Peaceful Co-existence Flashcards
De-Stalinisation
- following Stalins death the politburo endorsed a collective leadership of Malenkov, Molotov, Bulganin and Khrushchev to prevent another Stalinist system
Khrushchev’s Secret Speech 1956
- Khrushchev denounced Stalins reign of terror
- he attacked Stalin for using purges to consolidate his rule
- in the USA it was regarded that real change was taking place
- it was significant as it had the potential to affect SU foreign policy
The role of Khrushchev in shaping superpower relations
- he adopted a more softer and constructive tone towards the West
- this was crucial in making the summit diplomacy of the 1950s possible
- he believed the 2 superpowers had to accept each others existence
- he boasted falsely about the SU producing missiles like sausages- this would convey they are militarily strong
Peaceful Co-existence
- shortly after Stalins death Malenkov (prime minister) called for the New Course- this focused on peaceful coexistence
- the SU could devote more resources to raising living standards and developing consumer industries
- onced he was removed Khrushchev adopted the same policy
Soviet Peaceful coexistence- key measures
1) End of Korean War July 1953
- the new soviet leadership brought it to an end
- it’s was having economic impacts
- Stalin wanted to continue the war
2) Cuts in the Red Army
- this was to convince the west they wanted peace
- Khrushchev also wanted to save military costs
3) Soviet Withdrawal from Finland
- ended conflict between the 2 countries in ww2
- 300 million reparations were given to SU
- they also had a 50 year lease on Porkkala- this was handed back in 1955
Hungary 1956
- Nagy became leader in July 1956
- reformers were calling for free press, multi part democracy and withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact
- Nagy agreed to these demands and declared Hungary as a neutral country- the SU saw this as a open revolt
- The SU crushed this revolt and Kadar replaced Nagy- protesters were arrested and killed
Eisenhower and Dulles take charge in 1953
- He attacked Truman for being soft on communism
- a New Look policy was adopted by them
Why did Eisenhower want better relations with the USSR?
- he was aware of the dangers of nuclear war that could destroy civilisation
- he was concerned military spending was too high- if there was better relations spending could be reduced
- U2 spy planes showed that the USSR were considerably behind in the arms race
Key features of the ‘New Look Policy’
1) Massive Retaliation 1954
- greater use of nuclear threats and place less reliance on conventional weapons
2) Brinkmanship
- 1953 the US warned China that if the Korean War was not brought to an end they would use nuclear weapons
3) Increased Covert Operations
- CIA
- U2 spy planes
Geneva Conference, April-July 1954
- US, USSR, Britain and France met to discuss Korea and Vietnam
- nothing was agreed on Korea but there was an agreement around the Vietnam War
Geneva Summit, July 1955
- this was the first East- West summit of the Cold War
- it was to restart face to face diplomacy between the US and USSR
However an agreement could not be reached on the following issues:
1) Germany- the SU feared a united Germany wounds lead to an western alliance
2) Open Skies- taking aerial photos of airspace- Khrushchev rejected this
Khrushchevs US visit and the Camp David Summit, September 1959
- this was significant as it was the first summit just involving both superpowers
- Khrushchev and Eisenhower agreed to have a full summit in 1960
Paris Summit, May 1960
- this was not as successful as it was more hardline
- the U2 spy plane collapsed this summit
Vienna Summit, June 1961
- Kennedy was new president and Khrushchev wanted to exploit his inexperience
- Kennedy was shocked by his behaviour
The U2 incident 1960
- May 1960 a US spy plane was shot down over SU airspace
- Gary Powers was captured
- the SU leader demanded an apology from Eisenhower- refusing to apologise Khrushchev walked out of the Paris summit
- the U2 spy plane incident boosted Khrushchevs standing and made him more determined to exert soviet influence
