Post-World War II celebration among the Allies quickly turned to fear and suspicion as country after country in Europe fell under the domination of the Soviet Union. In this program, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Warsaw Pact alliances are studied, along with NATO’s Cold War policy of containment, designed to keep the Soviet "iron curtain" from encroaching further upon western Europe. The Marshall Plan, the Berlin Airlift, China’s shift to communism, and the Korean Conflict are also examined. After more than 40 years of tension, a combination of unrelenting NATO vigilance and the changing attitudes within the U.S.S.R.—plus its economic collapse and subsequent loss of power—brought an end to Cold War concerns about a superpower struggle that could have ignited World War III. (21 minutes)