KQ6 How secure was the USSR's control over Eastern Europe Flashcards

1
Q

When was NATO formed

A

1949

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2
Q

Why was the Warsaw pact created

A

Concern over a powerful Germany
Concern about the USA
‘Keeping up’ with western powers
Tighter control over Eastern Europe

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3
Q

What did Khrushchev do when he became leader

A

Denounced Stalin
Released thousands of political prisoners
Made plans to reduce arms expenditure
Shut down Cominform

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4
Q

Who was the Hungarian dictator until 1956 and what happened to him?

A

Rakosi - ‘illness’ and stepped down

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5
Q

Who became the leader of Hungary in 1956

A

Imre Nagy

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6
Q

What happened in Hungary 1956

A

Uni students demonstrated at Budapest, USSR put Nagy in charge in hopes of calming them down (Didn’t work).
4 days of fighting between armed civilians and the USSR caused the soviets to withdraw

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7
Q

What did the Hungary want in 1956

A

Divorce from the Warsaw pact, freedom of speech, end of secret police

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8
Q

When was the Hungarian revolution

A

23rd Oct 1956

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9
Q

When was Prague spring

A

1968

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10
Q

Who was in charge of Czechoslovakia and USSR during Prague Spring

A

Czech - Dubcek
USSR - Brezhnev

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11
Q

What did Dubcek want for Czechoslovakia

A

Socialism with a human face, end of censorship and travel to and from the west.

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12
Q

When did USSR retake control of Czechoslovakia

A

paratroopers invaded August 21st 1968

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13
Q

Why didn’t the US interfere with the Hungarian or Czechoslovakian revolutions

A

Czech - distracted b Vietnamese war and race riots
Hungary - distracted by Britain, France and Israel’s attack on the Suez

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14
Q

What was different between Hungary and Czechoslovakia’s revolution

A

USSR interfered with Hungary because they were scared of them leaving the Warsaw pact
USSR interfered with Czechoslovakia because it was in an important strategic position
China + allies were in favour of the response to Hungary but not in favour of the response to Czechoslovakia

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15
Q

Who led the GDR

A

Ulbricht

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16
Q

How many Germans fled to West Germany from the GDR between 1949-61

A

2.1 million

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17
Q

What was Khrushchev’s proposal for Berlin 1958/9

A

Berlin should become a free, demilitarised city - possibly under the control of the UN.
He gave western troops 6 months to withdraw and said he would take firm action if his proposal wasnt accepted

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18
Q

When and what happened at the first two summit meetings in 1959

A

Geneva - May 1959 - USA (Eisenhower) + USSR - no solutions
Camp David - Sept 1959 - USA (Eisenhower) + USSR - no solutions but agreed to another meeting + Khrushchev removed his 6 month ultimatum

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19
Q

When was the U2 Spy plane Crisis

A

May 1960

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20
Q

What were the effects of the U2 Spy Plane Crisis

A

Renewed soviet suspicions about western spies
Tension before the next summit meeting

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21
Q

When and what happened with the 2nd two summit meetings

A

Paris - May 1960 - Spy plane incident - Khrushchev walked out
Vienna - June 1961 - Khrushchev met Kennedy for the first time, he issued another 6 month ultimatum

22
Q

What did Kennedy do to force Khrushchev to retreat from his 6 month ultimatum in Berlin

A

Declared he wouldnt remove troops from Berlin
July 25th - $3.2 billion increase in defence funding announced
$207 million allocated for nuclear fallout shelter building
- USSR could not win in a nuclear war so they retreated

23
Q

What was the flow of refugees from West to East Germany like by July 1961

A

1000 refugees a day

24
Q

When was the Berlin wall built

A

August 1961

25
Q

What action did the US take when the Berlin Wall was built

A

Oct 27th 1961 - sent a line of tanks through Checkpoint Charlie

26
Q

How many escape tunnels were there in Berlin

A

40

27
Q

What did the West gain from the Berlin Wall

A

Propaganda win, kept West Berlin, avoided war

28
Q

What did the East gain from the Berlin Wall

A

Avoided nuclear war, flow of refugees stopped - no more loss of skilled workers

29
Q

Who was the Pope from Poland

A

John Paul II

30
Q

What were some reasons Poland clashed with USSR

A

Had a difficult history with USSR, strongly Catholic, regular protests over food and wages

31
Q

When was Solidarity formed and what is it

A

Aug 1980 - a free trade Union in Poland

32
Q

Who was the leader of solidarity

A

Lech Walesa

33
Q

What did Solidarity want

A

a right to strike, more money, end of censorship, broadcasting of catholic services

34
Q

How many demands did Solidarity suggested to the government

A

21 - all accepted

35
Q

Why was solidarity influencial

A

Support of west, economic power of Polish workers, support of Catholic church, Walesa’s leadership

36
Q

What was the Soviet response to Solidarity

A

Urged polish communist party to clamp down on them
Dec 1981 - Soviet army began manoeuvres on Polish border

37
Q

When did Jaruzelski introduce martial law

A

Dec 1981

38
Q

What did Poland’s Martial Law do?

A

imprisoned Walesa and 10,000 other solidarity leaders
1982 - solidarity made illegal
when they released solidarity leaders, they were still harrassed

39
Q

What was the inflation in Poland

A

70%

40
Q

What were the consequences of the response to Solidarity

A

Economic chaos, increased popularity of Solidarity, communist party popularity decreased, Solidarity survived

41
Q

What were some economic problems in the USSR

A

Poor living standards, long waiting lists (wait for a flat = 15 years), food shortages, heavy arms spending

42
Q

When did Gorbachev take charge

A

1985

43
Q

What were Gorbachev’s ideas for the survival of the USSR

A

Perestroika, Glasnost, end of Corruption, reformed communist party, end Afghan war and arms race, end Brezhnev doctrine

44
Q

What is Glasnost

A

openness - end of censorship

45
Q

What is Perestroika

A

economic reform

46
Q

What happened in May 1989

A

Hungary opened it’s border with Austria

47
Q

What happened in June 1989

A

Free elections in Poland - solidarity (Lech Walesa) won
first non commie government in the east

48
Q

What happened in the GDR to end communism

A

7th Oct 1989 - 40th anniversary of GDR - Gorbachev visited
Demonstrations happened - no support of red army forced government to listen to people

49
Q

When did the Berlin Wall come down

A

Nov 9th 1989

50
Q

What happened in Czechoslovakia to end communism there

A

Velvet revolution led by playwriter Havel
No violence - no red army to support gov so they gave in

51
Q

Who was the leader of Romania

A

Ceausescu (chow-ches-cou)

52
Q

What happened in Romania to end communism there

A

Dec 1989 - economic instability helped instigate rebellion
started in Timisoara as they could get news from Yugoslavia there - spread to capital
army deserted and everyone turned again Ceaucescu