How did the Cold War and decolonization shape the postwar world?

The bitter rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union divided post war Europe and became a Cold War — not an outright military confrontation between nations, but a long, tense standoff. As the Cold War took shape, three events separated by barely two years foreshadowed the changes that would take place in the world following the Second World War: the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947; the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948; and the Communist revolution in China in 1949. All had their roots in the decades preceding the Second World War — and even predating the First World War. Yet each was also profoundly influenced by the war and its outcomes. In turn, these events reflected tendencies that became dominant in the post war period: decolonization, revolution, and renewed political and economic competition.