The transformation of the USSR's international position Flashcards
Had the Soviet Union always wanted to be a superpower?
o Not until 1941
o Stalin’s main ambition was for the Soviet Union to be left alone, allowing tine for the transformation of the Soviet economy
What power had the USSR gained?
o Vast new military-industrial war machine was built up
o Armed forces consisted of 7.5 million
o Increased territory
o Red Army remained in control of the nation states in east central Europe it had liberated
How was the rise of the Soviet superpower reflected?
o In the diplomacy of the Grand Alliance between the USSR, Britain and the United States
Describe the series of wartime summit meetings that took place and what did they decide?
o Decided what would happen after the war was won
o First summit that included Stalin was at Tehran, November 1944
o Churchill met Stalin in Moscow, October 1944
o The ‘Big Three’ met at Yalta, February 1945,
o The three Allies met at Potsdam, July 1945, after Germany had been defeated, clear Britain was an empire in decline and would be overshadowed
What was revealed in 1945 and what affect did this have on the USSR?
o That America had developed an atomic bomb
o Placed the USSR at an obvious disadvantage in the power stakes and Stalin places Beria in charge of accelerating the development of a Soviet atomic bomb
What confirmed the USSR’s superpower status?
o Possession of nuclear weapons
What was the status of the USSR reflected by?
o The United Nation formed in 1945
o USSR was one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council
What led to the formation of a Soviet bloc?
o Outcome of the war led to Soviet military domination of eastern and Central Europe which led to a Soviet bloc
o Zone of buffer states that Stalin hoped would protect the USSR against invasion from the west
What did ‘salami tactics’ enable and what were they?
o Enabled pro-soviet governments to gain power in Hungary 1947 and Czechoslovakia 1948
o ‘Salami tactics’ was gaining power from within by small incremental steps
Why was it agreed to demand unconditional surrender from Germany?
o To prevent any of them from making a separate peace with Hitler
Why was Stalin the ‘senior partner’
o Roosevelt had died and been replaced with Truman
o Churchill had lost power and been replaced with Attlee
Between what years did conflict between the Soviet bloc and the capitalist West harden into Cold War?
1946 - 1949
What was stage 1 of the breakdown of East-West relations?
o The Long Telegram and the Iron Curtain Speech (1946)
o Fear of Soviet expansion was exacerbated by the Long Telegram
o How capitalist West viewed what was happening in Eastern Europe was made clear by Churchill’s speech , advised ‘strength’ when dealing with the USSR
What was stage 2 of the breakdown of East-West relations?
o Truman Doctrine asserted the US policy of ‘containment’ 1947
o Marshall Plan 1947, supposedly a generous offer of assistance open to all European countries but many believe it was a political weapon designed to extend American influence
o Soviet bloc countries pressured to reject Marshall Aid
What was stage 3 of the breakdown of East-West relations?
o Berlin blockade and hardening of Cold War divisions 1948-49
o Stalin viewed Berlin as a single city where Soviet interests ought to be paramount, he was frustrated by the way Soviet control of Berlin had slipped since 1945 and was especially alarmed by the introduction of a separate currency in the Western zones in 1948
o The next day Stalin launched the Berlin blockade, cutting off all road and rail links between Berlin and the West
