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History - Core topics > Who was to blame for the Cold War? > Flashcards

Who was to blame for the Cold War? Flashcards

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1
Q

Why did the USA-USSR alliance begin to break down in 1945?

A
  • Removal of the common enemy
  • Ideological differences
  • History of hostility
  • The USSR in world affairs
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2
Q

Why did the USA-USSR alliance begin to break down in 1945? - removal of the common enemy

A

There was no longer a common enemy, Germany, and so need for the Allied cooperation which had been extensive during war

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3
Q

Why did the USA-USSR alliance begin to break down in 1945? - ideological differences

A

The ideological differences between the USA and the USSR began to re-emerge
The US followed a democratic, capitalist approach
The USSR followed a communist ideology
This made it difficult to build up trust between the two

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4
Q

Why did the USA-USSR alliance begin to break down in 1945? - history of hostility

A

There was a long history of mistrust going back to 1918 and the intervention of the West in Russian Civil War against the Bolsheviks.
In the 1930s Stalin thought that the West saw Hitler and the Nazis as the buffer against the spread of communism.
Stalin was also not invited to the Munich conference

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5
Q

Why did the USA-USSR alliance begin to break down in 1945? - the USSR in world affairs

A

It was obvious that the Soviet Union’s sphere of influence was growing.
Stalin was included with other European leaders in important conferences at Yalta and Potsdam

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6
Q

What were the issues to be addressed at Yalta and Potsdam?

A
  • what to do with a defeated Germany and its leaders
  • what to do with countries formerly occupied by Germany
  • to decide the future of Poland
  • how war with Japan could be ended as soon as possible
  • to discuss how a lasting peace was to be maintained
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7
Q

When was the Yalta Conference?

A

February 1945

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8
Q

What was decided at Yalta on the issue of “what to do with a defeated Germany”?

A
  • Surrender was to be unconditional
  • Germany and its capital Berlin were to be temporarily divided into four occupation zones
  • Germany’s eastern border was to be moved westwards
  • War criminals were to be hunted down and punished
  • Germany had to pay reparations
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9
Q

What was decided at Yalta on the issue of “what to do with countries formerly occupied by Germany”?

A

Following liberation they were to be allowed to hold free elections to decide how they were to be governed

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10
Q

What was decided at Yalta on the issue of “the future of Poland”?

A
  • A provisional government was to be established comprising of pro-Soviet Lublin Poles and exiled London Poles who had fled in 1939
  • Poland’s border was to be moved westwards into German territory
  • Free elections were to be held
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11
Q

What was decided at Yalta on the issue of “how war against Japan could be ended”?

A
  • Stalin agreed to intervene in the war against Japan after Germany was defeated
  • In return Russia was to receive land in Manchuria and territory lost to Japan during the 1904-05 Russo-Japanese War
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12
Q

What was decided at Yalta on the issue of “how a lasting peace was to be maintained”?

A

An organisation to be known as the United Nations was to be set up

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13
Q

What changed between the Yalta and Potsdam conference in the US?

A

President Roosevelt died and was replaced by Truman.

Truman was strongly anti-communist but inexperienced in international affiars

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14
Q

What changed between the Yalta and Potsdam conference in Britain?

A

Churchill’s Conservative Party was defeated in a general election.
He was replaced by Labour leader Clement Attlee

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15
Q

What changed between the Yalta and Potsdam conference in the Soviet Union?

A

The Soviet Union had liberated eastern Europe and was installing sympathetic governments
They failed to hold “free” elections
On the eve of Potsdam, Truman informed Stalin that the United States had successfully tested an atomic weapon

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16
Q

When was the Potsdam conference?

A

July-August 1945

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17
Q

Agreements at the Potsdam conference

A
  • The Polish-German border was to be the Oder-Neisse Line formed by two rivers
  • The Nazi Party was to be banned
  • Germany was to be denazified and war crime trials held
  • The decision to split Germany and Berlin into four zones was confirmed
  • Each country was to take reparations from its own zone
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18
Q

Disagreements at the Potsdam conference

A
  • No agreement was reached over the future government of Poland
  • There was disagreement over Germany. Stalin wanted Germany crippled to prevent future threat
  • The USSR wished to intervene in the war against Japan but this was refused by Truman
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19
Q

Results of the Potsdam Conference

A

The failures and disagreements at Potsdam highlighted the increasing differences between these the US and the USSR, causing tension to increase

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20
Q

What was the “Iron Curtain”?

A

This was a term used by Winston Churchill that referred to the divide between eastern Europe from western Europe; democracy from communism

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21
Q

What had the countries in Europe that were formerly occupied by Germany vote in the free elections? How was this achieved?

A

By 1948, these countries had communist governments.
This had been achieved through rigged elections and intimidation
The countries now under Soviet control became “Satellite states”

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22
Q

What was COMINFORM?

A

This was an alliance of communist countries, set up in 1947
It tightened Stalin’s hold on the satellite states, further restricting their contact with the West
This aimed to develop economic cooperation between communist countries

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23
Q

Which country rejected COMINFORM?

A

Yugoslavia, although it remained communist

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24
Q

Soviet expansion in Europe - Poland

A

Soviet troops remained after liberation
New government formed in June 1945 dominated by “Lublin” Poles
Opposition leaders arrested and murdered
Rigged election in 1947 gave communists 80% of the vote

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25
Q

Soviet expansion in Europe - Hungary

A

Soviet troops remained after liberation
Communists won 17% of the vote in the November 1945 election
Used secret police to discredit and persecute rival politicians and parties
Rigged elections in 1947 gave communists control of a coalition government
Social Democratic Party and Communist Party merged in 1948

26
Q

Soviet expansion in Europe - Romania

A

Soviet troops remained after liberation
Soviets accepted a coalition government 1945, accepting key positions for communists
Rigged elections in 1945 gave the communists and their allies 90% of the vote

27
Q

Soviet expansion in Europe - Yugoslavia

A 
Not liberated by Red Army
Marshal Tito elected President in 1945
Not prepared to take orders from Stalin
Expelled from Cominform in 1948
Accepted aid form the West
28
Q

Soviet expansion in Europe - Bulgaria

A

Soviet troops remained after liberation
Initially joined a coalition with other parties
Monarchy abolished in 1946
New constitution in 1947 effectively destroyed parliamentary democracy

29
Q

Soviet expansion in Europe - Czechoslovakia

A

Soviet troops left after the war
Post-war elections gave communists leadership a balanced, coalition government
Foreign Minister Jans Masaryk, a popular and non-communist politician, murdered in May 1947
All non-communist members of the government resigned February 1948, with communists filing vacant positions

30
Q

What was the Truman Doctrine?

A

The Truman Doctrine was aid, provided by America, in the form of arms and money, for Greece and Turkey in 1947

31
Q

What was the policy of stopping communism called?

A

The policy of containment

32
Q

What was the Marshall Aid?

A

This was an economic recovery plan which provided aid to build up Europe’s economy. It was announced by George Marshall in 1947

33
Q

What did the US offer in the Marshall Aid?

A

Money, machinery, food and technological equipment

In return, European countries would buy American goods and allow American investment in their industries

34
Q

Who accepted the Marshall Aid?

A

16 western European states

Between 1948 and 1952, the US gave 13 billion dollars of aid

35
Q

Who refused the Marshall Aid?

A

Stalin refused Marshall Aid for the USSR and banned eastern European countries from receiving it

36
Q

Why did Stalin set up COMINFORM?

A

To counter the effects of the Marshall Aid

37
Q

What were the long term causes of the Berlin Blockade?

A
  • Within the Soviet zone, Soviet troops were able to control all access
  • The USSR believed the western Allies had no right to be in Berlin. The western Allies were seen as a threat as they had a base inside the Soviet zone
  • The western Allies needed to be there to prevent the USSR fully controlling Berlin
  • The West could spy on Soviet activity behind the Iron Curtain
38
Q

Why did Stalin feel threatened by Britain, the US and France?

A

In January 1947 Britain and the United states combined their zones to form “Bizonia”
France joined a year later.
Stalin felt threatened by this, fearing he was being forced out

39
Q

What were the short term causes of the Berlin Blockade?

A

Wester Germany began to recover with the help of Marshall Aid. In East Germany there was poverty and hunger
In 1948 the western Allies introduced a new currency into western Germany. Stalin refused to do this in the Soviet zone

40
Q

What was Stalin’s motive?

A

His aim was to force the other three powers to pull out of Berlin, making Berlin fully dependent on the USSR

41
Q

What did Stalin do to the Soviet zone in Germany?

A

In June 1948 Stalin retaliated to the formation of Bizonia by blocking all road and rail links into West Berlin
Berlin was cut off from all supplies
Stalin increased the pressure by turning off all gas and electricity supplies

42
Q

What could the western Allies have done to resolve the situation of the Berlin blockade?

A
  • Driving armed convoys through the blockade
  • Pull out of Berlin
  • Supply West Berlin by air
43
Q

What were the drawbacks of choosing to drive armed convoys through the blockade to resolve the situation of the Berlin blockade?

A

Highly provocative with strong risk of war

Russian armed forces in Europe far outnumbered those of the western Allies

44
Q

What were the drawbacks of choosing to pull out of Berlin to resolve the situation of the Berlin blockade?

A

Countries would not trust America to stand up to communism in the future
Failure to act would render the Truman Doctrine an empty threat

45
Q

What were the drawbacks of choosing to supply West Berlin by air to resolve the situation of the Berlin blockade?

A

Less risky than armed convoys but an enormous undertaking
It would be extremely costly
Planes could be shot down

46
Q

How long did the airlift last?

A

11 months

47
Q

How many flights did the airlift involve?

A

300,000 flights

48
Q

What did the cargoes carried?

A

Coal, food, medicines and petrol

49
Q

How fast were the planes landing in West Berlin?

A

One plane every two minutes

50
Q

What did the Soviets do during the airlift?

A

They did not fire on incoming aircrafts, however the Soviets used obstruction tactics, such as jamming radios and shining search lights to temporarily blind pilots

51
Q

When did Stalin lift the Blockade?

A

May 1949

52
Q

What was West Germany announced as, and when?

A

It was announced as the Federal German Republic in May 1949

53
Q

What was East Germany announced as, and when?

A

It was announced as the German Democratic Republic in October 1949

54
Q

When was NATO set up, who was a member?

A

April 1949, the United States

55
Q

When was COMECON created?

A

January 1949

56
Q

Why was COMECON created?

A

This was created with the objective of directing the national economies of the Soviet bloc. This proved to be more favourable to the USSR than to its other members

57
Q

When was the Warsaw Pact formed?

A

May 1955

58
Q

What was the Warsaw Pact?

A

This was formed with 8 communist countries unifying their armed forces under a central command
This was a direct response to the rearmament of West Germany and its incorporation into NATO

59
Q

How was the USSR to blame for starting the cold war?

A

-The communist ideology was expansionist and universal and therefore the Soviet Union could not co-exist with capitalism. It intended to impose its own system of government throughout the world
-Stalin did not abide by the agreement made at Yalta. He installed a communist government in Poland and went on to impose Soviet systems throughout Eastern Europe
-The created of COMECON ensured that each Eastern European country followed the Soviet model of economic policy
-Stalin frequently used ideological language when condemning the West and justifying his own actions
-The establishment of COMINFORM was a clear sign that he intended to undermine capitalist society
-He was the only leader to remain in power from the pre-war era through to the division of Europe in 1949. He often adopted a confrontational approach to relations with other countries
-Stalin’s concerns for Soviet security at the end of the war stemmed from historical fears about invasion from the west. The fears came from:
the events of the Russian Civil War
the belief that Britain and France encouraged Nazi Germany to expand eastwards during the late 1930s
the belief that the Western allies deliberately delayed opening a second front in order to weaken the Soviet Union
Britain refusing to share the German secret Enigma codes
-In an attempt at one-upmanship the United States tried to keep secret the testing of an atomic bomb
-There was deep concern over the future of Germany. The Allied plans to unify their three zones, together with the significant losses experienced by the USSR in the war, fueled the desire to impose a communist system for protection. This provoked Stalin into drastic action over Berlin in 1948

60
Q

How was the USA to blame for starting the cold war?

A
  • It can be argued that the true purpose of Marshall Aid was to provide a market for US goods and to ensure the preservation of a capitalist, free market system
  • The Marshall Plan promised aid to countries willing to stand up to the communist threat
  • The creation of Bizonia and the introduction of a new currency into the western zones of Germany was a clear breach of the Potsdam Conference agreement and an attempt to impose a capitalist system
  • Truman was very aggressive in his dealings with officials from the Soviet Union and felt that as a powerful, atomic power he should be allowed to dictate terms at the Potsdam Conference
  • NATO was set up as a military alliance to defend its members against possible communist attack.

History - Core topics (17 decks)

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