The Cold War Flashcards
Hoe did the USSR and USA create spheres of interest in the world by the 1960's
What was the Cold War
Struggle between superpowers after WW2
USA and Allies called the “West”
USSR and Allies called the “Soviet Bloc/ East”
Clash between the capitalism and communism, Economic Systems
Lasted for nearly 50 Years
Led to the formation of political and military alliances
Involved massive arms race
Created conflicts in different parts of the world
Dominated second half of the 20th century
How did the Cold War start
1945: Wartime alliance against Nazi Germany collapsed
Build-up of tension between USSR and West
Why did the West distrust the USSR
After WW2, USSR annexed Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, Eastern Poland
USSR established Soviet-Dominated governments in Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, East Germany, Czechoslovakia
West feared communist takeover of western Europe
Why did the USSR distrust the West
US policy of ‘containment’ - to check spread of communism
Truman Doctrine (1947) - US military aid to countries under communist “thread”
Marshall Plan (1948) - US economic aid to rebuild Europe
Increased divisions and tensions between West and East
Divisions over Germany
After WW2, the Allied powers (USA, Britain and France) had several conferences to discuss the future of Germany and the reconstruction of Europe
In February 1945, the Yalta Conference was held in the Soviet Union and the following were decided upon by the Big Three (USSR, USA and Britain): that Germany be divided into four zones of occupation- Russian, American, British and French
Berlin, the capital of Germany, which was situated in the Russian Zone, be divided into four sections, one for each of the 4 major powers
Countries that were free from Nazi occupation be allowed to hold free elections to decide what type of government they wanted
1948-9: First crisis of Cold War
Berlin Blockade: USSR cut off western sectors of Berlin from West
Berlin Airlift: West supplied Berlin by Air
Results:
West Berlin remain under Western Control
Tense balance between superpowers
Berlin a symbol of Cold War tensions
Germany divided into East Germany and West Germany
Alliance Blocs during the Cold War
NATO (1949):
Military alliance between USA and Western Europe
Headquarters: Paris (later Brussels)
US military bases in Britain, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey
USSR viewed it as American attempt to increase hold over Europe
France resented US domination- withdrew troops from NATO
