Question

Which statement best describes a major reason why Western European countries joined NATO after World War II?

The Soviet Union had begun to initiate damaging attacks against Western European nations.

The Soviet Union had shown that it wanted to expand its area of control in Eastern Europe.

The Soviet Union had reduced its military forces and focused its attention on rebuilding infrastructure.

The Soviet Union had decided to withdraw from the Security Council of the United Nations.

Answer 1

B

Step-by-step explanation:

Answer 2

Answer: The Soviet Union had shown that it wanted to expand its area of control in Eastern Europe.

Additional detail regarding NATO:

The United States, along with Canada, joined with ten European countries in signing the North Atlantic Treaty in 1949. This created the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which was a defensive military alliance of democratic states over against the expanding threat of communism felt in the Cold War environment.

The ten original Western European members of NATO were the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Italy, Iceland, and Luxembourg.