In the aftermath of World War II, Europe had been wrecked by six years of war as plans over the fate of Europe became conflicted between the two world superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. The United States undertook a bold economic aid program to help Western European countries get back on their feet economically and secure the security of these nations from the Soviet Union. However, this started the Cold War as the two superpowers could not agree on the plan or the division of Germany which began almost 40 years of hostilities. We interviewed Dr. Benn Steil who is a senior fellow and director of international economics, as well as the official historian in residence, at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. He is also the founding editor of International Finance, a scholarly economics journal, lead writer of the Council’s Geo-Graphics economics blog. His work includes, “The Battle of Bretton Woods” and the “Marshall Plan” which was the winner of the American Academy of Diplomacy Douglas Dillon award.