THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS POLITICAL PERCEPTIONS OF THE POPULATION OF THE UKRAINIAN LANDS (1950–1960)

Abstract

The article examines the state of the political views of the USSR population in the transition of the totalitarian and authoritarian regimes in 1950–1960’s. The research attention is drawn to trends in the formation of political attitudes regarding the aggravation of the international situation and prospects for the beginning of a new world war. The possibility of the hostilities outbreak in 1950–1960’s has been widely discussed by almost all strata of the Soviet society. This contributed to the reports in the Soviet media. Ideas about the methods of warfare with a very weak understanding of the nuclear war nature and the development of the nuclear weapons strategic carriers focused the people on the view about the future war as a battle primarily of land armies. In the early 1950’s, the discussion of international relations in the Ukrainian society occurred, as a rule, in connection with the determination of their influence on possibility of hostilities resumption in the world. Archival documents indicate that the population did not always perceive the arms race, in which the Soviet Union supplied solely as a means to resist the aggressive actions of the Western countries. At the same time, the fear of a future war grew due to the warning of losing the benefits of a peaceful life. The overall strengthening of the arms race with the prospect of a new world war was not delighted in the absolute majority of the population. The desire to preserve the peaceful life dominated the political moods of the Ukrainian population.

Keywords

• міжнародні відносини
• політичні уявлення
• урср
• хрущов
• сталін
• війна
• срср
• сша
• карибська криза