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The United States' relations with Norway and Sweden: Ideology and culture in the Cold War, 1949-1961
Abstract
This study provides a unique perspective into the Cold War, examining how the United States handled its relations with two small European powers rather than a traditional Superpower comparison. Though peripheral countries, Norway and Sweden became important for political and strategic reasons. How did the United States interact with them? What influence did American impressions of social democracy have, if any? Although Norway and Sweden had many cultural, political, and linguistic similarities, they chose different security paths in the Cold War. Norway joined NATO while Sweden opted to maintain its traditional neutrality. However, some basic Swedish assumptions and covert polices were those of a Western ally, and Norway had some neutralistic tendencies. Hence, they offer an ideal opportunity to compare American assessments of the roles of domestic versus security policy. Covering the crucial decade of the 1950s, this study begins with NATO's formation and concludes with the end of the Eisenhower administration. It focuses on foreign policy elites, those forming and implementing American policy, and the place ideology and culture had in their decisions. The State Department Central files for this period are the primary sources for this study, supplemented by Norwegian and Swedish documents. This study shows American cultural and ideological impressions of Norwegian and Swedish societies were a factor in forming foreign policy. Ideological suspicion tainted American observations of these prosperous democracies, affecting American policy towards small powers who were either allied or potentially sympathetic. Neutralism spreading particularly concerned the United States. Despite their domestic similarities, the United States viewed Norway more favorably than Sweden. An important revelation is the extent American cultural and ideological perceptions influenced the United States' foreign policy, thus demonstrating the interconnection between domestic and foreign policy. The United States experienced a culture clash not only with the Soviet Union but also the Western democracies of Norway and Sweden. Ideology and cultural perceptions prevented the United States from following a more advantageous policy in Norway and Sweden.
Subject Area
American history|European history|International law|International relations
Recommended Citation
Pederson, John Martin, "The United States' relations with Norway and Sweden: Ideology and culture in the Cold War, 1949-1961" (1998). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9902973.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9902973