World War Two left Europe in state of economic distress. The war had left many areas of Western Europe in complete ruin, and the world's major industrial areas were brought to disintegration. Western Europe could not longer conduct the prosperous trade in which it once participated in. In this state of devastation, both the Soviet Union and the United States reached out to lend a hand to help economical revival in Western Europe. Since communism was firmly rebuffed in Western Europe, and the Soviet Union was a communist country, the United States' aid was accepted to help Western Europe begin its long period of economic revival. Through the Marshall Plan, Europe began to rebuild its factories, farms and transport systems, which had been destroyed by the war. Although the economic revival of Western Europe from 1945-1970 was relatively effective, many weaknesses can be seen in this strategy to help Western Europe rebuild itself.…
