The two opposing alliances were
the Western bloc (USA and its NATO allies) and the Eastern bloc (Russia and its
allies in the Warsaw pact). The Cold War left the USA and USSR the two
superpowers of the world that have great economic and political differences.
They never really did engage in a full-scale armed combat but both of them were
prepared for a possible all-out nuclear world war. Each side had its own
nuclear deterrent and would imply that the attack of the other means the destruction
of the other as well. This was known in history as the doctrine of Mutually Assured
Destruction (MAD). Massive propaganda campaigns, espionage, and psychological
warfare were dominant during the cold war between the two superpowers.
