The development of the cold war between the USA and the Soviet Union between 1945-53 was primarily due to traditional great power rivalry
The USA and the Soviet Union worked together to defeat Hitler in WW2. Towards the end of the war relationships between them began to break down, although in 1945 there remained possibility of continued cooperation. By 1947, this prospect had disappeared and tensions between the two powers continued to increase for the rest of this period. Some historians, including those belonging to the economic revisionist school of thought, argue that traditional great power rivalry was primarily responsible for this development. This is defined as developing power through trade in order to achieve financial dominance. Undoubtedly, this factor was a major contributor to cold war tensions, however other factors such as ideology, individuals and WW2- many of which are invariably linked to economic influence- also played a large part.
Great power rivalry can be seen as the main cause of increased cold war tensions between 1945 and 1953 as both powers sought to increase their relationships with other countries to obtain economic dominance. America, although benefitting economically from the war, feared the possibility of a recession, both as demand for arms fell and poverty in Europe threatened an insufficient international demand for US goods. They believed free trade would prevent this from happening, as well as increasing interdependence between countries, making further conflict less likely. Indeed, source 8 agrees that "US planners viewed the establishment of a freer and more open international economic system as indispensable to the post-war order." It may be seen that America's attempt to enforce this and thus sustain their financial dominance led to the Marshall Plan, which contributed greatly to cold war tensions. The author of this