was pushing him around. The next day Truman learned about the first atomic explosion in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Truman was ecstatic after hearing the terrific news. If it worked, he could take a tougher line in Eastern Europe and, perhaps, end the war before the Soviets were able to make gains in East Asia (17). Armed with the new weapon and new confidence, Truman began to run the whole Potsdam conference. Truman was determined to be tough on Stalin. Truman saw the bomb as a way to bully the Russian leader. Some historians believe the act of dropping the bomb was only to intimidate Russia, and that it was not needed to end the war. Gar Alperovitz said, "Their aim was political, not military; their target was not Japan but the Soviet Union"(qtd. in Kagan 17). Although Alperovitz is correct in saying that it was political, it was still just as militarily important. In short, the
             confidence provided by the American monopoly on atomic weapons allowed Truman to launch, at Japan's expense, a "diplomatic offensive" against the Soviet Union, one which would play a role of great importance in engendering the subsequent cold war (17). Dropping the bomb accomplished the Unit
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