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Essay on Post World War II Global Economic Condition
As colonial empires disappeared, newly independent states that gained nationhood after World War II still found themselves economically dependent on the industrialized, wealthier Western states and caught between the tensions of great-power rivalry. The conclusion of the Second World War in 1945 brought neither peace nor actual war but almost continuous international crises as east and West struggled for advantage in the Cold War.
The economic needs of the Third World states made them vulnerable to foreign influences and pressures. Much needed resources for economic development came through economic ties and trade with United States and the Soviet Union, which vied with each other to capture the political support of the newly independent countries. To support developmental projects, governments sought loans and technical assistance from the great powers, many of which were their former colonial overlords. While seeking such ties, the emerging nations have sought to loosen the dominance by the leading industrialized nations.
Yet, some emerging states in Africa and Asia were especially sensitive to the dangers of neocolonialism, made possible by the necessary importation of business managers and technicians, dependence upon imported military supplies, and reliance upon set patterns of trade and outside sources of investment. Closely tied with the fear of neocolonialism was the determination of Third World nations to avoid becoming pawns in the East-West competition..............
