The Start of the Cold War (Organizations of the World, The Races, Nuclear Proliferation) Flashcards
What is NATO?
- An organization designed to prevent war. If one member country is attacked by a foreign enemy, the other members must defend them
- Established April 1949, in Brussels, Belgium
**French and German are the main languages spoken in Brussels - allows for communication with many other countries (similar language)
What was the Warsaw Pact?
- The Communist and Soviet response to NATO
- Headquarters are located in Warsaw, Poland
- Member countries included Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Soviet Union, Poland and East Germany
**Yugoslavia is Slavic, Eastern European and Communist but refused to join - Leader Martial Tito hated Stalin
What was SEATO?
SEATO: South East Asian Treaty Organization
- Member countries included Australia, France, New Zealand, Great Britain, United States, Thailand and the Philippines
- Australia and New Zealand: Former British colonies
- Thailand: Never colonized by Europe, but was surrounded by French colonies
- The Philippines: Former American colony
What was CENTO?
CENTO: Central Treaty Organization
- Member countries included Great Britain, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, and Turkey
- Iran: Never colonized by Europe, but hosted Anglo-Persian Oil Company, a British oil company that used Iranian oil
- Iraq and Pakistan: Former British colonies
- Turkey: Enemies with the Soviet Union
What was the Arms Race?
The Arms Race was a time when the United States and the Soviet Union competed to get as many powerful nuclear weapons as possible.
- 1945-1958: Dominated by the United States
- 1959: The Soviet Union develops the ICBM (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile), which puts them ahead
What was MAD?
MAD: Mutually Assured Destruction
- The United States and the Soviet Union each attempted to be the dominating world power, but if there is no world left, there is no point
- Used to prevent the threat of nuclear war that could’ve ended the word
What was the Space Race?
The Space Race was a time when the United States and the Soviet Union, whilst the Arms Race, competed to be the first country in space, or to develop the best aerospace technologies.
- Began in 1957, and ended in 1969 when the United States sent man to the moon
**This era showed a great improvement in technology and the science of astronomy
Russian Perspective on the Space Race
- For a long time, the Soviet Union had been criticized for being a “backwards nation”: they had a low standard of living and low quality of life
- The USSR wanted to prove that they were an advanced nation
- This was done through the launch of Sputnik, the first artificial satellite, in 1952
- Sputnik II: 1st “manned” satellite, with a dog named Laika. This marked the first living being in space
Spying during the Cold War era
During the Cold War era, the United States and the Soviet Union used spying, or espionage, to steal and protect information from one another.
- Much of our technology comes from spied information
- New gadgets led to modern technology
What is nuclear proliferation?
When a country or countries give nuclear weapons to a country/countries without any
- The Soviet Union gave missiles to Cuba
- The United States gave missiles to Turkey
**Cuba and Turkey were pointed at the USA and the USSR
What is nuclear non-proliferation?
Restrictions placed on nuclear weapons, focusing on the positive use of nuclear energy, such as creating powerplants
- Primarily involved non-aligned countries
What is the IAEA?
IAEA: International Atomic Energy Agency
- Subdivision of the United Nations established in 1957, during the peak of the Arms Race
- The IAEA promote the use of nuclear powerplants, and inspect powerplants in 185 countries
What was SALT?
SALT: Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
- Conducted by the United States and the Soviet Union during the 1970s, starting in 1971
- The president of the USA at the time was Richard Nixon
- The premier of the USSR at the time was Leonid Prezhev
- These talks were primarily focused on reducing the number of nuclear missiles in their arsenals
What was START?
START: Strategic Arms Reduction Talks
- 3 talks in 1990s between the United States and the Soviet Union (1991, 1993, 1999)
- These talks were primarily focused on reducing the range and power of nuclear missiles in their arsenals
- In 2010, a discussion of START began between President Obama and President Medvedev: however, nothing came from it
