the cold war Flashcards
What event in 1959 led to the rise of Fidel Castro in Cuba?
Fidel Castro and Che Guevara toppled the pro-American government in Cuba.
What was the consequence of the US boycotting Cuban sugar?
Castro sold sugar to Khrushchev and received arms from the USSR.
What was the Bay of Pigs invasion?
A CIA-trained attempt by Cuban exiles to invade Cuba and overthrow Castro that failed.
What was a major reason for the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion?
The USA backed out of air support and the Cuban army was superior to the exiles.
What action did Khrushchev take in response to the US threat?
Sent nuclear missiles to Cuba.
How did the USA discover the Soviet missiles in Cuba?
Through reconnaissance and intelligence efforts in 1962.
What was President Kennedy’s response to the discovery of missiles in Cuba?
Decided to blockade Cuba to stop missiles from arriving.
What did Khrushchev propose in his first telegram to Kennedy?
He would remove missiles from Cuba if the USA would not invade.
What additional demand did Khrushchev make in his second telegram?
He wanted US missiles removed from Turkey.
How did Kennedy respond to Khrushchev’s first telegram?
Publicly.
How did Kennedy respond to Khrushchev’s second telegram?
Secretly.
What effect did Kennedy’s handling of the crisis have on his reputation?
Increased his reputation as a strong leader.
What was a possible consequence for Khrushchev after the crisis?
He was dismissed as leader of the USSR in 1954.
What was the Grand Alliance in WW2?
Alliance of USA, USSR, Britain, and France to defeat Nazi Germany
Met at Tehran (1943) and Yalta (1945) to strategize post-war Europe.
What was agreed upon at the Potsdam Conference in 1945?
De-nazification of Germany and division into 4 zones
Each zone was shared between the USA, USSR, Britain, and France.
What did the Long and Novikov Telegrams report in 1946?
Fears of military build-up by the opposing country
Both telegrams reflected increasing tensions between the USA and USSR.
What was the Truman Doctrine?
A declaration that communism was a threat to freedom, justifying military and economic intervention by the USA
Announced in 1947 by President Truman.
What was the purpose of the Marshall Plan?
To provide $13 billion in aid to Europe to prevent poverty leading to communism
It upset the USSR, which viewed it as a bribe for satellite states.
What did Churchill mean by the ‘Iron Curtain’ speech in 1947?
Europe was divided into two spheres: East (communist) and West (democratic)
Highlighted the ideological divide in post-war Europe.
What was Cominform?
A Soviet initiative to unite all communist parties from satellite states
Established in response to the Marshall Plan.
What triggered the Berlin Blockade (1947-1948)?
USSR’s concerns over the Western allies’ plans to unite West Germany
Resulted in blocked access to West Berlin, leading to a US airlift.
What was the outcome of the Berlin Blockade?
The USSR backed down after the US airlifted supplies for 11 months
Shooting down planes would have been an act of war.
What were the two German states established after the blockade?
FRG (Federal Republic of Germany) in the West and GDR (German Democratic Republic) in the East
Berlin also became officially split.
What was NATO?
A military alliance of the USA and Western European countries against the USSR
Established in response to the perceived threat of communism.
