1. Read Source 17 (p 68). At Yalta, Churchill and Roosevelt had agreed with Stalin that eastern Europe would be a Soviet ‘sphere of influence’. Do you think Source 17 is what they had in mind?
No, I don't think Source 17 is what they had in mind because it's a lot more drastic. It's a beginning to imposing communism throughout eastern Europe, and Churchill and Roosevelt certainly did not want the spread of communism, in fact, that's what they were trying to prevent.
2. Would they agree with Stalin’s views expressed in Sources 17 and 18? Explain your answer.
No, they would not agree with Stalin's views expressed in Sources 17 and 18. This is because Stalin's armies remaining in every territory they liberated in eastern Europe and taking Poland meant that communism was being spread and becoming more and more prominent. They didn't feel as if this was necessary, as Stalin did. Also, Stalin refers to an anti-communist government in Greece as something that he doubts about whether or not it is a truly representative government, and I'm sure that's also something Churchill and Roosevelt would disagree with.
3. Explain how each of the three developments described in the text might affect relationships at Potsdam.
Well, Stalin's armies occupying most of eastern Europe and imposing communism there would create even more hostility between Truman and Stalin, as Truman was already quite wary and suspicious of Stalin's actions in eastern Europe. Britain was additionally suspicious of Stalin. America's new president, Truman, was more anti-communist than Roosevelt was, so relations between him and Stalin were worse than relations between Stalin and Roosevelt were. The success of the U.S. in the development of the atomic bomb would create even more tension between the three men, as the other two knew that America now had an upper hand in weaponry advancement, and both Churchill and Stalin would be skeptical of how America was going to use this new technology.
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