USA Topic 6 - Cold War Rivalry

Question 1

What were the reasons for US involvement in the Cold War

Answer 1

Fear of communism
Soviet expansion in Eastern Europe
attitude of Truman

Question 2

What was the red scare

Answer 2

The growing fear of communism in the USA after World War II

Question 3

What’s the name of the two post war peace conferences

Answer 3

Yalta and Potsdam 

Question 4

What was Trumans attitude towards the USSR

Answer 4

Truman distrusted Stalin believed he wanted to expand in Eastern Europe

Question 5

What was agreed at Yalta peace conference

Answer 5

Germany would be divided into four zones

Question 6

What were the disagreements at Yalta

Answer 6

- How much Germany should pay reparations
- The future government of Poland

Question 7

What are the contrasting views between Stalin and Truman at the peace conferences

Answer 7

Stalin wanted massive compensation as 20 million soldiers had died during the war
However Truman wanted free elections in Germany to be a barrier to future Soviet expansion

Question 8

What are the agreements at Potsdam

Answer 8

Demilitarise Germany
Germany pay reparations to cover the Allies equipment and materials

Question 9

What was the long telegram

Answer 9

When George Keenan gave a telegram describing the USSR as aggressive and suspicious

Question 10

What was the impact of the long telegram

Answer 10

It heavily influenced Truman’s policies in the Cold War especially containment

Question 11

What was the Truman doctrine 

Answer 11

Truman’s famous speech to congress in which he suggested a Iron Curtain has descended across Europe

Question 12

What are the consequences of the Truman doctrine

Answer 12

Rivalry between the USA and USSR increased
USA became committed to the policy of containment
USA gave financial aid to Europe

Question 13

What was the Marshall plan

Answer 13

The USA believed that by providing economic aid to recovery countries then they wouldn’t need to turn to communism


Question 14

By 1953 how much are the USA provided through Marshall aid

Answer 14

17 billion

Question 15

What was the domino theory

Answer 15

If one country turned to communism then all the countries around it would then follow

Question 16

What are the reasons for the Berlin crisis

Answer 16

- Berlin was in the heart of Soviet controlled East Germany and the western allies were able to gain access to their sectors
- When the Allies announcing new currency and the new West German state, Stalin accused the west of interfering in the Soviet zone

Question 17

What were the events of the Berlin crisis

Answer 17

Stalin cut access off to Berlin to starve out the allies
The allies decided to airlift supplies from their bases in West Germany
‘Operation planefare’ began in June 1948 and lasted 10 months

Question 18

What were the results of the Berlin crisis

Answer 18

Stalin called of the blockade in May 1949
The East-West rivalry greatly increased

Question 19

What was the 1961 Berlin crisis

Answer 19

Khrushchev ordered a wall to be constructed separate eastern West Berlin
There was a stand-off between the US and Soviet tanks for 18 hours and Kennedy was forced to back down but was furious with the USSR 

Question 20

What are the causes of the Cuban missile crisis

Answer 20

Fidel Castro came to power via a revolution in 1949
The USA retaliated by refusing to buy its biggest export (sugar) however the USSR decided to buy the sugar
By the end of 1961, Cuba converted to communism and Soviet installed ballistic missiles in Cuba posing a serious threat to the USA security

Question 21

What were the events of the crisis

Answer 21

Kennedy placed a naval blockade around Cuba to prevent Soviet missiles reaching Cuba
Khrushchev Sent a letter to Kennedy insisting Soviet ships would force their way through the blockade
Khrushchev issued a statement saying the USSR would use nuclear weapons in the case of war
Kennedy asked Khrushchev to withdraw the missiles if Kennedy withdrew missiles from Turkey

Question 22

What were the results of the Cuban missile crisis

Answer 22

Superpowers had almost gone to war that would have destroyed the world 

Question 23

What were the reasons for US involvement in Vietnam

Answer 23

Diem was overthrown by a series of the governments
Kennedy try to reduce Communist inference through the strategic hamlet policy
Johnson was able to use the Gulf of Tonkin incident to persuade Congress to support greater US involvement

Question 24

What was ‘operation rolling thunder’

Answer 24

Bombing campaign of North Vietnam lasting 3.5 years in the hope of destroying Vietcong supply routes to the north

Question 25

Describe the chemical warfare used in Vietnam

Answer 25

Defoliants were used to destroy jungle cover for the Vietcong
‘Agent Orange’ was a highly toxic weed killer used by the USA
Napalm was a bomb that exploded and showered victims with a burning petroleum jelly

Question 26

What was ‘search and destroy’

Answer 26

Helicopters would land on a village suspected of assisting Vietcong forces and destroy it

Question 27

What are the reasons for US defeat

Answer 27

The strength of the Vietnam and the weaknesses of the USA

Question 28

What are the strengths of the communists

Answer 28

- The Vietnamese were fighting for a cause of communism and the reunification of Vietnam
- The ‘low-tech’ guerrilla tactics suppressed the high-tech tactics of the USA
- The Communist forces dug deep tunnels and used them as air-raid shelters

Question 29

What are the weaknesses of the USA 

Answer 29

- Many of the US troops were too young and inexperienced and unable to cope with guerrilla warfare 
- The opposition at home as a result of a failure to achieve a quick victory and a total of 58,000 deaths

Question 30

Describe the US withdrawal and peace talks

Answer 30

Nixon promised to withdraw US troops when elected and plan to end US involvement (Also known as Vietnamisation)
Peace talks began in 1968 but there were no signs of progress for four years
Nixon’s visit to China encouraged cooperation from the North Vietnamese government and a ceasefire was signed in 1973

Question 31

What were the effects of the war

Answer 31

The war had cost the USA US$26.5 billion
The war made Johnson very unpopular and influence his decision to not seek re-election


Question 32

What was NATO

Answer 32

The North Atlantic Treaty which was signed in 1949 to prevent Soviet expansion

Question 33

What was the Warsaw Pact

Answer 33

A military alliance against NATO signed in 1955