Cold war geopolitics: Embassy locations

Abstract

Abstract The geopolitics of the Cold War is illustrated by the diplomatic ties between countries, particularly the two superpowers and their respective allies. Specifically, the location of embassies abroad and those hosted by countries are examined to determine what they reflect about larger geopolitical issues. This article grew out of class projects used in introductory human geography courses to teach place name, library, writing, analytical, computer, and cartographic skills. The global patterns of embassy locations for all countries are first examined and then the particular patterns of the United States, the Soviet Union, and NATO and Warsaw Pact countries. A comparison between the location of U.S. and Soviet embassies shows that the Cold War was geographically visible only for “minor” states. The Warsaw Pact countries were ideologically more unified in the location of their embassies than the NATO countries. With the collapse of Cold War geopolitics, embassy locations are already changing, signali...