The Berlin Blockade and Airlift is one that was prominent during the World’s Cold War period. In this blog post I will discuss what happened and its result in the society.

Background: The Berlin Blockade

In 1945, World War II came to an end, and the victorious Allies divided Germany into four zones, each administered by one of the four Allied powers: the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain and France. The same as in Potsdam, the former capital, Berlin, was also divided into four sectors even though it was located in the territories of the Soviet-controlled East Germany.

When in 1948 the Western Allies and the Soviet Union came close to conflict, the Soviet Union tried to seize full control over the city by blockade of West Berlin. In essence, this sealed off all the roads, rail and canal access into West Berlin from the Soviet controlled East Berlin and adjacent territory effectively placing the city under siege and.UN Organizations, http://www.un.org/Overview/democracy/Siege_of_West_Berlin.htm.

The Berlin Airlift

In this respect, in order to overcome the specificity of blockade the Western Allies planned the supply of West Berlin via air. This moving operation which was called the Berlin Airlift started on June 24, 1948, and ended almost a year later.

Tying the chord with infamous Berlin Airlift, under the leadership of the United States, British and French forces, cargo planes were operating in Berlin on a daily basis at night time and delivering some of the most essential requirement of life in forms of foods and fuels equipments to the shocked residents of West Berlin. The airlift became a huge exercise in file-making, with planes running to and fro in a matter of minutes.

The Berlin Airlift did not proclaim map and obvious challenges of a classic warfare. In the process of attempting to stop the airlift, Soviet forces tried to shoot the planes and their pilots down. But the Allies did not give up, they continued to try to avoid humanitarian catastrophe in West Berlin.

The Outcome

The Berlin Blockade and the Airlift ended on the 12/5/1949, when the Soviet Union withdrew the blockade. The following events were the main consequences of the outcome of this event.

1. Achievement of Western states and failure of Soviet regime

The successful termination of the Berlin Airlift could be considered as an essential strategic victory of the Western Allies and at the same time the defeat of the Soviet Union. It proved the intention of the Western powers to defend the liberty of West Berlin and prevented a Soviet Union endeavour to seize the complete influence of the city.

2. Strengthening of NATO

The Berlin Airlift worked in unity of the western allies and made them come closer together. It informed the need to fashion out a defense organization that would counter soviet aggression. It anyways culminated in to NATO in 1949, a military alliance between North American and European countries to protect the liberty and security of their parties.

3. Division of Germany

Directly due to the blockade and airlift, there was further increased split between East Germany (German Democratic Republic) and West Germany (Federal Republic of Germany). The occurrence of the Berlin Blockade cemented the division of the two German states and the Soviet empire and the western powers yet again.

4. Symbol of the Cold War

In this case, the Berlin Blockade and Airlift became a symbol of competition between the two global systems of states during the Cold War. The successful mission demonstrated the premeditated evil of the Soviet Union administration, eradicating what the western partners represented – freedom.

In Conclusion

This paper can highlight the outcome of the Berlin Blockade and Airlift by elaborate aspects that set pace to the post-war world. Although with a grim tone, the Western Allies did deter Soviet expansionism and a result is the reinforcement of NATO and the division of Germany. The event that took place during the blockade and the airlift became symbolic of the Cold War and showed, how far the western powers were willing to go in the defence of freedom and democracy.