One event in the Pacific Theater that contributed to the beginning of the Cold War was the dropping of atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States in August
1945. This event intensified the tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union, as it demonstrated the immense destructive power of atomic weapons and solidified the United States as a superpower. The nuclear arms race that followed and the fear of nuclear warfare played a significant role in shaping the early years of the Cold War.