Origins of the Cold War Flashcards
When was the Tehran Conference?
November-December 1943
When was the Yalta Conference?
February 1945
When was the Potsdam Conference?
July - August 1945
What was agreed at the Tehran Conference?
1) USA ad Britain agreed to open a second front
2) SU agreed to declare war on Japan once Germany defeated
3) Boundaries of Poland move westward, gaining territory from Germany and losing it from the Soviet Union
4) Agreed to the setting up of the United Nations (in theory)
What was agreed at the Yalta Conference?
1) When Germany was defeated, it would be reduced in size, divided and demilitarised. It would have to pay reparations.
2) Europe to be rebuilt along the lines of the Atlantic Charter. Free elections.
3) UN would be set up
4) Soviet Union to declare war on Japan once Germany defeated
5) Poland to be under the ‘Soviet sphere of influence’ but run on a broader democratic basis
What was agreed at the Potsdam Conference?
1) Council of foreign ministers set up to organise the rebuilding of Europe
2) Nazi Party banned and war criminals to be prosecuted
3) Germany to be reduced in size and divided into four zones
4) Berlin to also be divided into zones
5) Soviet Union to receive 25% of output from other three zones
Whose death led to the Potsdam Conference being less successful than previous conferences?
Roosevelt
Who replaced Roosevelt as leader of the USA?
Truman
When did the USA drop the atomic bombs on Japan?
August 1945
What new development cast a shadow over the Potsdam Conference?
The atomic bomb
In which year were both Kennan’s Long Telegram and the Novikov Telegram sent?
1946
What did Kennan’s Long Telegram argue?
1) The Soviet Union wanted to destroy capitalism
2) The Soviets were building their military power
3) Peace between the Soviets and the USA was impossible
What did the Novikov Telegram claim?
1) The USA wanted world domination & was building up its military
2) The Soviets were the only country who could stand up to the USA
3) The USA was preparing its people for war with the Soviet Union.
Did the Soviet Union deliver the free elections they promised to at the Yalta Conference? Why?
No, because most people would not have chosen Communism, so the elections were rigged.
What is meant by the phrase ‘salami tactics’?
Fixing elections and then shutting down opposition parties
How did the Soviet occupation of Eastern Europe affect relations?
1) USA saw it as a betrayal of Yalta
2) Others feared it was a stepping stone to taking over Western Europe
3) Led to the Truman Doctrine & Marshall Aid
4) USSR argued it was a buffer zone. USA disagreed.
How did the Soviets ensure Bulgaria became Communist?
Elections in 1945. All elected non-communists executed.
How did the Soviets ensure Poland became Communist?
Set up a joint communist/non-communist government, as promised at Yalta. Invited 16 non-communist leaders to Moscow & arrested them. Thousands of other non-communists also arrested. Another election 1947, which the communists ‘won’.
How did the Soviets ensure Czechoslovakia became Communist?
Coalition government set up. Communists control the army, radio and secret police. 1948 seize power and turned into a communist state.
When were the Truman Doctrine & Marshall Plan introduced?
1947
What was the aim of the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan?
To prop up weak economies following WW2, to ensure they did not ‘fall’ to communism
