What were Eastern European states under the control of the Soviet Union during the Cold War commonly referred to as?

The term used to describe Eastern European states under the control of the Soviet Union during the Cold War is "Satellite States." These countries, which included Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania, had their governments heavily influenced or directly controlled by the Soviet Union. The term "satellite" reflects their geopolitical relationship, where they were seen as orbiting around the Soviet sphere of influence, similar to how satellites orbit a planet.

This designation is important because it highlights the dynamics of power during the Cold War. These states often had communist governments imposed upon them by Moscow and were used by the Soviets as a buffer against Western Europe and NATO, hence offering a layer of security and control. The existence of these satellite states exemplified the broader strategy of the Soviet Union to expand its ideology and exert influence in Eastern Europe following World War II.

In contrast, terms like "Buffer Zones" and "Client States" might describe aspects of the relationship but do not capture the specific nature of the political control and alignment these states had with the Soviet Union. "Dependency States" lacks the specific historical context associated with the term "satellite," which has become the more widely accepted term to describe these nations in Cold War history.