Growth of Communist parties in Western democracies: After WWII, the communist parties in Italy and France grew in popularity, fueled by the economic hardships and deprivations of the post-war period. The US and the UK were wary that these parties were receiving support from Moscow, and feared Italy and France could be "weak links" in anti-communist Western Europe.

Soviet foreign policy: George F Kennan, a US diplomat in Moscow, sent a telegram to the US State Department, sharing his thoughts on Soviet foreign policy. Key takeaways from the Kennan telegram:

 The Soviet system thrived on the idea of a hostile world outside its borders.. The USSR was driven by Muscovite Stalinist ideology (not just Marxism).. The Soviet regime was cruel, repressive, and justified itself by viewing the outside world as evil.

 The USSR was fanatically hostile to the West, but not suicidal.

 Kennan's "logic of force" argument influenced US foreign policy and led to the development of the US policy of containment.

US foreign policy: NV Novikov, the Soviet ambassador to the US, sent a telegram to Stalin, highlighting his concerns about US foreign policy. He saw the US striving for world supremacy and characterized US foreign policy as imperialist. Novikov pointed to the expansionist plans of the US, including naval and air bases beyond its borders, the arms race, and the development of new weapons.