Cold war chapter 2 Flashcards
What was the refugee problem?
In 1958, East Germans travelled to West Germany in search of job opportunities and economic prosperity causing a drain on skilled workers in the East
What was the Berlin ultimatum?
Khrushchev demanded that Berlin be demilitarised and become a free city so he could gain control
When was the Berlin ultimatum?
27th November 1958
What happened at the Geneva summit and when was it?
May 1959, Both sides proposed new styles of governance for Berlin but no agreement was reached. Eisenhower invited Khrushchev for further talks
What happened at the Camp David summit and when was it?
September 1959, Soviets agreed to withdraw from the Berlin ultimatum, established better relations
What happened at the Paris summit and when was it?
May 1960, The USSR shot down a U2 spy plane, Eisenhower tried to deny it but when called out, refused to apologise
What happened at the Vienna summit and when was it?
June 1961, Kennedy was president and Khrushchev reinstated the Berlin ultimatum
What did Kennedy do after the Vienna summit?
Increased military expenditure by $2 bn
What caused the building of the Berlin wall?
due to the refugee crisis, Khrushchev wanted to stop people going to the West, improving their economy and deteriorating their own
How many East Germans crossed to the West in August 1961?
40,000
When was the Berlin wall built/
12th August 1961, a barbed wire fence was put up and works on a 165km concrete wall began
What was the structure of the Berlin wall?
Two walls each facing east and West Germany respectively, separated by a no-man’s land with a vehicle trap, watch towers and spikes
What was the impact of the Berlin wall?
diffused immediate military threat but caused more tension in the long term by dividing the two zones and not allowing freedom of ideas and movement
What was the impact of the Berlin wall people who lived there?
Cut off families and communities, made lives for people in East Germany difficult as they were trapped in a controlling, communist state
Why was the building of the Berlin wall negative for each side?
It made the USSR look as if they had to lock people up to enforce communism, The USA had even less chance to destroy communism
What was the Cuban revolution?
The corrupt and oppressive leader of Cuba, Batista, was overthrown in favour of socialist Castro
Why did the USA dislike the Cuban revolution?
Cuba only 90 miles off the coast of the USA, close socialist influence, lost American business and trade agreements
What were the consequences of the Cuban revolution?
Economic boycott and trade embargo of Cuban sugar by the US, Khrushchev gave Cuba economic aid
What was the Bay of Pigs?
After Kennedy was elected he decided that rather than assassinate Castro like Eisenhower wanted, he would organise the CIA to lead a guerrilla invasion of Cuba. 1500 Cubans in exile invaded Cuba in small boats and were defeated by Cuban forces
What were the consequences of the Bay of Pigs?
Humiliated the USA, Castro felt vulnerable and gained USSR support by putting their weapons in Cuba
What was the importance of the USSR weapons being put in Cuba?
Shows an alliance between the countries, threatens the US as the weapons have the capacity to hit any major city, increases Cuba and the USSR’s power
What were the events of the Cuban Missile crisis?
U2 spy plane reveals weapons, Kennedy meets soviet foreign minister who denies having any weapons in Cuba, a naval blockade is set up, high risk of war, Kennedy asks Khrushchev to withdraw missiles, Khrushchev agrees in return for no invasion of Cuba, he withdraws this offer upon hearing of an invasion then accepts the secret deal from Kennedy who ignored the second letter
What were the agreements of the secret deal between USA and USSR?
USA- do not invade Cuba, remove missiles in Türkiye
USSR- remove missiles in Cuba
Why was the secret deal significant?
people did not know about the removal of missiles in Türkiye so it made it look like the USSR was backing down
What were the consequences of the Cuban missile crisis?
limited test ban treaty, détente, France left NATO, Soviet govt catching up with American weapons by 1965, hotline, embarrassment for Khrushchev
What was the Prague Spring?
Dubcek made reforms relaxing censorship, giving trade unions and Czech regional governments greater power, increasing trade with the West, allowing freedom of movement
What was the soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia?
20th August 1968, 500,000 Warsaw pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia, ending the Prague Spring, Dubcek was arrested, brough to Moscow and told to change his reforms before being eventually dismissed from office and replaced by Husak
What was the Brezhnev doctrine?
If one country’s actions threaten communism or other countries, it was the responsibility of the other countries to stop them (it is the duty of communist countries to stop liberalism spreading in the USSR)
What was the impact of the Brezhnev doctrine?
gained favour of East Germany and Poland, were disliked/cut off by Yugoslavia, Romania and Italy and France’s communist parties, UN resolution vetoed, the USA was involved in Vietnam and did not take action, making them look complacent
