| George F. Kennan’s Magazines | |
|---|---|
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Origin |
George F. Kennan |
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Type |
Foreign Affairs Magazines |
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Effects |
Blocks off enemy access to controlled territories |
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Downsides |
Disillusionment over their moral actions, can reverse on itself |
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Activation |
Reading |
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Section |
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| [Source] | |
Origin[]
George Frost Kennan (February 16, 1904 – March 17, 2005) was an American diplomat and historian. He was best known as an advocate of a policy of containment of Soviet expansion during the Cold War. He lectured widely and wrote scholarly histories of the relations between the USSR and the United States. He was also one of the group of foreign policy elders known as "The Wise Men".
During the late 1940s, his writings confirmed the Truman Doctrine and inspired the U.S. foreign policy of containing the USSR. His "Long Telegram" from Moscow in 1946 and the subsequent 1947 article "The Sources of Soviet Conduct" argued that the Soviet regime was inherently expansionist and that its influence had to be "contained" in areas of vital strategic importance to the United States. These texts provided justification for the Truman administration's new anti-Soviet policy. Kennan played a major role in the development of definitive Cold War programs and institutions, notably the Marshall Plan.
Soon after his concepts had become U.S. policy, Kennan began to criticize the foreign policies that he had helped articulate. By late 1948, Kennan became confident that the US could commence positive dialogue with the Soviet government. His proposals were dismissed by the Truman administration, and Kennan's influence waned, particularly after Dean Acheson was appointed Secretary of State in 1949. Soon thereafter, U.S. Cold War strategy assumed a more assertive and militaristic quality, causing Kennan to lament what he believed was an abrogation of his previous assessments.
In 1950, Kennan left the State Department—except for a brief ambassadorial stint in Moscow and a longer one in Yugoslavia—and became a realist critic of U.S. foreign policy. He continued to analyze international affairs as a faculty member of the Institute for Advanced Study from 1956 until his death in 2005 at age 101.
Containment[]
The "X Article" is an article, formally titled "The Sources of Soviet Conduct", published under the pseudonym "X" in the July 1947 issue of Foreign Affairs magazine. It introduced the term "containment" to widespread use and advocated the strategic use of that concept against the Soviet Union. It expanded on ideas expressed by Kennan in a confidential February 1946 telegram, formally identified by Kennan's State Department number, "511", but informally dubbed the "long telegram" for its size.
As a component of the Cold War, this policy caused a response from the Soviet Union to increase communist influence in Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Containment represented a middle-ground position between détente (relaxation of relations) and rollback (actively replacing a regime).
Effects[]
Cordons off anyone they perceive as a threat in an impenetrable bubble. Causes them to be physically repelled by a transparent barrier that can be damaged through means of heavy artillery. The field extends to whatever area is under control as their territory, whether it is their physical person or an entire country. Those that are contested or under active engagement are open to all. The blocking effect can also extend to areas of high ideological or symbolic support and not just a continuous location.
The user will become disillusioned with the sins and encroachments committed by their countrymen. Outright resignation is common if they engage in any degree of direct governance. Sympathies will lean towards those they considered enemies before. Sometimes, the field will invert and begin excluding those they originally meant to protect.