The early years of WWII caused devastation throughout Europe. The 1939 non-aggression pact between the Germans and Russians had promised safety for the Soviet Union, but Hitler was not to be trusted.

By late 1944, with the Germans now on the defensive across both the Western and Eastern fronts, Nazi Germany's fate was all but sealed.

The war in Europe was over, but heavy fighting continued in the East, and President Truman was desperate to bring the war to a close in the Pacific theatre.

The emergence of the Cold War wasn't due to one single event or moment in time. It was borne from a series of steps, laid predominantly by the two main powers of the once grand alliance of WWII.