Conflict at home and abroad (1960 - 1975) Flashcards
1
Q
Describe the Berlin Wall Crisis 1961
A
- June 1961, Krushchev met Kennedy in Vienna and gave the ultimatum that something had to done about Berlin by December 1961 or he would close the access routes
- August 1961, Krushchev ordered the building of the Berlin Wall
- From 5pm 27th October to 11am 28th October, fully armed US and Soviet tanks faced off at the border between east and west Berlin
- After 18 hours, the US tanks pulled back
2
Q
Why was the Berlin Wall Crisis important?
A
- Could be said to bring stability to Germany as it finally sealed off the two sectors
- Both US and USSR resumed nuclear testing
- Soviet propaganda claimed that the wall was a success as the US was unable to prevent its construction
- Western propaganda claimed it showed that the USSR had to wall its people in
- Some believe that Krushchev saw it as such a success that it encouraged him to place missiles in Cuba
3
Q
Why was detente possible?
A
- Both US and USSR wanted to limit arms in order to reduce their defence spending
- Nixon hoped improving relations with the USSR might mean the Soviets encourage the North Vietnamese to end the war in Vietnam
- The USSR did not want the US to have better relations with the Chinese than with them
4
Q
Describe the Bay of Pigs
A
- In April 1961, Kennedy sanctioned the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba
- Cuban exiles were to return and create a national uprising
- It failed terribly due to poor planning and lack of support from the cuban people
- It was a humiliation to the US and brought Cuba closer to the USSR
- At the end of 1961, Castro announced his conversion to communism
5
Q
Describe the Cuban Missile Crisis
A
- 1962
- The Soviets were concerned by the presence of US missile bases in Italy and Turkey
- Soviets plan to place nuclear missiles on Cuba
- Kennedy placed a naval blockade around Cuba to prevent missiles reaching the island
- Kennedy and Khrushchev negotiated via letters
- The US agreed to withdraw missiles from Turkey (but secretly) as long as USSR did not place missiles in Cuba
5
Q
What was ‘Ping-pong’ diplomacy?
A
- World Table Tennis Championship held in Japan on April 6th 1971
- An american player missed his teams bus after practice and was then offered a lift by the chinese team
- Cowan and Zedong’s unlikely friendship was widely publicised
- The American team was then formally invited on an all-expenses paid trip to China
6
Q
Describe the effects of the Cuban Missile Crisis,1962
A
- It was perceived that Kennedy had won and Khrushchev had backed down (Particularly as the deal over Turkey was not revealed for some time)
- It has been said that the pride of this success led the US to act over confidently in Vietnam
- The Soviets retaliated by working hard to achieve nuclear parity by the end of the decade
- International relief following the deescalation of crisis
- A hotline link was established between the Whitehouse and the Kremlin
- The Partial Test Ban Treaty, 1963
7
Q
Describe the Partial Test Ban Treaty
A
- 1963
- US and the USSR agreed to stop testing nuclear weapons in the atmosphere
8
Q
Why did Chinese-US relations improve during this period?
A
- April 1971, US lifted its 21 year trade embargo with China
- China-USSR relations had deteriorated over the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1948
- Nixon hoped relations with China might help end the war in Vietnam as the Chinese were close allies of the North Vietnamese
- Moa wanted to stimulate Chinese trade and industry
10
Q
Define detente
A
‘A reduction in tension’
The improvement of US-Soviet relations in the years after the Cuban Missile Crisis
11
Q
What was SALT 1?
A
- Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty 1972
- Imposed limits on nuclear capabilities on US and USSR
- The first treaty of its kind
12
Q
Describe the Helsinki Agreements
A
- 1975
- The US, USSR and 33 other countries made declarations on 3 main issues
- The West recognised borders in Eastern Europe and the Soviets accepted the existence of West Germany
- Agreed to respect basic human rights and freedoms
- Closer economic, scientific and cultural links
13
Q
When did Nixon visit China?
A
1972
14
Q
Describe how ‘containment’ led to US involvement in the Vietnam war
A
- The US want to stop the spread of communism
- The domino theory - US convinced that if Vietnam fell to communism it would be followed by its neighbouring states, especially Laos and Cambodia
15
Q
Describe US involvement in Vietnam before the Vietnam War
A
- US determined to prop up South Vietnam - prevent any further elections as they knew that the communists would win
- The US prevented fair elections realising Communism would win.
- 1965, Ho Chi Minh ordered Vietcong to begin invasion of the south
16
Q
Describe how weakness in the South Vietnamese government led to US involvement in the Vietnam war
A
- Diem was corrupt
- November 1963 Diem was overthrown and replaced by a series of weak and short-lived governments
- Vietcong became popular in south
- Under Kennedy the US tried to reduce Communist influence through the Strategic Hamlet policy
17
Q
What was the Strategic Hamlet Policy?
A
- Moving Vietnamese peasants into fortified villages, guarded by troops to control the spread of communism
- Unsuccessful and very unpopular
18
Q
Describe the Gulf of Tonkin incident
A
- 2nd August, 1964 US destroyer Maddox was fired at by North Vietnamese patrol boats in the Gulf of Tonkin
- Two days later there was an alleged second attack but later evidence showed this never happened
- Johnson used this to persuade congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
- It was suggested Johnson may have engineered the Gulf of Tonkin incident for greater military support
19
Q
What was the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution?
A
- Gave Johnson the power to use any military measure he thought necessary to defend South Vietnam
At the time it was supported by:
- 85% of public
- All of House of Representatives
- All of the Senate minus 2
20
Q
Describe how the strengths of the Communists helped defeat the US in Vietnam
A
- North Vietnamese and Vietcong troops were highly motivated for the reunification of Vietnam
- Vietcong battle tactics and tunnels
- The North Vietnamese and Vietcong were supported by the population in the South and by the Soviet Union and China
21
Q
Describe the Vietcong battle tactics
A
- The Vietcong fought a low-tech war using Guerilla tactics
- They avoided head on battles which reduced the effectiveness of the US superior weaponry
- There tactics were much better suited to the jungle terrain of South Vietnam
22
Q
Describe the Vietcong tunnels
A
- These tunnels were deep and extensive, used for getting around and sheltering from bombing raids
- They were heavily booby-trapped making them a death trap for US forces and the Army of the Republic of South Vietnam
- The tunnels around Saigon ran for 320km
23
Q
Describe support for North Vietnam and the Vietcong
A
- The Southern people hid the Northern fighters and aided their guerilla tactics
- The USSR and China supplied the North with rockets, tanks and fighters planes
24
Q
Describe how the weakness of the US forces led to their defeat in Vietnam
A
- US troops were inexperienced and unmotivated
- Lack of support at home
- US tactics such as Search and Destroy and chemical warfare further encouraged the Southern Vietnamese to turn on them
- The Tet Offensive, 31st January 1968
25
Q
Describe the My Lai massacre
A
- 16th March 1968
- A US patrol killed 347 Vietnamese civilians, wiping out the whole village of My Lai
- US military attempted to cover it up but this was unsuccessful
- Lieutenant Calley was found guilty of the murder of 109 people and was sentenced to 20 years hard labour in 1971 (he was released 1973)
- Shocked the US public
26
Q
Describe the Tet Offensive
A
- 1968
- The Vietcong and North Vietnamese launched an attack on over 100 towns and cities in South Vietnam during the New Year
- They even captured the US embassy in Saigon
- This brought further loss to US military morale and further criticism at home
27
Q
Describe Operation Rolling Thunder
A
- The US bombing campaign of North Vietnam, lasting 3.5 years from 1965 to 1968
- Aimed to destroy Vietcong supply routes to the South
28
Q
Describe US chemical warfare techniques in Vietnam
A
- The use of napalm and chemical defoliants
- ‘Agent Orange’ was a highly toxic weed killer used to destroy the jungle
29
Q
Describe the US ‘Search and Destroy’ campaign in Vietnam
A
- Introduced by Commander Westmoreland
- Entailed using helicopters to descend on villages suspected of assisting Vietcong forces and destroying them
- Referred to by US troops as ‘Zippo’ raids after the the name of the lighters they used to set fire to the thatched houses
30
Q
Describe the impact of mass media on the War in Vietnam
A
- During the Korean War only about 10% of US houses had TV and most footage was taken by official military cameramen
- By 1966, 93% of US homes had a TV and daily audience was 50 million
- By 1967, 90% of the evening news was devoted to the war
- News film in Vietnam was produced by the American TV works with no military censorship
31
Q
Describe how media attitudes changed following the Tet Offensive
A
- Film of the Vietcong fighting in the grounds of the US embassy in Saigon seemed to confirm that the US was loosing
- Other horrors shocked the public such as the My Lai massacre and the live execution of a Vietcong suspect by the Saigon Chief of Police in 1968
32
Q
Describe the cost of the Vietnam War
A
- By the time of the Tet Offensive in 1968, more than 36,000 of the US military had been killed
- Protests were being held in every major city
- In 1964, the Vietnam war cost the US government less than half a billion dollars but by 1968 the cost was at $26.5 billion
33
Q
Describe Nixon’s role in US withdrawal from Vietnam
A
- In 1968, Nixon was elected on the promise to withdraw from Vietnam
- Nixon’s initial plan was unveiled in May 1969, with the aim of training up Southern Vietnamese soldiers to replace american forces
- This failed as the South Vietnam forces were much weaker than the North
- Peace talks began in 1968 but made no real progress until Nixon’s visit to China in 1972, after which the Chinese government encouraged more cooperation from the North Vietnam government
34
Q
Describe the end of the war in Vietnam
A
- On 23rd January 1973, a ceasefire was signed with the US in Paris, followed four days later by a formal peace treaty
- The US promised to withdraw all of its troops and allow Vietcong to keep all captured areas of South Vietnam
- Within 2 years, the Communists had defeated the South Vietnamese and reunited Vietnam
35
Q
Describe the effects of the Vietnam War
A
- Cost the US $30 billion each year of war
- Made Johnson very unpopular
- Encouraged improved relations with China and the Soviet Union
- Nixon Doctrine
- 60,000 US troops killed and 150,000 wounded
36
Q
Describe the Nixon Doctrine
A
Stated that the US expected its allies to take care of their own military defence
37
Q
Describe the 1960 election
A
- Kennedy vs Nixon
- The election was the closest since 1888
- JFK won by only 118,574 votes
38
Q
Why did Kennedy win in 1960?
A
- Kennedy was Catholic, winning him Catholic votes
- He was the son of one of the richest men in America, Joseph Kennedy
- He was only 43
- Promised a ‘New Frontier’
- Promised to take a tough stance on communism
- Supported Martin Luther King
- 70 million viewers watched 4 TV debates between Kennedy and Nixon and many sided with JFK. Nixon took the lead on radio
39
Q
Describe how Kennedy supported Martin Luther King
A
- In October 1960, King was arrested for trying to desegregate a restaurant in Atlanta
- JFK phoned his wife, stating his support
- His brother, Robert Kennedy, used his influence to obtain Kings’ release
40
Q
Describe Kennedy’s New Frontier
A
- A campaign for social reform, including civil rights
Major changes to government included the Brains Trust:
* Brightest young experts who had never worked for the government before
* Kennedy hoped they would come up with new ideas for tackling America’s problems
41
Q
Describe Kennedy’s stance on Civil Rights
A
- Hesitant to alienate the conservative South
- Appointed 5 federal judges, including Thurgood Marshall, a leading Civil Rights activist
- Threatened legal action against the state of Louisiana for refusing to fund mixed race schools
- October 1962, sent 23,000 government troops to ensure one black student, James Meredith, could study at the University of Mississippi
- Introduced Civil Rights Bill in Feb 1963 which aimed to provide equality in housing and education but was defeated in congress
42
Q
Describe the positive of Kennedy’s economy
A
- Introduced a general tax cut in the hope it would stimulate spending and goods sales
- Spent $900,000? on public works
- Federal government began projects to build new roads and public buildings
- Grants were given to high-tech companies to invest in high-tech equipment to train workers
- Increased spending on defence and space technology and promised to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade
- Limited prices and wages to keep control of inflation
43
Q
Describe the negatives of Kennedy’s economy
A
- Still unemployment in older industries such as coal, iron and steel
- Unemployment was twice as high among African Americans
- The boom was heavily dependent on government spending
44
Q
Describe the postives of Kennedy’s social change
A
- Increased the minimum wage from $1.00 to $1.25 per hour
- Manpower and Training Act 1962 provided retraining for the long-term unemployed
- Area Redevelopment Act 1961 allowed Federal government to give loans and grants to states with long-term unemployment
- Housing Act 1961 provided cheap loans for the redevelopment of inner cities
- Social Security Act 1961 gave greater financial help to the elderly and unemployed
- Social security benefits were extended to each child whose father was unemployed
