What term describes the political barrier that isolated the peoples of Eastern Europe after WWII?

The term that describes the political barrier that isolated the peoples of Eastern Europe after World War II is "Iron Curtain." This phrase was famously used by Winston Churchill in a speech in 1946 to depict the division between the Soviet-controlled countries in the East and the democratic nations in the West. The Iron Curtain symbolized not just a physical boundary but also the ideological divide between communism and democracy during the Cold War era. It represented the lack of communication, movement, and freedom between the two sides, heavily restricting the lives of those in Eastern Europe.

The other terms do not carry the same historical significance or recognition. "Iron Wall" and "Iron Shield" do not relate to the context of post-war Europe in the manner that the Iron Curtain does, while "Iron Divide" is less commonly used in historical contexts and does not encapsulate the broader ideological implications that the Iron Curtain communicates. Thus, "Iron Curtain" is the most accurate description of the political isolation experienced in Eastern Europe after WWII.