One school of thought maintains that the Cold War was won as a result of decades of sustained US and Western pressure on the Soviet Union and its allies. This pressure at various times took the form of US, British, and French nuclear programs;
有一种思想流派认为冷战的胜利来源于美国和西方国家对苏联及其盟友长达几十年的压制。这种压制在各个时期分别不同的形式呈现——比如美英法三国的核计划；北约对华沙公约国配备的常规武装力量和战术核武器的积极抵制；出兵援助韩国抵御朝鲜入侵；武装阿富汗的穆斯林游击队员来拖垮入侵的苏军；构建耗资巨大的导弹防御系统，让苏联的重要军事投资毫无用武之地，并迫使其政府破产。