The end of détente

Question 1

What happened when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan?

Answer 1

Brezhnev ordered the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan following Amin’s seizure of power.

Question 2

When did the Soviets invade Afghanistan?

Answer 2

December 1979.

Question 3

For what 7 reasons did the Soviets invade Afghanistan?

Answer 3

1. The Kabul Revolution of April 1978 in Afghanistan had seen the overthrow of the government and the instalment of a new Communist president, Mohammed Taraki, who quickly became an ally of the USSR.
2. However, there was still unrest in Afghanistan and by the spring of 1979, a civil war had broken out across the country between the government and Islamic fighters.
3. Taraki was forced to accept Hafizullah Amin, the head of the army, as prime minister. However, they quickly became rivals and in October 1979, Amin supporters assassinated Taraki and Amin claimed presidency of the country.
4. Although Amin was a Communist, Brezhnev didn’t trust him. The Soviet secret police reported that he was an American spy. He was also unpopular with a large number of Muslims in the country and Brezhnev feared that Muslim groups were planning to take control of the country.
5. The USSR was concerned that, as a result of the Civil War, Afghanistan would become an Islamic state and influence nearby Soviet republics to do the same. Islamic states are not Communist and therefore any countries that became Islamic have no reason to make alliances with Russia.
6. Babrak Karmal, and Afghani Communist, argued that he had enough popular support to form a new government but needed Soviet help to defeat Amin’s military.
7. Brezhnev believed that America would tolerate the invasion to avoid war.

Question 4

What are the 4 key features of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan?

Answer 4

1. Soviet troops killed Amin along with many of his supporters.
2. Karmal was declared President (a post he retained until 1986).
3. Within weeks of the invasion, Soviet troops were being killed by Mujahideen rebels, who used guerilla tactics.
4. The invasion lasted 10 years and around 1.5 million people died, including almost 15,000 Russian soldiers.

Question 5

What were the 7 results of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan?

Answer 5

1. The American President, Jimmy Carter, was appalled at the Soviet invasion.
2. Carter made a statement that became known as the Carter Doctrine where he argued that the USA would not allow the USSR to gain control of territory in the oil rich Middle East.
3. He formed an alliance with China and Israel to support Afghan rebels, who were opposed to the Soviet invasion and the Afghan Communist government.
4. The CIA provided weapons and funds for the Mujahideen.
5. He imposed economic sanctions by stopping virtually all trade with the Soviet Union.
6. He ended diplomatic relations with the USSR.`
7. These actions ended détente.

Question 6

In what 3 ways did Carter show that détente was officially over?

Answer 6

1. Carter made a statement that became known as the Carter Doctrine where he argued that the USA would not allow the USSR to gain control of territory in the oil rich Middle East.
2. Carter withdrew his support for the SALT II agreement. Negotiations for the Treaty had been running since 1972. SALT II would have reduced stocks of nuclear missiles to 2,250 warheads for each superpower. Carter’s withdrawal meant that this never became law.
3. Carter led a boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games as he was angered by the invasion of Afghanistan and he thought he could place pressure on the Soviet Union by starting a boycott. Around 60 countries including China, Malawi, West Germany and Zaire, followed the American lead and refused to attend the Games in protest of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The American government set up an alternative Games called the Olympic Boycott Games, which were held in Philadelphia.

Question 7

Who was Reagan and what were his 2 views on détente?

Answer 7

1. Ronald Reagan succeeded Carter as President of the USA.
2. He believed that détente had been a disaster and rejected the idea of peaceful coexistence with the USSR.
3. He thought that America should start fighting again; he wanted America to win the Cold War.

Question 8

Describe the 5 key features of Reagan’s ‘evil empire’ speech.

Answer 8

1. In March 1983, Reagan made a speech where he made his view of the Soviet Union obvious.
2. This is known as his ‘evil empire’ speech.
3. He said that the Cold War was a fight between good and evil and that America fought with God’s blessing.
4. He called the USSR an ‘evil empire’.
5. He made clear the the Cold War was a moral war and that America had a moral duty to invest in new nuclear weapons in order to defend liberty from the ‘evil’ Soviet Union.

Question 9

What was the SDI?

Answer 9

The Strategic Defence Initiative was an initiative introduced by Reagan. He thought that by this initiative, he would be able to force the USSR to disarm.

Question 10

When was the SDI introduced?

Answer 10

In the 1980s.

Question 11

What were the 6 key features of the SDI?

Answer 11

1. Reagan’s plan was to launch an army of satellites equipped with powerful lasers into space.
2. These lasers would intercept Soviet missiles in space and destroy them before they did America any harm.
3. Reagan believed that SDI would make Soviet nuclear missiles useless and therefore force the USSR to disarm.
4. SDI was a turning point in the arms race.
5. During détente the superpowers had been evenly matched and had worked together to limit the growth of nuclear stockpiles.
6. SDI was a complete break from this policy as it broke the terms of the Outer Space Treaty of 1967.

Question 12

What were the 6 effects of the SDI?

Answer 12

1. SDI turned the space race into an arms race.
2. SDI presented a big problem for the Russians as they could not compete with it.
3. America had won the race to the moon in 1969 and by the early 1980s, it had developed the space shuttle.
4. The Soviet economy was not producing enough wealth to fund consumer goods, conventional military spending and the development of new space based weapons.
5. The USSR was behind America in terms of its computer technology. During the 1980s, the American computer market boomed. Before SDI, Soviet leaders were very suspicious of computers because they were concerned that they might be used to undermine the power of the Communist Party. Computers were essential for the development of an SDI type programme.
6. Reagan’s proposals meant that the USSR could no longer compete in the arms race.