Sonia Frederick Emily Cabrera Monia Alderete Eric Essays - Politics

Sonia Frederick Emily Cabrera Monia Alderete Eric Essays - Politics Sonia Frederick Emily Cabrera Monia Alderete Eric Kenedy Sami Chaar Fernando Caranza The Marshall Plan Europe ' s economic and social structure was completely devastated and unstable as a result of World War II. This extreme economic turmoil heightened the sense of crisis.This chaotic aftermath included widespread anarchy, famine, crime, pestilence and violent conflict, with millions of uprooted people wandering the ruined lands throughout Europe. After a meeting with Stalin, Secretary of State George Marshall tediously analyzed the situation. He came to the conclusion that a plan needed to be put in place to provide financial aid to Europe. This was needed in order to prevent the spread of communism in Europe as Stalin would use the continent ' s vulnerable conditions to his advantage. The Marshall Plan is a perfect example on the extreme measure the United States is willing to take in order to stand by its fo reign policy. John Marshall stated in his speech at Harvard university " Our policy is directed not against any country or doctrine, but against hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos Any government that is willing to assist in the task of recovery will find full cooperation, I am sure, on the part of the United States government. " This plan was instilled for a period of four years. Over sixteen European nations received nearly $13 billion in aid, which included the shipments of food , clothing, fuel and machinery from the United States . This act provided an overall sense of optimism throughout Europe in the attempts to contain the spread of communism.