Conflict and Tension between East and West - Military rivalries

Question 1

what was NATO?

Answer 1

• In 1949, a group of countries formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO).
• the aim was to protect Western Europe from outside threats

Question 2

what was Warsaw Pact?

Answer 2

• Stalin and the USSR saw NATO as an act of aggression and formed the Warsaw Pact - an alliance of Eastern European countries that would do the same job

Question 3

what was ‘destalinisation’?

Answer 3

• Stalin died in 1953 and was replaced by Nikita Khrushchev
• Khrushchev made a speech at the 20th Party congress that criticised Stalin
• He wanted to move the party forward to a more open + peaceful approach
• “Stalin acted not through persuasion, explanation and patient cooperation with people, but by imposing his concepts and demanding absolute submission to his opinion.”

Question 4

when did NATO form?

Answer 4

1949

Question 5

who were the members of NATO?

Answer 5

• 12 original members: USA, Canada, Britain, France, Denmark, Italy, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Luxembourg and Iceland; west Germany and Turkey later joined

Question 6

what were NATO’S aims?

Answer 6

• aimed to provide collective security for its members; an attack on one member would be considered an attack on all

Question 7

how was NATO organised?

Answer 7

• the members worked together on a defence strategy and military action would be jointly organised
• the USA provided funds to improve the militaries of European members; US military bases were built and US troops stationed in Europe

Question 8

what were NATO’s capabilities?

Answer 8

• approximately 50 divisions
• after the second world war, European armies had shrunk but it was agreed in February 1952 to dramatically increase the strength of NATO forces

Question 9

who held Nuclear Weapons in NATO?

Answer 9

• Nuclear weapons held by USA, Britain (from 1952), and France (from 1960)

Question 10

when was the Warsaw Pact formed?

Answer 10

formed in 1955

Question 11

who were the members in the Warsaw Pact?

Answer 11

• 8 members: the USSR, Bulgaria, Romania, Albania, East Germany, Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia

Question 12

why was the Warsaw Pact formed?

Answer 12

• formed as a response to NATO and West German rearmament

Question 13

how was the Warsaw Pact organised?

Answer 13

• presented as a collective security organisation like NATO but in reality, the power was held in Moscow
• established a joint command for all armed forces, controlled by Moscow

Question 14

what were the Warsaw Pact’s capabilities?

Answer 14

capabilities: approximately 5.5 million men in 175 divisions, 35,000 tanks and at least 10,000 aircraft

Question 15

who held Nuclear weapons in the Warsaw Pact?

Answer 15

• Nuclear weapons held by the USSR

Question 16

what was de-stalination?

Answer 16

• In 1956, Khrushchev shocked the country when he made a speech at the Twentieth Communist Party Congress criticising Stalin and his brutality
• the speech began a process known as “de-Stalinisation” and suggested a new, more open and peaceful approach from the soviet government which became known as “peaceful co-existence”

Question 17

what was sputnik?

Answer 17

• In 1957, the Soviets successfully launched the first manmade satellite, Sputnik, into orbit
• this was a huge achievement for the USSR and communism as American scientists had been working on achieving the same thing, too

Question 18

which country launched the first animal into space?

Answer 18

• On the 3rd of November 1957, the Soviets launched another rocket, this time containing a dog, Laika.

Question 19

which country launched the first human into space?

Answer 19

• In 1961, the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space
• At this stage, it seemed the Soviets had already won the race

Question 19

which country launched the first human into space?

Answer 19

• In 1961, the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space
• At this stage, it seemed the Soviets had already won the race

Question 20

what did Kennedy promise?

Answer 20

• In 1961, the newly elected President John F. Kennedy promised that by the end of the decade, the USA would put a man on the Moon and bring him safely back to Earth

Question 21

what did the USA achieve in 1969?

Answer 21

• In 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first human to set foot on the Moon.

Question 22

why was there a space race?

Answer 22

propaganda - the USSR and the USA both wanted to show that their country and their system of government were superior
- Americans were also fearful that the Soviets could launch nuclear missiles in the same way as rockets and they were not wrong to be concerned

Question 23

how did Stalin respond to the development of nuclear weaponry in the USA?

Answer 23

• Stalin was very concerned by the development and he made it a priority for the Soviets to have their own nuclear bomb as soon as possible
• Stalin’s spies managed to gain vital information from the Manhattan Project which accelerated the scientists’ work and allowed them to successfully test their first nuclear device called “First Lightning” on 29 August 1949

Question 24

how did the USA react to the USSR’s progress in developing nuclear weaponry?

Answer 24

• the test took the American government by surprise
• US spy planes flying of Kazakhstan spotted clear evidence of the test in September and Truman had to inform a fearful American public that the USA no longer had the advantage of being the sole possessor of nuclear weapons
• this plunged American strategy into crisis and Truman quickly ordered the development of an even more powerful weapon: the hydrogen bomb - the arms race was truly under way

Question 25

what was MAD?

Answer 25

• MAD (Mutually assured destruction) was the idea that both sides knew that launching a weapon would bring retaliation from their enemy and their own destruction
• this was the main reason why the super weapons were never used and why the cold war never became ‘hot’

Question 26

what is brinkmanship?

Answer 26

• the practice of trying to achieve an advantage by pushing a dangerous policy to the edge of conflict.

Question 27

how were the leaders’ decisions influenced by the knowledge that nuclear weapons could be used?

Answer 27

• when Stalin created the Berlin Blockade in 1948, he correctly believed that the USA would not risk using its weapon
• In Korea, General MacArthur was relieved of his command after repeatedly calling for the use of the bomb against North Korea and China. Truman was well aware of the likely Soviet retaliation if the bomb was used

Question 28

how did the public react to nuclear weapons?

Answer 28

• many people began to question whether nuclear weapons were morally right
• In February 1958, a large audience gathered in London to hear speeches condemning the bomb
• people who opposed nuclear weapons created a new organisation in Britain, called the (CND)
• by the 1960s, their message, which called the world to ‘ban the bomb’ had spread across Europe
• the CND called for unilateral disarmament

Question 29

what is unilateral disarmament?

Answer 29

• giving up nuclear weapons

Question 30

what was the result of the Cuban missile crisis?

Answer 30

• introduction of a direct phone line between the white house and the kremlin so that they would be able to discuss issues quickly and personally in the future
• agreed to a partial test band treaty which placed limits on nuclear tests. the possibility of reducing nuclear stockpiles was also raised for the first time