Economic Warfare During The Cold War

Abstract

Cold war struggles between the United States and the Soviet Union manifested in many dimensions. Due to the enormous nuclear weapon arsenal available to the two superpowers, the probability of armed confrontation between them was minimal, so other forms of geopolitical struggles came to the fore. One of these alternative forms was economic warfare. Whereas the American economy was stronger and more efficient than the Soviet economy, therefore the means of economic warfare were used primarily by the United States, nevertheless even the Soviet Union applied sometimes these tools. The aim of this paper is to examine and evaluate the tools of economic warfare applied in the cold war period, such as Marshall-plan (1947-52), COCOM-list (1947-1994), arms race (1980s), manipulation of oil prices (1980s), grain embargo (1980), debt trap (1980s) and Berlin blockade (1948- 49). When it is possible this paper tries to quantify (in USD) the effects of these certain economic tools. The research came to the conclusion that the effects of these geoeconomic tools show great differences. While arms race or COCOM-system were successful, grain embargo and Berlin blockade were more likely to be unsuccessful. This paper analyses the key parameters of these economic tools and points out some factors of the success. These results can be useful in planning geoeconomic strategies even in the 21st century, because cold war experiences help to choose the best possible economic “weapons” in certain geopolitical situation.