8.2 Flashcards
Cold War
- Rivalry between Soviet Union and US because of communists in Europe after the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia.
- conflict through armed forces in other countries and diplomacy
- never direct military conflict
- 1940s-1991(Soviet Union collapse)
Nonagression Pact of 1939
- The United States refused to recognize the Soviet
Union until 1933. After the brief honeymoon period, this pact confirmed their suspicions. The countries agreed that they would not attack each other and secretly divided the countries that lay between them.
Alliance in World War 2 between Soviets and US
The Soviets and US allied during World War 2 out of convenience. Half of all deaths in World War II were Soviets. Conflict was evident in the Postdam and Yalta conferences but Roosevelt tried to solve things through diplomacy until Truman showed up.
Postwar Cooperation (United Nations)
-1945
The General Assembly of the United Nations was created to provide representation to all member nations
15-member Security Council was given the primary responsibility within the UN for maintaining international security and authorizing peacekeeping missions.
Security Council
5 great powers - United States, Great Britain, France, China, and the Soviet Union are given permanent seats.
United Nations Plans
- Atomic Energy Commission (accepted) and Baruch Plan (rejected)
Atomic Energy Commission
agency of the United States government established after World War II by U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology.
Baruch Plan
the Atomic Development Authority would oversee the development and use of atomic energy, manage any nuclear installation with the ability to produce nuclear weapons, and inspect any nuclear facility conducting research for peaceful purposes. This was rejected by the Soviet Union and increased tensions.
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (world bank)
-1944
- bank’s initial purpose was to fund rebuilding of a war-torn world.
- provides financial products and policy advice to help countries reduce poverty and extend the benefits of sustainable growth to all of their people.
- soviets refuse to join as they see it as capitalism
Nuremberg Trials
- 1945-1946
- trials of 22 top Nazi leaders for war crimes and violations of human
rights. - Soviets join Allies
Satellite States
- 1946
- Soviet forces remained in occupation of the countries of Central
and Eastern Europe.
Elections were held by the Soviets—as promised by Stalin
at Yalta coference—but the results were manipulated in favor of Communist candidates. - Soviets argue that Russia needs satellites (states under control of a large nation) for protection for an invasion from the West.
- British wants independence for Poland and them and the US see this as violations of democracy
Occupation Zones in Germany
- Germany and Austria are divided into into Soviet, French, British, and U.S. zones of occupation. This meant to be temporary.
- Soviets keep control over Eastern Germany so that it evolves into a Communist State.
- CAUSE: Soviets want weak Germany for security and large war reparations. US and UK see strengthening of Germany as integral to stability in Central Europe.
- ## Soviets tighten control of Berlin and attempt to force Americans, British, and French to give up their assigned sectors of the city.
Iron Curtain (Metaphor)
- News of a Canadian spy ring stealing atomic secrets for the Soviets and continued Soviet occupation of northern Iran further encouraged a get-tough policy from the US.
- Prime Minister Winston Churchill uses the iron curtain metaphor in a speech in 1946.
- The Iron Curtain metaphor was later used throughout the Cold War to refer to the division between the U.S. allies in Western Europe and Soviet allies of Eastern Europe.
Iron Curtain (Speech)
- Churchill’s speech in 1946 that called for a partnership between Western democracies to halt the expansion of communism.
Truman’s Containment Policy
plan which would guide U.S. foreign policy for decades. It was formulated by three top advisers
Three Top Advisors for Containment Policy
Secretary of State General George Marshall, Under Secretary of State Dean Acheson, and an expert on Soviet affairs, George F. Kennan.
Critics of Containment Policy
Walter Lippman, they said that it was too ambitious and some governments deserved US support while others did not.
Supporters of Containment Policy
- They believed containment was necessary and communism must be challenged because appeasement did not work with Hitler.
Containment Policy
- Truman Doctrine, Marshall Plan, Berlin Airlift, and NATO
Truman Doctrine
- 1947
- the principle that the US should give support to countries or peoples threatened by Soviet forces or Communist insurrection.
Causes were:
1) Communist uprising in Greece
2) Soviet demands for control of the water route in Turkey. Truman asked Congress for $400 million in economic and military aid to assist the “free people’’ of Greece and Turkey against “totalitarian” regimes.
Marshall Plan
- 1947
- by George Marshall.
- The United States provides economic assistance to restore the economic infrastructure of postwar Europe.
- Causes included
1) Europe’s ruined state leading to discontent which encouraged growth of communism in Italy and France.
2) $12 billion in aid was approved for distribution to the countries of Western Europe over a four-year period.
The plan was offered to the Soviets but they rejected it because they did not want to depend on the US.
Effects of Marshall Plan
- Europe was able to self sustain itself by the 1950s, and the threat of communism ended. US exports to Europe increased which bolstered US prosperity. It deepened the rift between the non Communist west and communist east.
Berlin Airlift
- 1948
- The Soviets cut off all access by land to the German city. Truman orders US planes to fly in supplies to the people of West Berlin. Truman also sends 60 bombers to bases in England. Stalin did not challenge the airlift and the blockade ended in 1949
Effects of Berlin Airlift
- creation of two Germanys: the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany, a U.S. ally) and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany, a Soviet satellite). Berlin is also divided into sectors supported by the US or the Soviets. This also started the arms race
NATO
- 1949
- Truman joins North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
- a military alliance for defending all members from outside attack. Eisenhower is NATO’s first commander.
Warsaw Pact
- 1955
- the Soviets’ response to NATO, military alliance for the defense of Communist states in Eastern Europe.
National Security Act
1947, goal was to modernize military capability. It provided for a:
–Centralized department of defense to coordinate the operations of the army, navy, and air force
the creation of the National Security Council (NSC) to coordinate the making of foreign policy
-the creation of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to gather information on foreign governments.
-In 1948, the Selective Service System and a peacetime military draft were instituted.
Atomic Weapons
(1945-1949) the US is the only nation with atomic bombs during this period before the Soviets tested their first bomb in 1949.
NSC-1968
1968 - National Security Council report that said the following measures were necessary to fight the Cold War:
-quadruple U.S. government defense spending to 20 percent of GNP
-convince the American public that a costly arms buildup was imperative for the nation’s defense
-form alliances with non-Communist countries around the world
Hydrogen Bomb
1952, In response to Soviets testing their first bomb. Truman approves the H bomb (thousand times more powerful than the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima)
Cold War in Asia
The success of the containment policy failed in Asia because the nations resented Western colonialism. They resisted US influence.
Japan
Japan is solely under the control of the US. The emperor is forced to give up his claim to divinity and a parliamentary democracy is established. Under the new constitution, war is renounced as an instrument of national policy and only limited military capability is allowed so that Japan is dependent on the protection of the US.
General Douglas McArthur
Leads reconstruction of Japan, tries and executes seven Japanese generals for war crimes.
US - Japanese Security Treaties
1951, Japan gives up its claims to Korea and some Pacific islands. The United States ended its occupation of Japan, but U.S. troops remained in military bases in Japan for that country’s protection against external enemies, particularly Communists
Effects of Treaties and Occupation of Japan
Japan becomes a strong US ally and prospers under American influence.
Philippines
1946 - Philippines becomes an independent republic, but the US retains air and naval bases throughout the Cold War.