Flashpoints in Europe and the impact on international relations Flashcards
What were the four main confrontations between superpowers in Europe?
- Berlin blockade and airlift, 1948-49
- Hungarian uprising, 1956
- Berlin, 1959-61
- Czechoslovakia, 1968
What are the causes of the Berlin blockade and airlift?
Different aims - USA & USSR had different ideas about what to do with Germany. USSR wanted it weak so it couldn’t invade other countries again, USA wanted it to recover so it could help stop the spread of communism.
Different economies - economic recovery in Western Germany (Marshall Aid), Soviet zones were much poorer.
What was the Berlin blockade?
June, 1948 - Stalin closed all the roads, railways and canals connected to West Berlin. Stalin hoped to force the Western powers to leave Berlin by making them run out of supplies.
What was the Berlin airlift?
Truman decided to airlift supplies into West Berlin to break the blockade. If Stalin shot down a plane, he would risk another war. The USA flew in 13,000 tonnes of supplies every day. Stalin admitted defeat after a year.
What was the consequences of the Berlin blockade and airlift and what impact did it have on relations?
The airlift was propaganda for the USA - containment had worked. April, 1949, 12 Western nations set up NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) to help prevent Soviet attack. An attack on one NATO member would be an attack on them all.
West Germany named the Federal Republic of Germany. East Germany named the German Democratic Republic.
What was the Warsaw Pact and why was it set up?
The Warsaw Pact was established in 1955 to be a communist version of NATO. Stalin believed NATO to be an aggressive alliance, especially after West Germany was allowed to join in 1955.
What changes had happened on the build up to the Hungarian uprising?
Khrushchev had replaced Stalin as leader of the USSR following Stalin’s death. Khrushchev wanted a thaw in the cold war, and so he apologised for how Stalin treated Yugoslavia, denounced Stalin’s policies, said he wanted peaceful co-existence with non-communist nations, de-Stalinised the USSR and ordered the breaking up of Cominform.
What were the causes of the Hungarian uprising?
Hungary was poor. Hungarians hated Soviet control - there was strict censorship and a brutal secret police. The Communist Party banned the Catholic religion Yugoslavia persuaded Khrushchev to replace Rakosi. Hungarians thought the UN or the USA would help them.
What were the events of the Hungarian uprising?
October, 1956- Hungarian students took to the streets to demand reform. Moderate communist Imre Nagy was made leader. Nagy said that Hungary would have free elections and withdraw from the Warsaw Pact. On November 4th, 6,000 Soviet tanks were sent to put down the revolt.
What was the consequences of the Hungarian uprising and what impact did this have on relations?
USSR’s actions showed it would not let a member of the Warsaw Pact leave as it would leave the USSR open to attack or it would lead to the breakup of the Pact.
The West decided not to attack the USSR in Eastern Europe, but turned its attention to stopping the spread of communism in Asia instead.
Khrushchev talked of peaceful co-existence but showed no signs of wanting to achieve it.
Why was there growing tension in Berlin, 1959-61?
People in East Berlin were able to flee West. They did so because they wanted a better quality of life. Two million people, mostly skilled workers, escaped this way which embarrassed the USSR.
Why did the USSR build the Berlin Wall?
This permanently divided the city and stopped people being able to cross from East to West.
What was the consequences of the Berlin Wall and how did it impact relations?
Anti-communist feeling in the West increased. The Berlin Wall became a symbol of divisions between East and West and it also became a symbol of what capitalists thought was wrong with communism.
What were the causes of the ‘Prague Spring’ in Czechoslovakia, 1968?
1964 - Khrushchev replaced by Brezhnev. 1968 - Dubcek (a moderate) became leader. There had been demonstrations directed at the lack of civil rights and poor standards of living. Czechs resented that their industrial products were being sent to the USSR while they lived in poverty. Dubcek introduced an ‘Action Programme’ which included freedom of speech, more economic freedom, increased foreign trade, travel abroad and reducing the number of secret police. These reforms became known as the Prague Spring.
How did the Soviets respond to the Prague Spring?
Brezhnev was afraid that these reforms would lead other countries to do the same. The USSR and other communist countries wrote to Czechoslovakia to object. Dubcek said Czechoslovakia would remain in the Warsaw Pact. Brezhnev ordered 400,000 troops into the country claiming that Czech communists had invited them in. There was both peaceful and violent resistance from the Czechs.
