Britain As A World Power

Question 1

What was britains response to the Korean War ?

Answer 1

• Britain joined a un force to defend South Korea against north invasion.
  Joined because: Britain committed to resisting communist aggression and expansion. Britain worried because they still had possessions in Asia. Britain still considered themselves an important world power. Britain had been involved in founding the UN and so felt they had a responsibility in making sure the UN was credible. BRITAIN WANTED TO MAINTAIN STRONG TIES WITH THE US

IMPACT:
+ NATO strengthened because of fears of further communist expansion
+ Britain had confirmed their special relationship with the USA (kinda)
- Britain still remained a junior partner, British contribution was much smaller than America
- war was costly, 700 British and commonwealth soldiers died
- British economic problems caused by high defence was worsened

Question 2

What was Britians involvement in the suez crisis?

Answer 2

Uk allied with France and Israel to attack Egypt after nasser nationalised suex canal
They did this because: suez was strategically important as 2/3 of oil supply to Europe passed thru it
Feared the potential spread of ussr backed Arab nationalism
Eden saw nasser as a dictator that must be stopped
Eden assumed that the USA would approve and therefore nasser easily overthrown

• invasion failed and Nasser was actually strengthened
• Britain received international criticism
• USA felt they hadn’t been consulted and were against the whole thing
• USSR criticised British imperialism and strengthened their ties with Nasser
• DEMONSTRATED THAT BRITAIN WAS NO LONGER AN IMPORTANT WORLD IMPERIAL POWER THAT COULD DO WHATEVER THEY WANTED, ESPECIALLY WITHOUT APPROVAL OF THE US AND DIRECTLY LED TO THE RESIGNATION OF EDEN

Question 3

What was britains involvement in the falklands crisis?

Answer 3

Sent a force to reclaim the falklands after it had been occupied by Argentina. No guarantee of international support and Britain would have to fight thousands of Argentinians
Made the decision to retake Falklands because Britains prestige as a world power was being threatened. And the military advised Britain that they would be able to succeed. Britain gained support from: UN, EU, British press, political parties, the US who even gave military intelligence

Impact:
+ reputation of Britain improved as they succeeded in retaking the Falklands
+ thatchers personal popularity increasing, contributing to her election win in 1982
+ the Argentinian regime fell
+ strengthened UK-US relations as the uSA gave intelligence support and allowed the use of US base on Ascension

Question 4

What was Britains response to the gulf war?

Answer 4

Britain sent firces as part of a us- led coalition to liberate Kuwait after an Iraqi invasion.
Causes: wanted to show solidarity with the USA, Arab allies and the UN. Wanted to prevent further invasions from saddam hussein, wanted to protect oil supplies, supported international law and order, show that Britain was still an important imperial force. Wanted to show that major was not weaker than thatcher in foreign relations

Britain provided the third largest contingent of troops British air force was vital , and therefore British relations with the us were strengthened.
+ commitment with the us to maintain peace in the region
- led to consequences in Iraq 2003 with greater consequences

Question 5

What were Anglo- American relations like?

Answer 5

1950s Korean War: fears that Russian expansion would lead to a cold war
BRITAIN AND THE US GREW CLOSER. Marshall aid scheme in which the us gave financial aid to
+ Britain and the us cooperated over the Berlin blockade
+ both became members of NATO
+ they had a special relationship
+ 1950-1 Britain and us teamed to defend South Korea against an invasion from china backed North Korea
+ Britain joined the us in defending the Geneva agreement which divided vietnam in 1954

• however it was felt that Britain was not an equal partner and this put strains on the relationship
• 1956: the Suez Canal crisis. Britains intervention was not supported by the us because it was felt that Britain had not let go of its imperial empire beliefs
• USA pressurised Britain to withdraw
• Eden was forced to step down as pm and was replaced by macmillian

Question 6

What were Anglo American relations like in the 1960s

Answer 6

Vietnam: Britain did not offer military support because of Britains economic problems.
- there was very little support for the Vietnam war in Britain therefore involvement wasnt really an option
- Wilson tried to broker peace - this failed, showing that Britain now had limited influence over the USA
- Wilson had only irritated Johnson who was already disappointed that there was limited British support

Cuban missile crisis: Kennedy regarded macmillan as a political father figure and consulted him in the 1961 Berlin crisis and the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Britain did not play an active role in either crisis

Question 7

What were Anglo American relations like in the 70s

Answer 7

Heath believed that Britains future was with Europe and so he didn’t claim special status in Washington and instead wanted a Europe wide special relationship with the USA.

Jimmy carter and James Callaghan had personal chemistry

Question 8

What were Anglo-American relations like in the 1980s?

Answer 8

+ thatcher and Reagan had personal chemistry and both agreed on policy
+ lots oh high profile visits to each other and est strong personal ties
+ Falklands war, Britain needed USA logistical and intelligence assistance
+ this was reciprocated by allowing the USA to use British based f11s to bomb Libya
+ both thatcher and Reagan opposed the un sanctions against South Africa’s apartheid
+ both wanted a more right wing monetarist approach to the economy and were staunchly opposed to communism

HOWEVER
Disagreed on:
Reagan Star Wars initiative: proposed missile defense program. Thatcher was skeptical about this
- thatcher was worried that Reagan would make too many concessions on nuclear disarmament. Reagan entered discussions with Gorbachev to embrace the zero option. She believed that the abolistion of nuclear weapons would make Europe open to bigger threats

Question 9

What were Anglo- American relations like in the 90s?

Answer 9

+ Britain and the USA cooperated in the first gulf war
+ cooperated in the conflict in the balkans in 1995. Collapse of communism triggered the break up of Yugoslavia. After initial disagreement, nato powers including Britain cooperated with the USA to arrange a bombing of the Bosnian Serbs in retaliation for the 1995 massacre of Muslims and also collaborated with the us in bringing about the Drayton peace accords which ended the conflict

1997:

Question 10

What were Anglo-Russian relations like in the 1950s?

Answer 10

50s: Khrushchev wanted peaceful coexistence with the west: to avoid war with the west but continue competitions for influence around the world
+ oct 1955 British and Russian navies exchanged goodwill visits
+ Khrushchev visited Britain in April 1956
+ macmillian went to Moscow in April 1956

However there was mutual hostility and each accused the other of imperialism
- mid 1950s ussr began bidding for the support of the nations of asia and Africa as they emerged from colonial rule
- the west regarded the communist states of Eastern Europe as part of the soviet empire

Question 11

What were Anglo-Russian relations like in the 60s and 70s?

Answer 11

60s: Russia concentrated on USA rather than Britain as they were less important
- however Britain still considered Russia a principal potential enemy
- each side was involved in espionage and in September 1971 Britain expelled 105 societ diplomats accused of spying
- Britain and the rest of nato concerned about a build up of societ forces after the Cuban missile crisis

Question 12

What were Anglo Russian relations like in the 80s?

Answer 12

Thatcher made no secret of her anti communism stance and was determined to retain europes nuclear defences
+ she said in 1984 that she liked the reformist Gorbachev and that she would like to do business with him
+ had several meetings with girbachev and visited Moscow in 1984 and hosted a return visit which calmed Russian concerns about America and the Star Wars initiative

Question 13

What were Anglo American relations like in the 90s?

Answer 13

Collapse of the ussr in December 1991
+ new Russian president boris Yeltsin was grateful for the immediate diplomatic support he received from Britain when societ hardliners tried to seize power in aug 1991
+ British efforts allowed to pave the way for Russia to join the G8 which was beneficial for trade
+ nov 1992 boris Yeltsin visited Britain to agree on a range of agreements on trade and military cooperation. Thanked major for his profound understanding of Russia and its reforms
+ the importance of London as a financial centre made it attractive for Russian businessmen who had benefited from Yeltsins trade liberalisation.

Question 14

What was Britains role in the un?

Answer 14

+ Britain is one of the big three who was victorious at the end of the Second World War and played a key role in establishing the un in 1945
+ Britain, china, ussr and us diplomat drew up the charter for the un and the charter was strongly influenced by the democratic values of the western powers and provided for: maintainence of international peace and security, prevention of aggression, peaceful settlement of international disputes, addressing economic, social and cultural problems, promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without discrimination

+ as a founding member, Britain became one of five permanent members of the security council, therefore they had significant power and influence, because each permanent member has a veto over security council decisicions that are otherwise binding on all members

Question 15

How has un membership influenced British policy?

Answer 15

it is important to the British government to be seen as conforming to the principles of the un. As global media coverage of international events has increased in speed so the British government needs to have un backing to ensure support from the public and other countries. This was easier in the 50s when western countries dominated the membership but as colonial empires broke down, most countries were from outside
+ Britain retained its empire but they were often criticisied by countries from Africa and Asia for being imperialist and in violation of the uns commitment to human rights and freedom for people of all races.
- Britain has continuously used their veto for when they were being held accountable for imperialism. : veto first used with France during the suex crisis when the ussr and USA criticised them for extorting colonial power over Egypt. 1963-73 when Britain vetoed 6 resolutions on Rhodesia as Afro-Asian nations accused them of supporting white supremacy
- April 1986 thatchers govt supported USA in vetoing a resolution criticising the us bombing of Libya, many in Africa regarded this as an example of imperialism

• even after Britain had granted most of its empire independence they found it hard to escape the taint of white supremacy.
• 1990s Muslims in the Middle East felt that un resolutions which legalised military action in Iraq as imperialist.

Question 16

What was Britains relations like with Europe in the 1950s?

Answer 16

+ played a central role in creating the organisation for European economic cooperation in 1948 to administer Marshall aid which would help rebuild war torn Europe
+ was one of teh original signatories of the northern Atlantic treaty in April 1949
+ was a founding member of the council of Europe est in may 1949 to help promote unity and human rights
+ committed itself to the defence of Europe with a series of treaties with France Belgium, Holland, Luxembourg, west Germany and Italy

HOWEVER British interest in the European economic community was limited as it was felt that moving towards greater European unity would threaten British sovereignty. Britian was not involved in: the European coal and steel community est 1952 by France, west Germany, Italy Belgium, Holland and Luxembourg. Was not involved in the 1955 MEETING IN MESSINA THAT LEAD TO THE 1957 TREATY OF ROME BY WHICH THE ECSC ESTABLISHED TEH EEC IN 1958.
Conservatives didn’t join eec because they hoped yo make the colonial empire and commonwealth into a trading bloc that woud be stronger than the eec. Disliked the commitment to a closer union contained in the treaty of Rome. Did not believe that France and Germany could overcome years of hostility quickly enough to make the eec a success

Question 17

What was Britains relationship with Europe like in the 1960s and 70s?

Answer 17

Macmillian realised that the commonwealth had not future an so he tried to establish colonial links.

+ est the European free trade association 1960 as a rival to the eec and it would not infringe on national sovereignty
+ 1961 the scale of Britains economic difficulties convinced him and pro Europeans in major parties that britain needed to join the common market in order to compete

People opposed to European unity:
- left of the Labour Party wanted to extend nationalised control of the British economy and didn’t want to commit to an organisation of free enterprise
- conservatives miss the days of empire and they felt that European integration may sever their ties with the commonwealth

• parliament debated terms of entry in 1973 and heaths govenrment could only secure a majority with the support of pro Europe labour MPs.
• when Labour returned to power Wilson decided to tackle divisions over Europe with a referendum in June 1975. The 2:1 result showed that majority of British people favoured the pro European argument that membership was vital to overcome economic difficulties

Question 18

Why did British attitudes toward Europe change between 1950 and 1975?

Answer 18

• loss of the empire made Britain look towards Europe
• Edward heath was a pro European
• the economic success of the eec vs the European free trade association
• the retirement of de Gaulle in 1969 which made it possible for Britain to join as he had previously opposed it
• USA encouraged it

Question 19

What was Britains relationship with Europe in the 1980s?

Answer 19

Thatcher had actually advocated for yes joining the eec in 1975. When she became pm she changed her mind.
- in 1980 she was convinced that Britain was making a disproportionately large contribution to the eec and she demanded a rebate exclaiming i want my money crack. It took four years of negotiation before she succeeded, the process damaged relations with other member countries
- thatcher and her supporters felt that conservative economic policy rather than membership of the eec had brought about economic recovery after the difficulties of the 1970s
- in September 1988 in a speech in Bruges she spoke for many on the right of the Tory party who thought that European integration was a threat to soveirnty, she described it as a European super state excericising a new dominance from Brussels

HOWEVER some members of the Tory party belived that Britain should continue to play a major role in europ . They believed benefits outweighed the disadvantages. By 1989 some of thatchers senior ministers believed that inflations could be tackled by joining the erm

Question 20

What was Britains relationship with Europe in the 90s?

Answer 20

Increase in euroscepticism because of
- Britains humiliating withdrawal from erm 1992. This argued that Britain did not benefit from European Union membership
- Maastricht treaty brought together the conservatives who wanted to leave the eve and those who believed that the eec should be no more than a trade partnership because of its implications on British sovereignty

Pro Europeans felt that eurosceptic fears were overexaggerated and Britain benefitted from being a part of the world’s largest single market. Free movement of goods, capital and labour removed all obstacles to business within Europe. Common regulations on goods, working conditions, crime and the environment benefitted all member countries, attracted more investment into Britain form outside Europe than Britain could generate on its own

Question 21

What are the arguments against an independent British nuclear deterrent?

Answer 21

• 1962 macmillian persuaded Kennedy to supply Britain with Polaris missiles to carry British warheads, the British deterrent has not been independent but reliant on America
• British nuclear deterrent is virtually irrelevant in comparison to the size of American and ussr arsenals
• heavy cost of maintaining it reducing govenrment investment in other areas

Question 22

What has Britains relationship with nuclear deterrents been like in the 1950s?

Answer 22

+ 1958 the campaign for nuclear disarmament wad founded and began a series of annual marches form nuclear weapos plant at aldermaston to Trafalgar Square. In 1960 the march generated 100,000 protestors

• however supporters felt that Britain needed to be strong enough to prevent soviet aggression: but it was clea =r by the 1960s that Britain would need us missiles to deliver its bomb

Question 23

What were Britain and international agreements on nuclear technology?

Answer 23

+ 1963 Britain joined the ussr and the USA in banning nuclear testing in space, underwater and in the atmosphere.
+ Britain also signed the 1968 nuclear non proliferation treaty: signatories would not share nuclear technology with other nations.
+ teh continued build up of nuclear deterrents by Britain and the ussr mad teh ebriyisb nuclear deyerrent irrelevant

Question 24

What was Britains relationship with nuclear deterrents in the 1980s?

Answer 24

• mid 19

Question 25

What was Britains relationship with nuclear weapons in the 1980s?

Answer 25

• mid 1970s ussr had began deploying ss 20 intermediate range missiles capable of hitting targets anywhere in Europe and in 1979 nato powers agreed to deploy us intermediate range cruise missiles in response.
  This meant that: it increased teh likelihood of Europe becoming a nuclear backdrop and prompted a group of women in 1981 to set up a protest camp at the raf and usaf base at greenham common in Berkshire. The camp was for women only and was to demonstrate opposition to the sitting of us nuclear weapons on British bases. The camp lastest 19 years and became a symbol of women’s rejection of war and violence
• thatcher did not support Gorbachevs zero option
• belived that the abolition of nuclear weapons would make Europe vulnerable to the ussr
• Britains nuclear deterrent depended on the USA