Cold War Flashcards
Cold War
After World War II, differing interests and
ideologies of the United States and the
Soviet Union led to mutual suspicion,
hostility, and eventually indirect conflict
that lasted for over 50 years.
Soviet Foreign Policy After WWII:
●
To create a buffer around their country to stop any
attack on Russia.=stalin’s Justification for Soviet control of Poland was to
create a buffer between Germany and Russia.
20 million men lost in WWII
Attacked by Germany twice, both times via Poland.
Occupation of Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Czech, &
soon follow
U.S. Foreign Policy
In response to the aggressive Soviet
expansion and their unwillingness to
cooperate, the US responds with the
Containment policy:
●
Policy toward the Soviet Union in which the
United States committed itself to stopping the
SPREAD of communism anywhere in the
world
Phase 1: The Truman
Doctrine
Called for direct intervention against
the spread of Soviet aggression and to
aid Free People throughout the world.
●
Soviet Union attempts to
spread ideas to Greece & Turkey in
1947.
●
In response, the U.S. sends $400
million to these countries to fight the
spread of communism
Greece + Turkey
BOTH GREECE AND TURKEY FACED COMMUNIST REVOLTS IN 1947 AND ASKED THE U.S. FOR AID TO DEFEND THEMSELVES FROM COMMUNIST TAKEOVERS
Phase 2-The Marshall Plan
A plan drawn up by U.S. Secretary of State
George Marshall, which provided aid for
European countries still suffering from the
effects of WWII.
●
The plan gave $17 billion to Western European
countries.
●
The plan ensured an economic alliance between
W. Europe and the U.S
HOW EUROPE WAS TO BE RECONSTRUCTED
UNDER THE MARSHALL PLAN
➢
MODERNIZATION OF INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT
➢
EXPANSION OF TRADE AND INCREASE IN EXPORTS
➢
INCREASE IN PRODUCTION ESPECIALLY IN
AGRICULTURE AND ENERGY INDUSTRY
➢
IMPROVEMENT IN TRANSPORT SYSTEMs
really helped THE MARSHALL PLAN IS A MAJOR FACTOR IN WESTERN EUROPE’S RECOVERY FROM THE DEVASTATION OF WW II
Germany division
Germany–>France, GB, Soviet Union, US
Then Germany–>East (soviet) and West
Phase 3:NATO-THE NORTH ATLANTIC
TREATY ORGANIZATION IS FORMED
IN 1949
IN APRIL 1949, TEN WEST EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA, SIGN THE WASHINGTON TREATY, WHICH CREATES THE NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO).
•AN ALLIANCE WHICH BRINGS
TOGETHER FREE AND SOVEREIGN
COUNTRIES IN ORDER TO CREATE A
COLLECTIVE SECURITY SYSTEM.
•THE PRINCIPAL PURPOSE OF THE
ALLIANCE IS SPECIFIED IN ARTICLE
5 WHICH STATES THAT
"AN ARMED ATTACK AGAINST ONE OR MORE OF THEM IN EUROPE OR NORTH AMERICA SHALL BE CONSIDERED AN ATTACK AGAINST THEM ALL
Presidents during Cold War
Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan (+George H. W. Bush)
first members of NATO
BELGIUM, CANADA, DENMARK, FRANCE, ICELAND,
ITALY, LUXEMBOURG, THE NETHERLANDS, NORWAY,
PORTUGAL, THE UNITED KINGDOM AND THE UNITED
STATES. LATER JOINED BY GREECE, SPAIN, TURKEY AND
WEST GERMANY
Soviet Response to NATO
- EASTERN BLOC COUNTRIES FORM THEIR OWN GANG:
- THE WARSAW PACT
○
FORMED BY THE USSR TO COUNTER NATO IN
EUROPE
MAY 1, 1955
○
“TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP, CO-OPERATION AND
MUTUAL ASSISTANCE”
○
ALBANIA, BULGARIA, HUNGARY, EAST GERMANY,
POLAND, ROMANIA, THE USSR, AND
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
China + Soviet Union–>SINO-SOVIET PACT
IN FEBRUARY OF 1950 THE TWO GREAT COMMUNIST POWERS
SIGNED THE SINO-SOVIET PACT. THIS CREATED A BILATERAL
DEFENSE COMMITMENT AND SETTLED BOUNDARY ISSUES, BUT THE
ALLIANCE EVENTUALLY SPLIT APART, AS THE TWO FOUGHT BLOODY
BORDER CONFLICTS IN THE 1960S
Chinese Communism and
the US
Less than one year after the end of the
Chinese Communist Revolution, Chinese
troops would be battling UN forces (led by
the US) in the Korean War.
●
Communist victory in the world’s most
populous country also created
anti-communist hysteria in America which
leads to a second Red Scare in the 1950’s
38th parallel
• Liberated from Japan in 1945 during the final days of World War II, Korea was divided by the Allies with the United States occupying the territory to the south of the 38th Parallel and the Soviet Union the land to the north.
•
Later that year it was decided that
the country would be reunited
and made independent after a
five-year period.
•
This was later shortened and
elections in North and South Korea
were held in 1948.
korean war
N (supported by China) invades S(US) and
Korean war begins
While the Communists under Kim Il-Sung took power in the north, the south became democratic. ● Supported by their respective sponsors, both governments wished to reunite the peninsula under their particular ideology. ● After several border skirmishes, North Korea invaded south on June 25, 1950, opening the conflict
A Stalemate Ensues: July 1951-July 27, 1953
At the front, UN airpower continued to
hammer the enemy while offensives on
the ground were relatively limited. These
typically saw both sides battling over hills
and high ground along the front.
●
UN forces stopped their advance north of
the 38th Parallel and the war effectively
became a stalemate.
brinkmanship–>
only way to stop
it is to convince your enemy that
you could any time wipe them off
earth (stalemate)
Fighting Ends
●
Though fighting ended, no formal peace treaty was concluded.
●
Instead, both sides agreed to the creation of a demilitarized
zone along the front.
●
Approximately 250 miles along and 2.5 miles wide, it remains
one of the most heavily militarized borders in the world with
both sides manning their respective defenses.
●
Casualties in the fighting numbered around 778,000 for
UN/South Korean forces, while North Korea and China
suffered around 1.1to 1.5 million.
The Development of
Nuclear Weapons
●
The Dropping of the A-Bombs in Japan on
August 6 & 9 of 1945 thrust the United
States into the role of world leaders in
International Relations.
IN 1949 THE USSR EXPLODED AN ATOMIC
BOMB AND BECAME THE SECOND NUCLEAR
POWER
American Response to Soviet
development of atomic bomb
●
President Truman authorizes the creation of a more powerful bomb than the A-Bomb, The Hydrogen Bomb. ● Military spending is increased to $50 million/year. ● National Security and Military Spending would become the biggest expenditures for the next 50 years
The Development of
Nuclear Weapons
● contribution to CW
The development of nuclear weapons
contributed to the development of the
Cold War for several reasons:
●
First, the Soviet Union’s development of nuclear
weapons positioned them to compete with the United
States as a military superpower.
●
Second, the Soviet Union and the United States each
amassed more and more nuclear weaponry to keep
up with the other.
●
Third, the Soviet Union and the United States knew
that a direct conflict using nuclear weapons would
cause untold devastation.
The Arms Race Begins
-In 1949, the USSR created an atom bomb.
President Truman was forced to make a
stronger weapon. This started an “arms race.”
-In the USA, Scientists created an “H”
(hydrogen) bomb and claimed that it was over
60 times more powerful than an atom bomb.
-In 1952, the USA detonated an “H” bomb. In
1953, the USSR also detonated an “H” bomb
Brinkmanship and the Eisenhower Doctrine
-President Eisenhower, elected in 1952, took strong
stands against Communism. In the Eisenhower
Doctrine, he promised to give military aid to any
Middle East nation threatened by Communism.
-Secretary of state, John Dulles, claimed the only
way to prevent Communism from spreading was to
make the Russian USSR fear that the USA was
ready to use nuclear weapons, if the time arose.
-Brinkmanship is the willingness to use your most
powerful weapons, at any moment, to keep your
enemy afraid
