The Iron Curtain and the evolution of East-West rivalry

Question 1

How did the Soviets expand in Eastern Europe?

Answer 1

• the Red Army already occupied the land that they had taken from the Nazis, including Poland Hungary and Yugoslavia
• Communist was popular in Eastern Europe
• the Soviets made it very difficult for non-communists to gain power in these countries by rigging elections and arresting and executing opponents

Question 2

How did the West respond to Soviet expansion?

Answer 2

1. The Long Telegram
2. Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech

Question 3

What was The Long Telegram?

Answer 3

• 22nd February 1946
• second in command at the US embassy in Moscow, George Kennan sent a report back to the USA on developments in the USSR

Question 4

What was the impact of The Long Telegram?

Answer 4

It confirmed Truman’s fears and had a large influence on his future approach towards the USSR.

Question 5

What did Churchill say in his Iron Curtain speech?

Answer 5

• the USSR was attempting to spread its influence across Europe and increase its power
• an invisible line had split Europe on two between the East and West which he called the Iron Curtain

Question 6

What did Kennan say in The Long Telegram?

Answer 6

• he believed the Soviets wanted to spread their influence as widely as possible
• the USSR saw the USA as its enemy
• any attempt at cooperation between the USA and the USSR would fail

Question 7

What was Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech?

Answer 7

• 6th March 1949
• during a visit to the USA
• Churchill made a speech about the sitiuation in Europe
• as Britains former prime minister and wartime leader, his views were to be taken serious

Question 8

What was the impact of Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech?

Answer 8

The term “Iron Curtain” was widely used for the remainder of the Cold War.
Truman respected and shared Churchill’s view and was at his side during the speech.
The speech was viewed as a deliberate misrepresentation of the USSR’s aims in Moscow

Question 9

When was the Truman Doctrine made?

Answer 9

March, 1947

Question 10

What was the Truman Doctrine?

Answer 10

It refers to the American policy towards communism after WW2.
Truman outlined the policy in a speech to Congress.

Question 11

What did the Truman Doctrine say?

Answer 11

• Communism posed a serious threat to the USA and the rest of the world
• the USA would support any country that was under threat from communism
• the focus must be in “containing communism” - keeping it within countries where it was already established

Question 12

What was the purpose of the Marshall Plan?

Answer 12

• aid economic recovery in Europe in order to prevent people from turning to communism
• to support the containment of communism within Eastern-Europe
• to create a market for American goods in order to build up the American economy

Question 13

What was the Marshall Plan?

Answer 13

• aid was given to the countries that were willing to accept aid
• aid was offered to all the countries in Europe, east and west
• aid was supplied in the form of money or resources (eg. machinery). all resources had to be bought from American suppliers

Question 14

How much money was divided among the countries that were willing to accept the Marshall Aid?

Answer 14

$13.15 billion

Question 15

What were the results of the Marshall Plan?

Answer 15

• Marshall aid was vital for the recovery of Western Europe as it allowed economies to be rebuilt and the standard of living to rise
• the American economy also benefited
• it demonstrated that the USA was committed to involvement just Europe for the long term
• communism became less popular in Western Europe
• the division between East and West became even more firmly established as Stalin forbade countries from behind the Iron Curtain from accepting aid

Question 16

What was Stalin’s response to the Truman Doctrine?

Answer 16

• saw it as a direct threat to communism
• he created the Cominform to ensure unity in Eastern Europe
• all Cominform member countries would meet regularly in Moscow to ensure that they were all following the same policies

Question 17

What was Stalin’s response to the Marshall Plan?

Answer 17

• saw it as an example of dollar imperialism (thought the USA gained power over the countries that accepted their aid and was fearful that they would use their power for world domination)
• made it clear that Eastern-European countries should not accept any aid from the USA
• created Comecon

Question 18

What was Comecon?

Answer 18

• a Soviet alternative to Marshall Aid
• countries who signed up for it were agreeing to work together and share resources in what was officially a union of equal partners
• in reality all decisions were made in Moscow

Question 19

Why was the relationship between Stalin and Tito (Yugoslavian leader) worsening?

Answer 19

• Tito was unwilling to follow Stalin’s instructions and saw Yugoslavia as an independent country
• Tito accepted Marshal Aid in 1948
• from this point on, Yugoslavias position was unique: a communist country that was not behind the Iron Curtain

Question 20

Why did Tito have no particular loyalty to Stalin?

Answer 20

Yugoslavia did not owe its freedom from the Nazis to the Red Army.

Question 21

What were the causes for the Berlin Blockade?

Answer 21

• the Western Allies were keen for Germany to be rebuilt and unified, but Stalin opposed this as he saw Germany as a potential threat
• tri-zonia & bi-zonia: March 1948, the Western Allies agreed to unify their sectors of Germany and Berlin and to introduce a new currency
• the USSR’s ultimate aim was for the withdrawal of alll Western officials from Berlin

Question 22

What was the ‘mini-blockade’ and when was it?

Answer 22

From April 1948 it began and it included:
- blocking military supply routes
- traffic restrictions
- closing bridges for ‘maintenance’

Question 23

When did Stalin launch a full blockade?

Answer 23

24th June 1948

Question 24

What did the full blockade include?

Answer 24

• transport links into West Berlin were blocked
• no food, fuel or medical supplies could reach people in the non-Soviet part of the city
• electricity supplied from within the Soviet sectors was cut

Question 25

What was the West’s initial response to the Berlin Blockade?

Answer 25

• Truman and Atlee were both determined not to give in
• the West‘s first response was a counter-blockade that stopped trains travelling out of West Berlin
• this had a limited impact

Question 26

What was the Western response after their counter blockade had little impact?

Answer 26

• Berlin Airlift
• British and American planes began delivering supplies to West Berlin

Question 27

At its peak what amount of supplies were delivered daily?

Answer 27

around 4000 tonnes of supplies were delivered every day

Question 28

What was ‘Easter Parade’? When was it?

Answer 28

Nearly 12,000 tonnes of coal were delivered on 15th April 1949.

Question 29

What was the result of the Berlin Airlift?

Answer 29

Stalin gave in and ended the blockade

Question 30

What were the consequences of the Berlin Blockade and Airlift?

Answer 30

• they had pushed the two sides to the brink of war
• East-West relations were the worst they had ever been