Monday, January 14, 2019
George Kennan & The Long Telegram
George Kennan, born in 1904 in Wisconsin, began a life of foreign service at a very young age. In 1925 at only 21 years old, Kennan looked to the Foreign Service School in Washington to further his education towards a goal of being a foreign service agent to the United States. In 1931, after finishing his education, including the Russian language, he was positioned in Latvia, only to be restationed in Moscow soon after. He remained in Russia as a foreign diplomat, gaining intelligence on communism and the intents and goals of the Soviet Union. Being so close to Stalin gave Kennan an amazing outlook on the possibilities of a communist future throughout the world. Feeling unheard, he wrote the famous 8,000 word-long telegram, "The Long Telegram." In this telegram, he wrote that Stalin's aims were to expand as much as possible, warning the United States of the terrible repercussions that capitalism and self-determination would face should this happen. Kennan, unwilling to be found and punished by the Soviet Union, used the pseudonym "X" in order to cloak his identity. Thankfully, the famous telegram frightened Washington DC, alerting them to the possibility that war was approaching, as was the rise of communism.
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3 comments:
It's interesting that he signed it as a "Dr. X" - first off, wouldn't the Russians know where it was coming from, or at least that there was only really one American who could possibly know all this? And secondly, how would the Americans know who it was from? If they knew it could only be one person, what was the point in signing at all? Additionally, do you know if he ever was found out?
It's still shocking to know that Kennan spent most of young life in Russia. I mean, It's just shocking that he traveled there in 1931 and stayed till at least 1946 in order to send the "long telegram." As cool as spies are, how was he able to get so close to Stalin and really speculate about him without getting caught for being an American.
Great job! I like how you showed a picture of the telegram- it helped me visualize how the information was being delivered. I think that Kennan's service was very impressive and commendable. I wonder how many Americans there are today who are completing a similar job in foreign countries.
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