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The Western Bloc, also known as the Capitalist Bloc, is an informal, collective term for countries that were officially allied with the United States during the Cold War of 1947–1991. While the NATO member states, in Western Europe and Northern America, were pivotal to the bloc, it included many other countries, in the broader Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa with histories of anti-Soviet, anti-communist and, in some cases anti-socialist, ideologies and policies. As such, the bloc was opposed to the political systems and foreign policies of communist countries, which were centered on the Soviet Union, other members of the Warsaw Pact, and usually the People's Republic of China. The name "Western Bloc" emerged in response to and as the antithesis of its Communist counterpart, the Eastern Bloc. Throughout the Cold War, the governments and the Western media were more inclined to refer to themselves as the "Free World" or the "First World", whereas the Eastern bloc was often referred to as the "Communist World" or less commonly the "Second World".
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/Cold_War_alliances_mid-1975.svg/250px-Cold_War_alliances_mid-1975.svg.png)
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cd/Europe-blocs-49-89x4.svg/440px-Europe-blocs-49-89x4.svg.png)
1947–1991 Western Bloc associations
edit- Belgium*
- Canada*
- Denmark*
- France*
- West Germany (1955–1990)
- Greece (from 1952)
- Iceland*
- Italy*
- Luxembourg*
- Netherlands*
- Norway*
- Portugal*
- Spain (from 1982)
- Turkey (from 1952)
- United Kingdom*
- United States*
* Indicates founding member state
- China (from 1961)
- Democratic Kampuchea (from 1978)
- Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea (from 1982)
- Socialist Republic of Romania[a] (from 1964)
- Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (from 1948)
METO, Baghdad Pact, CENTO (until 1979)
edit- Pahlavi Iran (until 1979)
- Kingdom of Iraq (until 1958)
- Pakistan (until 1979)
- Turkey (until 1979)
- United Kingdom (until 1979)
- Argentina
- Bahamas (from 1982)
- Bolivia (until 2005)
- Brazil
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Republic of Cuba (1902–1959) (until 1959)
- Dominican Republic (until 1990)
- Ecuador (until 2012)
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Mexico
- Nicaragua (until 1979)
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Trinidad and Tobago (from 1967)
- United States
- Uruguay
- Venezuela (until 1999, rejoined 2019 by Juan Guaidó)
- Australia
- Kingdom of Cambodia (1953–1970) (until 1956)
- Khmer Republic (1970–1975)
- France
- Kingdom of Laos (until 1975)
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- Philippines
- South Vietnam (until 1975)
- Thailand
- United Kingdom
- United States
Middle East/North Africa Region
edit- Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2001–2021)
- Bahrain
- Egypt (from 1979)
- Pahlavi Iran (until 1979)
- Ba'athist Iraq (until 1990)
- Israel
- Jordan
- Kuwait
- Lebanon
- Libya (before 1969, from 2011)
- Morocco
- Oman
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
- Somalia (from 1977)
- Sudan (1971-1985, 2019–2021)
- Syrian opposition
- Tunisia
- Turkey (until 2009)
- United Arab Emirates
- Yemen (Hadi government)
- Yemen Arab Republic (1962–1990)
Asia, Southeast Asian, and Oceania Partners
edit- Japan
- South Korea
- Taiwan
- Australia
- New Zealand
- India
- Pakistan
- Bhutan
- Indonesia
- Philippines
- Thailand
- Malaysia
- Singapore
- Brunei (from 1984)
- Vietnam (from 1995)
Others
edit- Cyprus
- Ethiopian Empire (before 1974)
- Khmer Republic (1970–1975)
- South Africa
- West Berlin
- Zaire
Post-1991 Western-aligned associations
edit- Albania (from 2009)
- Belgium*
- Bulgaria (from 2004)
- Canada*
- Croatia (from 2009)
- Czech Republic (from 1999)
- Denmark*
- Estonia (from 2004)
- Finland (from 2023)
- France*
- Germany*
- Greece*
- Hungary (from 1999)
- Iceland*
- Italy*
- Latvia (from 2004)
- Lithuania (from 2004)
- Luxembourg*
- Montenegro (from 2017)
- Netherlands*
- North Macedonia (from 2020)
- Norway*
- Poland (from 1999)
- Portugal*
- Romania (from 2004)
- Slovakia (from 2004)
- Slovenia (from 2004)
- Spain*
- Sweden (from 2024)
- Turkey*
- United Kingdom*
- United States*
* Indicates pre-1991 member state
Major non-NATO ally (MNNA)
edit- Australia (from 1987)
- Egypt (from 1987)
- Israel (from 1987)
- Japan (from 1987)
- South Korea (from 1987)
- Jordan (from 1996)
- New Zealand (from 1997)
- Argentina (from 1998)
- Bahrain (from 2002)
- Philippines (from 2003)
- Thailand (from 2003)
- Republic of China (Taiwan) (de facto) (from 2003)
- Kuwait (from 2004)
- Morocco (from 2004)
- Pakistan (from 2004)
- Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2012–2021)
- Tunisia (from 2015)
- Brazil (from 2019)
- Colombia (from 2022)
- Qatar (from 2022)
- Kenya (from 2024)
Middle Eastern Partners
editAsia, South East Asian, and Oceania Partners
editInter-American Partners
editSee also
editNotes
editSources
edit- Matloff, Maurice. Makers of Modern Strategy. Ed. Peter Paret. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1971. 702.
- Kissinger, Henry. Diplomacy. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994. 447,454.
- Lewkowicz, Nicolas. The United States, the Soviet Union and the Geopolitical Implications of the Origins of the Cold War New York and London: Anthem Press, 2018.