How Britain sought an American commitment to Western Europe

The extract begins with Soviet consolidation in Eastern Europe, the Czechoslovak coup, and the Berlin crisis, all of which sharpened British and American fears. Clement Attlee's government wanted an Atlantic alliance that would involve the United States from the beginning of any European war rather than after a rapid Soviet success. George Kennan and other American officials worried that a formal alliance could deepen Europe's militarization, while Ernest Bevin argued that rearmament would happen regardless and that Europe could not carry the burden alone. The Brussels Treaty demonstrated a European willingness to contribute to defence without pretending that those resources were sufficient. The Berlin airlift renewed Anglo-American military cooperation, British bases received nuclear-capable B-29s, and the North Atlantic Treaty followed in 1949. NATO emerged from bargaining over deterrence, burden sharing, and Britain's remaining global commitments.