Détente, causes and achievements, 1969-1980 Flashcards

1
Q

When did Richard Nixon become president?

A

1969.

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2
Q

When were SALT 1 and the ABM Treaty agreed to?

A

1972.

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3
Q

What was the Basic Treaty? When was it signed?

A

A treaty between West and East Germany. They acknowledged each other’s existence as separate states. It was signed in December 1972.

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4
Q

When was the Oil Crisis?

A

1973.

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5
Q

When did the US agree to remove their troops from Vietnam?

A

January 1973.

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6
Q

When were the Helsinki Peace Accords signed?

A

1975.

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7
Q

When was Jimmy Carter elected president?

A

1976.

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8
Q

When did Margaret Thatcher become the British Prime Minister?

A

1979.

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9
Q

When did Carter and Brezhnev meet in Vienna? What did the summit lead to?

A

They met in June 1979. The summit led to the signing of the SALT 2 treaty.

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10
Q

When did Soviet forces invade Afghanistan?

A

December 1979.

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11
Q

Why did the US suspend the ratification of SALT 2?

A

In protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

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12
Q

When was Ronald Reagan elected president?

A

1980.

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13
Q

How did Europe influence Détente?

A

European leaders were increasingly interested in bridging the gap between East and West. They wanted to reduce tension.

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14
Q

Why was brinkmanship no longer viable?

A

Everyone understood the implications of nuclear war, the Cuban missile crisis had made that clear. Other countries didn’t want the same level of tension anymore.
Mutually assured destruction also played a part.

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15
Q

When did Brezhnev become Soviet leader?

A

1964.

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16
Q

What were some signs that the Soviet hold over Eastern Europe had weakened?

A

Polish strikes in Gdansk, 1970
Czechoslovakian crisis, 1968
Romania’s more independent foreign policy

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17
Q

What was pushing Russia towards Détente? Why did they need it?

A

Weak economy
Treat of Sino-US relations, 2v1
Weakened hold over the Eastern Bloc
Horrible living conditions in the USSR
Need for Western technology and grain

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18
Q

What was the eighth Five Year Plan? When was it implemented?

A

1966-1970.
It tried to address technological shortcomings in the car industry by making deals with Fiat and Renault to import technology into the USSR.

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19
Q

Why was it in Brezhnev’s interest to develop links with the US and the West?

A

Weak Soviet economy, need for Western grain and technology. Détente would allow him to divert money from the military sector and use it to improve domestic living conditions.
By stabilizing relations with the West, he could focus on helping liberation movements in the developing world.

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20
Q

Did Détente involve giving up the Cold War conflict?

A

No.

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21
Q

How did the failure in Vietnam affect the USA?

A

It weakened them on the world stage and showed that there were limits to US power and influence.

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22
Q

What were some domestic consequences of the Vietnam War for the US?

A

High inflation, a large budget deficit and declining support for foreign intervention in the wider world.

23
Q

When did France withdraw from NATO?

A

1966.

24
Q

What was Ostpolitik?

A

A policy pursued by Chancellor Willy Brandt to open up channels between East and West.

25
Q

When did Willy Brandt become Chancellor?

A

1969.

26
Q

What were Henry Kissinger’s achievements as national security adviser and secretary of state?

A

Developing détente with the USSR
Establishing a rapprochement with China
Securing an end to the US involvement in the Vietnam War

27
Q

Briefly outline the oil crisis of 1973.

A

The US and Britain supported Israel in the Yom Kippur War. To put pressure on them, OPEC decided to raise the price of their oil by 70%. This made oil a strategic weapon and the countries that relied on imported oil went into crisis.

28
Q

Why was the Soviet Union not as affected by the oil crisis as other countries?

A

They discovered oil supplies in Siberia.

29
Q

Name some economic problems the USSR was facing in the 70s.

A

-Too many resources were being used to continue with the arms race
-3/4 of the USSR’s hard currency was being invested in arms and aid for its allies (Cuba, Vietnam, African satellite states)
-Inflexible economy that was easily disrupted by unforeseen events
-Soviet technology was falling behind
-Incompetent agriculture
-Massive alcoholism and horrid living conditions

30
Q

Who were the US and Soviet leaders involved in SALT 1?

A

Richard Nixon and Leonid Brezhnev

31
Q

What three areas were covered in SALT 1?

A

Use of anti-ballistic missile systems
Offensive nuclear weapons
Code of conduct

32
Q

What did the ABM treaty do?

A

It allowed each superpower to have two anti-ballistic missile systems, one for the capital city and the other to protect their nuclear missiles.
The deterrence to strike first was maintained but now there were limits.

33
Q

Why was the USSR allowed to keep more weapons than the US under the Interim Treaty on Offensive Nuclear Missiles?

A

The US had a large lead in other areas like strategic bombers.

34
Q

What did the Interim Treaty on Offensive Nuclear Missiles do? Why was it only interim?

A

It set limits regarding the number of missiles each country was allowed to have. It didn’t include new technologies like multiple warheads per missile.
It was interim because they couldn’t agree on a permanent solution.

35
Q

What did the Basic Principles Agreement cover?

A

Rules for the conduct of nuclear warfare. It was a blueprint for how to use nuclear weapons and be in charge of them responsibly. Trade was also encouraged between the superpowers, and both vowed to do their utmost to avoid military confrontation.

36
Q

Which treaties were included in SALT 1?

A

The Basic Principles Agreement
The Interim Treaty on Offensive Nuclear Missiles
The ABM Treaty

37
Q

Why do SALT 1 and 2 only have limited impacts and value when speaking about the achievements of Détente?
This is your analysis lol

A

They took years to negotiate, left key topics out purposefully and were designed with both sides trying to introduce loopholes and planning to break the agreements. Both sides broke the agreements and proxy wars were still being fought.
The fact that it took 10 years to go from the Cuban Missile Crisis to SALT 1 also shows a lack of commitment.

38
Q

Who were the US and Soviet leaders involved in SALT 2?

A

Jimmy Carter and Leonid Brezhnev

39
Q

What was the initial purpose of SALT 2?

A

To continue the SALT 1 negotiations, since the first agreement had been only temporary.

40
Q

When was SALT 2 signed?

A

1979.

41
Q

Why did SALT 2 ultimately fail?

A

It was pulled from the Senate by Carter in protest against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, but the Senate wouldn’t have ratified it anyway.

42
Q

What was the main topic covered by SALT 2?

A

Equal limits for missile launchers and strategic bombers (it left out cruise missiles, where the US had the advantage).

43
Q

Why was the view of the American public shifting away from arms control agreements with the USSR?

A

They saw the Soviet government as untrustworthy.

44
Q

What were the three key treaties of Détente?

A

SALT 1, SALT 2 and the Helsinki Accords.

45
Q

What did Basket 1 of the Helsinki Accords cover?

A

It declared the borders of European countries inviolable. The Eastern Bloc was recognized by the West.

46
Q

What did Basket 2 of the Helsinki Accords cover?

A

Trade and technology exchanges. It also promoted links across the Iron Curtain.

47
Q

What did Basket 3 of the Helsinki Accords cover?

A

The concessions the West had been trying to gain from the USSR. It included an agreement to respect human rights and organisations to monitor governments and their actions against human rights were set up.

48
Q

When did Détente end? With what event?

A

1979 with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

49
Q

How did the breakdown of Détente contribute to the election of Ronald Reagan?

A

The negotiations were seen as being soft on communism and allowing the USSR to continue the Cold War, even if it was a two-sided conflict.
This led to the rise of neo-conservatism in the US.

50
Q

What caused Carter’s inconsistent approach to negotiations?

A

His Secretary of State advocated for negotiations and his National Security Advisor believed in a more hard-line approach. Carter switched between listening to both of them and it resulted in weak foreign policy.

51
Q

Name some reasons why Détente ended.

A

-Increasing Soviet influence in the Third World
-Soviet violations of human rights (the US had said this before and never intervened so why now?)
-Carter was under pressure from at-home critics
-Brezhnev was dying
-1979 occupation of the Teheran embassy by Islamic militants. American diplomats and their families were held hostage for over a year.

52
Q

Why was the spread of Muslim fundamentalism a threat to the Soviet Union?

A

Because many of the central Asian republics of the USSR had large Muslim populations and their integration in the USSR had always been superficial.

53
Q

What was Presidential Directive 59?

A

A plan by Carter to increase the American nuclear arsenal.

54
Q

What were the consequences of the Afghanistan invasion for US-Soviet relations?

A

-Carter withdrew SALT 2 from the Senate
-Carter condemned Soviet actions
-Presidential Directive 59
-Reagan was elected because Carter was seen as weak.