1960s to 70s

Question 1

Summarise the Cuban Missile Crisis

Answer 1

When USA had set up nuclear missile launch sites in Turkey next to the USSR. Cuba and USA had fallen out and Cuba became friends with the USSR. Castro asks for weapons from the Soviets and Khrushchev sets up nuclear missiles in Cuba directly in line of Florida

Question 2

Summarise the U-2 Incident

Answer 2

When an American spy plane had been shot down with its pilot Gary Powers. Eisenhower claimed it was a weather plane, but Khrushchev investigated the crash site and realised USA was lying. The USSR demanded an apology from Eisenhower however he refused. This led to tension

Question 3

Summarise the Bay of Pigs Incident

Answer 3

USA had secretly trained 1500 Cuban exiles to invade Cuba and overthrow the communist regime set up in Cuba by Fidel Castro. The plan had failed due to Kennedy’s indecisiveness about involving the US Air Force and the exiles were left completely exposed. 200 exiles were killed or captured. It was obvious that America were involved and it looked bad on Kennedy

Question 4

Summarise the Prague Spring/Czech Revolution

Answer 4

It had started when Novotny, the deeply unpopular Czech communist leader was replaced by Dubcek who was moderate about changing the ideas of the Soviet Union. He brought in socialism which was a better formulation than communism. Khrushchev was replaced by Brezhnev who was a strict hard line communist. Brezhnev feared socialism would spread to other communist countries so he sent 400,000 Warsaw Pact troops that would march into Prague to crush the Prague Spring which was held to have protests to change the USSR. Dubcek offered people “passive resistance” to not rebel against the troops. USA and the West were unable to help as it would be seen as an act of war

Question 5

Summarise the Vietnam War

Answer 5

1945. France had fought against the rebelling force of the Viet Minh for 10 years. The war had split Vietnam into 2. North and South Vietnam. The leader of North Korea (Ho Chi Minh) was to take over France’s colonies and promote communism in other countries. This had went against the containment policy that America had put in. Two American boats were destroyed on the Gulf of Tonkin which caused American to fight back against Vietnam

Question 6

Summarise thé Détente

Answer 6

It started after the effects of the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Arms Race
Both US and USSR signed the SALT 1 treaty which limited the number of Anti-ballistic missiles both sides could have and it placed a temporary limit on the number of Intercontinental ballistic missiles