Transcript Cold War Super Powers Face Off

With Germany in Between
Allies Become Enemies
There was always tension between
capitalists Americans and the
communists Soviets during WWII.
 This was due to the non-aggression pact
with Hitler and lack of Soviet
involvement in the war.
 In 1945 at the Yalta Conference, the
Soviets, British and Americans met to
divide up Germany.

Allies Become Enemies
At the same conference Stalin agreed to
enter the war against Japan.
 Stalin also promised that eastern
European countries taken by the USSR
in the war would have free elections.
 Also in 1945 both the U.S. and Soviet
Union joined the United Nations.

Allies Become Enemies
The U.N. became the descendent of the
League of Nations based in New York
City.
 Each country had its own ideas how to
rebuild its countries.
 The U.S. lost about 400,000 people
while the USSR lost 1 out of 4 and many
of its factories.

Eastern Europe’s Iron Curtain
One of the goals of the Soviet Union
was to protect itself from invasion.
 After Yalta Stalin created communist
states in seven European countries to
act as a buffer.
 Europe became divided by what
Churchill called the “Iron Curtain”.

U.S. Tries Containment
President Truman adopted the new
foreign policy of containment to stop the
spread communism.
 He also created the Truman Doctrine.
 This plan was that the U.S. would stop
the rise of communism in any new
countries.

U.S. Tries Containment
To help Europe rebuild U.S. Sec. of
State George Marshall offered that the
U.S. give aid to those countries.
 This became known as the Marshall
Plan.
 European nations received $12.5 Billion.

U.S. Tries Containment
Not only did Europe become divided but
so did Germany itself.
 The Soviets didn’t want to give up their
claim to East Germany in order to keep
them weak.
 Eventually Germany was divided into
four parts, one for U.S., France, Britain
and Soviet Union.

U.S. Tries Containment
Berlin the capital of Germany was also
divided into four parts.
 Stalin cut off all services past the city
limits.
 In response the U.S. air lifted supplies
into West Berlin.
 Eventually the Berlin Wall was built to
divide the city.

Cold War Divides the World
Each side started to make alliances as
tensions grew.
 In 1949 NATO was formed with the U.S.,
Canada and 10 European nations.
 In response in 1955 the Warsaw Pact
was formed between the Soviets and 7
Eastern European nations.
 Countries that weren’t aligned with
either the USSR or U.S. were part of the
“Third World”.

Cold War Divides the World
As these alliances were formed, nuclear
arms began to build up.
 In 1949 the Soviets detonated their first
Atomic Bomb.
 In 1953 the U.S. declared that if the
Soviets or any affiliated country would
attack the U.S. they would retaliate.
 This declaration became known as
brinkmanship or the willingness to go to
the brink of war.

Reflection Time!
How is Germany handled differently
after WWII than WWI?
 Why do the two former allies, the U.S.
and the Soviet Union go separate ways
after WWII?
 How did these events show the political
tension during the beginning of the Cold
War?
