporary transfer of numerous documents to the Pentagon for research purposes. In every case these requests have been met with dispatch and efficiency by Mr. William Cunliffe of the Modern Military Records Branch, Military Archives Division, National Archives and Records. The declassification of these records prior to their use in this history was carried out most effectively by CW4 William A. Barbee, Chief of the Declassification and Archival Branch, Documents Division, Joint Secretariat. Mr. Barbee was ably assisted in this function by Mrs. Janet M. Lekang of the same office.

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