One reason that the United States feared the Soviet Union was the concept of mutual assured destruction (MAD). MAD is the idea that if either the US or the USSR were to launch a nuclear attack on the other, both nations would be completely destroyed in retaliation. This concept created a sense of fear and unease between the two superpowers, as it meant that any conflict between them could potentially escalate into a catastrophic nuclear war with no winners. This fear of mutually assured destruction played a significant role in shaping US-Soviet relations during the Cold War era.
