Changing diplomacy Flashcards
What was the most important change during Reagan’s first term as president?
The way in which US foreign policy was presented to the US public, and the world
What did Reagan believe about previous presidents?
They had failed to convince the US public of the need for an ongoing battle against communism
What did Reagan believe about support for the US position in the Cold War?
It had dropped due to US failure in Vietnam
For Reagan, what was the Cold War?
A moral mission and he felt that the US public should stand behind their government
How did Reagan change the government’s approach?
Through increasingly hard-line rhetoric (public-speaking)
Give an example of Reagan’s hard-line rhetoric
Speech in 1983, in which he described the USSR as an Evil Empire
What did Reagan make a series of?
Public statements about the US relationship with the world
What did Reagan publically discuss?
The USA’s revised policy on nuclear war against the USSR. He argued that the USA was prepared for a limited nuclear war in Europe
What did Reagan’s actions persuade senior Soviet military leaders about?
The USA was considering options for a first strike in a nuclear war
What was the effect of Reagan’s diplomacy?
It weakened the Soviet positions
What did Reagan’s hard-line rhetoric win in the USA?
Domestic support for increased spending on defence, ensuring that the USA had a superior position in the arms race
hat gave the initiative in the CW to the West?
Reagan’s diplomacy
