Unit 8 - The Cold War c. 1900 - 2001

Question 1

Explain the historical context of the Cold War & decolonization after 1945. (gov)

Answer 1

• dissolution & restructuring of states:
  
  • During WWII, Big Three emerged: GB, US, and USSR
  • Tehran Conference of 1943: Roosevelt, Churchill, & Stalin agreed that the USSR would free E. EU while the US & GB would focus on Western Europe
  • Yalta Conference: US wants free elections in e. eu but stalin wants them as a buffer zone for russia. also russia agrees to fight japan in exchange for some of poland
  • potsdam conference: truman still wants free elections but eastern eu is overrun by soviets -> solidify US - USSR mistrust
  • all these conferences failed to solve major global problems
• since imperial powers were busy stopping hitler and were weak, colonies thought it a good time to fight for independence -> cold war gave anti-colonial activists two superpowers to recruit as backers
  
  • anti-imperialist sentiments ↑ bc of WWI unfulfilled promises
• shifting global balance of power (why US vs soviet):
  
  • US mainland and population untouched after war
  • US industry/infrastructure grew stronger due to government-funded military contracts in the total war system
  • US develop atomic weapons and new tech such as penicillin for civilian use, refrigeration for food, stronger plywood for construction, etc. -> improved lives of millions of ppl
  • USSR is huge and had huge pop even after war
  • Stalin spent years building up industrial capacity
  • all other eu countries ravaged

Question 2

describe the power struggle between capitalism (US) vs communism (USSR). (econ + political + tech)

Answer 2

• rivalry in econ/politics:
• capitalism = the means of production are privately-owned so ppl act in their own self-interest vs communism = the gov’t regulates business & also emphasizes equality
• US (democratic) has free elections where ppl vote for competing political parties & choose who they want to elect They also rely on independent press to convey accurate information vs USSR’s authoritarianism had one dom. political party that stayed in power for a long time due to their lack of emphasis on elections. The press also owned by the gov’t
• conflicts in international affairs:
• allies split germany & ran it their way -> formalized split btwn W. & E. EU
  
  • w. germany & w. berlin = FR, GB, USA (democratic + capitalist)
  • e. germany & e. berlin = USSR (authoritarian + communist)
  • USSR wanted to completely control berlin (was in e. germ) -> berlin blockade of 1948 -> allies don’t want direct confrontation -> berlin airlift until soviets ended blockade
  • e. germans wanted to move to w. germ bc of prosperity -> 2.5 mil move -> USSR builds Berlin Wall (1961 - 1989)
• ussr wanted its satellite countries’ gov’t like theirs so they made them do 5 yr plans and collectivization of agriculture
• ussr also supported radical left-wing revolts -> ↑ american suspicion -> truman doctrine = we will do everything we can to stop the spread of communism (issued in response to greece and turkey’s left-wing revolts)
  
  • US believed financial instability = susceptible to communism -> marshall plan = 12 billion $ to rebuild eu’s infrastructure & cities = huge success -> USSR tries to replicate = COMECON = focused on trade = modest success
• space and arms race:
• USSR launches sputnik (1st satellite) -> starts space race = dominance in the field of space
  
  • fought over who was going to send the first man into space and on the moon = WE’RE BETTER THAN YOU
  • arms race = both countries build up their arsenals in fear the other would attack first -> mutually assured destruction
    
    • reason why for no direct military confrontation

Question 3

describe the non-aligned movement, its causes, leaders, and challenges. (culture + political)

Answer 3

• many Asian and African countries wanted to stay out of the Cold War & wanted alternative to existing social/pol order
• bandung conference = Sukarno, the leader of Indonesia, invited delegates from other countries to pass resolutions that condemned imperialism -> formation of non-aligned movement
• MAJOR LEADERS:
• Sukarno of Indonesia (first president)
• Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana (freed Ghana from British rule)
• Jawaharlal Nehru of India (first prime minister)
• Gamal Abdal Nasser of Egypt (supported Pan-Arabism)
• challenges:
• some countries allied w/ one power more than the other
  
  • ex: USSR supported Ethiopia so the US sent aid to Somalia during Somali-Ethiopian war
• US and USSR pressured them bc vyed for their support

Question 4

Explain how the Cold War produced new military alliances and led to nuclear proliferation and proxy wars between and within postcolonial states in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. (political)

Answer 4

• no direct confrontation = military alliances + proxy wars
• desire to coordinate resources in case other attacks -> military alliances
  
  • NATO = North Atlantic Treaty Organization = most of west
  • in response Warsaw Pact = USSR + satellite countries 1955
• treaty organizations formed to stop spread of communism
  
  • SEATO, the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
  • CENTO, stop communism from spreading into mid east
    proxy wars:
• allies divide korea -> n. korea = USSR + s. korea = w. allies
  
  • korean war (1950-53) starts when n. korea invade s. korea -> UN aids s. korea while USSR + china (in fear UN forces invade them next) sends $ + aid to n. korea
    
    • stalemate + peninsula divided at 38th parallel + DMZ
• vietnam og a french colony but in ww2 japan occupies region but french resume control after -> vietnamese war for indepedence led by commies -> peace treaty that split vietnam into commie (ho chi minh) north and capitalist south
  
  • s. vietnam + usa worried abt commie takeover -> war breaks out + usa sends aid to french troops (eisenhower sends military advisers, jfk increases # of advisers, lyndon b johnson sends more troops, nixon withdraws and commies win)
• fidel castro + commies overthrow cuban dictator batista in 1959 -> castro becomes dictator and nationalizes foreign-owned businesses (common commie tactic) -> angers US as they lose profits so they cut off econ + diplomatic ties w/ cuba -> cuba gets aid from USSR
  
  • JFK worred abt commie in backyard -> supports cuban exiles who want to overthrow castro -> Bay of Pigs invasion a failure -> cements cuba-ussr relations
  • leader after stalin, khrushchev sends missiles to cuba bc usa sent some to turkey -> angers usa + brink of war -> ussr + usa pull back and set up the Hot Line for better communication
  • ppl worry abt nuclear testing after cuban missile crisis -> Test-Ban Treaty bans testing aboveground, underwater, & in space to cut down radiation -> slightly eases tension
• angola, a independent port colony, got borders drawn w/ no respect to tribal relations -> 3 ethnic groups fight for control of gov’t + diamond mines
  
  • superpowers + south africa each back a tribe
  • 27 yrs of fighting -> cease-fire
• 1979 nicaragua the somoza dictatorship ended by socialist sandistas -> conservative contras try to overthrow them
  
  • usa backs contras covertly
  • ended in 1989 w/ demobilization + cease-fire in Tela Accord

Question 5

Explain the causes and consequences of China’s adoption of communism.

Answer 5

• Chinese Communist Party led by Mao Zedong won support bc they opened hospitals + schools, redistributed land to peasants, & Long March inspired + temporary alliance w/ nationalists to beat japan gave commies time to gain strength -> won civil war + declared People’s Republic of China in 1949
• Mao implements several five year plans + nationalizes chinese industry + Great Leap Forward = land reform w/ peasant lands combined into state-owned communes
  
  • dissenters sent to ‘reeducation camps’
  • collectivization -> food shortage -> 20 mil die bc of famine -> great leap forward abandoned
• 1966, Mao wants to reinvigorate commitment to communism -> cultural rev
  
  • enlisted red guards, rev students, to solidify his hold and silence critics
  • similar to Stalin’s Great Purges
• USSR + China’s relationship fluctuates
  
  • beginning cooperative, 1960s = border clashes

Question 6

Explain the causes and effects of movements to redistribute economic resources (land reform).

Answer 6

• iran:
  
  • 1800-1900s iran dominated by russian + britain bc oil
  • early in ww2 iranian leader supports hitler -> gb + russia forced him to abdicate to his son, Muhammad Reza Pahlavi
  • nationalists rejected new shah as a western puppet & elected Mosaddegh who vowed to nationalize iran’s oil -> gb + rus overthrow him & return authoritarian pahlavi
  • pahlavi ran bloodless white rev = progressive reforms like women can vote, literacy programs, social welfare, and gov’t bought land from owners & sold them to peasants at a fraction of the price (modest success) -> mad landowners, frustrated peasants, religious conservatives, & more democracy ppl overthrew him in the Iranian Revolution of 1979
  • new gov’t became theocracy + laws in accordance w/ Shariah + opposed west in mid east and israel
• latin america:
  
  • dem elected gov’t under guatamelan Arbenz tries to do land reform -> united fruits company threatened so lobbied the US gov’t to remove arbenz -> overthrown 1954
• vietnam:
  
  • commies gain support by vowing to seize land from large landowners
• ethiopia:
  
  • exiled leader haile selassie returns to power in ww2 -> aligns country on western ideals + ethiopia enjoys econ success bc of its coffee trade -> western pol + cultural reforms
  • selassie couldn’t successfully do land reform -> ppl saw him as a pawn for US imperialism -> overthrown by Mengistu Mariam who declared gov’t socialist + aided by USSR -> mariam sucked & fled in 1991
• india:
  
  • tried to establish new econ by land reform
  • results were mixed but successful in Kerala
    
    • despite popularity, cent gov’t stopped program

Question 7

Compare the processes by which various peoples
pursued independence after 1900.

Answer 7

• india/pk: NEGOTIATED, NATIONALIST LEADER, RELIGOUS MOVEMENT
• indian national congress = advocated independence
  
  • leader = Mohandas Gandhi = civil disobedience + nonviolence
• muslim league’s leader Jinnah = wanted muslim state
  
  • put aside rivalry for ww2 but british don’t fulfill promises -> ↑ protests (royal indian navy revolt 1946)
• britain can’t keep india bc of econ pressures + slow postwar recovery -> drew borders
• ghana: NEGOTIATED
• kwame nkrumah in 1957 as first president
  - used nationalistic traditions like founding fathers + athem to formulate sense of identity
  - supported pan-africanism -> started organization of african unity (OAU)
  - dictator + accused of corruption + debt -> coup in 1963
• algeria: ARMED CONFLICT
• france refused to let them go since many french settlers -> more restrictive policies to stop ↑ protests
• National Liberation Front led independence movement
  
  • used guerilla techniques & french used torture -> thousands dead
• france was divided over issue (commie supported indep)
  
  • president Charles de Gaulle expanded his power so he could free algeria w/o having to discuss w/ Nat Assembly
• 1991 Algerian Civil War bc of one party rule of FLN
  french west africa: NEGOTIATED
• france reluctant bc they invested in infrastructure + benefited from their ↑ trade revenue
• many african political parties/leaders arose -> most achieved independence by 1959
  vietnam: ARMED STRUGGLE
• vietnam declares indepedence from both japan + france -> vietnam war refer to other question for more info
• Ho Chi Minh is a nationalist + commie leader
• egypt: nationalist leader
• technically indep but britain still there to supervise suez canal -> had influence in internal affairs
• gamal abdel nasser, 2nd pres, mixed islam + socialism & nationalized suez canal -> ticked off GB + France -> they send israeli troops to invade egypt but the US + USSR call the UN to broker a cease-fire -> suez becomes international waterway
• angolan civil war - refer to other question (ARMED CONFLICT)
• nigeria: religious movement
• biafran civil war = igbos (westernized christian tribe in s.e. nigeria) wanted to secede + create new state Bafria bc of the target attacks by Muslim Hausa-Fulani group in the north
• movement failed
• nigerian gov’t tries to prevent tribalism by forming a federation of 36 states, dual legal system where states can vote for secular + shariah law, & encouraged intermarriage
  canada: regional movement
• quiet rev = quebec has tie w/ catholic france since it was part of their colonial territory but by late 1700s, england contolled most of canada & instilled protestantism -> quebec forms separate identity
• rev turned violent sometimes but failed overall

Question 8

How did the redrawing of political boundaries lead to the creation of new states and population displacement?

Answer 8

• india/pk:
• chaotic partition + violence broke out
• 10 million ppl moved + 500,000-1 mil died
• distrust btwn the two nations grew
  
  • Kashmir conflict = hindu ruler but muslim pop -> both countries stake a claim -> armed conflict -> india controls 45%, pk controls 35%, china controls 20%
• israel:
• after ww2, ↑ sympathy for jews -> ↑ zionist movement
• 1917 Balfour Declaration which proposed to make a home for jews in palestine (their ancestral lands) + promised non-jews their rights
• 1948 UN divides palestine into jewish (israel) + arab sections -> war breaks out immediately bc palestines fear loss of trad way of life + their land
• USA backs israel + arabs w/ palestine -> multiple armed conflicts w/ israel winning all
• 1979 pres Jimmy Carter tries to mediate via Camp David Accords which only chilled egypt + - israel
• Palestinian Liberation Organization formed to return occupied lands + create indep palestine
• palestinians split into fatah (control west bank) + hamas (control gaza)
• israel places tight econ sanctions -> angers palestinians more -> conflict is ongoing
• cambodia:
• after ww2 gain indep from france
• tries to stay non-aligned but sucked into vietnam war
• after war commie guerilla org called Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot overthrow right-wing gov’t + royal fam
  - instituted ruthless form of communism like stalin
  - target intellectuals + dissenters -> famine + slaughter kill 2 mil ppl
• 1977 vietnam invades to overthrow pol pot + stablize the region even tho fighting continued + refugees flee
  
  • peace agreement in 1991 that declared vietnam would leave + cambodia will become constitutional monarch, have a kinda free market, dem gov’t, etc.

Question 9

Explain the economic changes and continuities
resulting from the process of decolonization.

Answer 9

• changes: gov’t took strong role in econ in newly indep states to promote development (also women!!)
• Indira Ghandi’s (nehru’s only kid) econ policies in India:
  
  • high inflation + poverty threatened her rule so she called a nat emergency + came up w/ the 20 pt program -> alleviated inflation + increased nat. production
• Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s econ policies:
  
  • world’s first female prime minister
  • socialist econ policies i.e. land redistribution, restrictions on free enterprise, & renaming country
• Tanzania Modernizes:
  
  • 1st pres Julius Nyere declares Arusha Declaration of 1967 which institued socialist political + econ policies such as literacy campaigns, free edu, & collective farming
  • achieved econ indep but hardships still plagued
• continuities: metropoles (big cities of imperial powers)
  
  • ppl from newly indep countries sometimes moved to metropoles like london + paris
    - usually moved for job opps
    - maintained cultural + econ ties btwn the colony and the colonizer even after the dissolution of empires

Question 10

Explain various reactions to existing power structures in the period after 1900.

Answer 10

• non-violence:
• gandhi led marches, boycotts, & fasts
  - ex: salt march = gb banned indians making salt so they can have a monopoly so gandhi led a march to the arabian sea to pick up salt
• mlk jr - african american civil rights leader in the 50s + 60s
  - ex: boycott of public buses in Montgomery, AL + March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (i have a dream)
• nelson mandela protested apartheid -> became first pres
• violence:
• militarized states:
  
  • poland pursues indep domestic policy but stays loyal to USSR = fine
    - hungary tries to declare indep from soviets by withdrawing from warsaw pact + neutral -> USSR invades + executes Nagy (leader)
    - Dubcek concedes to Prague Spring demands of greater freedom of speech, travel, press (reform movement) in Czechoslovakia -> USSR invades + crushes movement
    
    • justifies via Brezhnev Doctrine = USSR can invade if you “threaten” other socialist countries
  • franco leads a coup and takes over spain
    - kills/imprisons opposition
    - USA still supports bc he’s anti-communist
  • pinochet gets put into power in chile by USA bc Allende before promised land reform + was pop w/ lower classes
    - mass violence but still had USA support
  • imi amin in uganda known as the “butcher of uganda”
    - set policies that worsened ethnic tensions, undermined econ stability, & denied basic human rights
    - og aligned w/ west but later backed by USSR
    - tried to invade tanzania but exiled
• movements against civilians:
  - student protests in france + kent state university (anti-war)
  - Northern Ireland Crisis - most irish ppl = roman catholic so they gained indep from protestant UK in 1922 but northern ireland remaind bc they majority protestant -> minority catholic mad bc they want to join ireland -> protestants refuse & both take arms
  
  • Basque Homeland & Freedom (ETA) in Spain
    - wanted indep for Basque, north region in ES, & used violent tactics
  • Shining Path in Peru based off of Khmer Rouge + Mao Zedong
    - wanted a commie gov’t
• Islamic terrorist groups:
  - Boko Haram in West Africa
  - Al-Shabaan in East Africa
  - Taliban in Afghanistan
  - ISIS in mid east
  - Al-Qaeda

Question 11

Explain the causes of the end of the Cold War.

Answer 11

• Détente:
• 1970s = Détente = relaxation of tensions btwn the two powers
  - symbol of détente was when Nixon visited the USSR and signed the SALT treaty that reduced the # of missiles each power could have
  - also visited China to play a commie power against the other
• Détente was good for both bc both had problems
  - USSR:
  - econ crisis bc collectivization of agriculture & limited foreign trade
  - discontent in e. eu countries + wanted freedom & reform
  - border skirmishes w/ China
  - US:
  - Nixon deep into unpopular vietnam war
  - econ kinda sucked -> sold grain to USSR so american farmers have a market & helps suffering ppl in USSR
• Soviet-Afghan War:
• soviets supported commie gov’t in afghanistan but when commie-friendly pres gets murdered & replaced with not-so-soviet-friendly, soviets invade -> 562,000 - 2 mil Afghan casualties
• soviets couldn’t completely defeat the afghan guerilla groups -> legitimacy undermined
• USSR withdrew & afghanistan faced a continuing civil war
• the war put immense stress on cent econ system & left soviet leadership vulnerable to reform
• Reagan & Gorbachev:
• Reagan announced SDL (star wars) -> USSR mad
• progressive Gorbachev implemented reforms that unwound the USSR:
  - Perestroika - attempt to restructure Soviet economy to add some free enterprise elements
  - Glastnost - granting greater freedom in soviet society/politics
  - INF Treaty - restricted intermediate-range nuclear weapons
  USSR FALLS IN 1991
  - political alliances shifted and economic interactions expanded between nations