Transcript The Cold War

The Cold War
United States vs. Soviet Union
Conference at Yalta
• Germany divided into 4 zones controlled by USA, USSR,
Britain and France.
• USSR felt that USA had waited until last possible minute to
launch War in Europe.
• Stalin felt that they had fought Germans by themselves and
won at Stalingrad.
• Therefore, the USSR should get to carve up the map too!
Reconstruction of Germany
• West Germany will emerge as an
economic power in postwar
Europe…supported by Western
European nations.
• Berlin divided into Eastern and
Western parts.
Post War Differences
UNITED STATES
SOVIET UNION
• USA fought WWII to
protect it’s vision of
American Dream.
• Share Democracy with
the World.
• Promote American
economic interests!
• Create worldwide
markets for American
products.
• Dictatorship
• Communism
• Wanted to spread
communist influence
throughout the world.
The Iron Curtain
• 1946 - Winston Churchill
gave a famous speech in
which he denounced the
goals of the Soviet Union.
• He claimed that we could
not allow the Soviet Union
to create an Iron Curtain in
Europe.
• That Iron Curtain would
separate the capitalist West
from the Communist East.
United Nations
• April of 1945 - delegate from
50 nations meet in US to form
alliance designed to be a
peacekeeping force for the
World.
• Goals:
– settle disagreements
peacefully
– Stop war before it starts
– Protect interests of member
nations.
• Five countries dominate: USA,
USSR, GB, FR and CHINA
Containment
• USA wanted to control
Soviet Union without war.
• Goal: Keep Soviet Union
from expanding and
becoming powerful.
• Policy for preventing the
spread of communism
• Method to achieve this:
– Marshall Plan
Marshall Plan
• Named for George C. Marshall, US Secretary of
State.
• 1947 - US will provide economic aide to
countries that have an economic plan of
development.
• Western European nations received $13 billion
over a four year period!
• US received strong trading partners in Europe.
• USA airlifted supplies, food and medicine into
West Berlin in 1948 because Soviets were trying
to take over.
Berlin Airlift
• Berlin had been divided up in
1945.
• Soviets wanted to control the
entire city.
• The city itself was located
inside of the Soviet zone but
was important because it had
been the capital.
• US felt it was important to
control the city.
• Berlin was divided into East
West sections.
Characteristics of the Cold
War (1948-1989)
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NATO vs. Warsaw Pact
Korean Conflict
Vietnam War
Berlin and the Berlin Wall
Cuban Missile Crisis
Nuclear Weapons and DETERRENCE
Collapse of the Soviet Union and Eastern
Europe.
Formation of NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
• 1949 - Twelve Nations in the Alliance,
led by the United States said that an
attack against one would be an attack
against all of them.
Warsaw Pact
• Would counter the alleged threat from
NATO.
• Members countries: Soviet Union and
Eastern European states.
KOREA
• Korea - occupied by the
Japanese for Decades.
• Had hoped for it’s
independence once Japan
was defeated.
• USSR set up a govt. north
of the 38th Parallel.
• USA did the same in the
South.
• 38th Parallel served as
dividing line!
June 1950
• Communist Northern forces
cross the 38th parallel in effort
to unify country under one
govt.
• Truman takes this for act of
USSR aggression.
• USA asks for help from UN and
gets unanimous approval for
military exercise in Korea.
• UN Forces were to drive
Communists from the country.
Douglas MacArthur
• US Commander in Korea.
• Wanted to attack the North
and split their forces in half.
• Did it and then proposed
attacking China.
• Truman refused.
• MacArthur criticized Truman
in public and Truman fired
him for insubordination in
1951.
“ Since I took the oath at West Point,
the hopes and dreams [of youth] have
all vanished! But I still remember the
refrain of one of the most popular
barracks ballads of the day, which
proclaimed most proudly that old
soldiers never die, they just fade away!”
General Douglas MacArthur
April 19, 1951 four days after he was
fired by Harry S. Truman.
Korean War ends 1953
• Border were almost exactly the same as in 1951.
• 54,000 American soldiers killed in Korea.
• 1/3 of US budget now consumed by defense
spending.
• US would continue the pattern again just a few years
later.
COUNTRY
Dead
Wounded
Republic of Korea
United States
All others
Total
592,000
54,000
6,000
623,000
1.3 million
104,000
100,000
1.5 million
Vietnam
• Domino Theory - policy of Eisenhower
administration.
– Says that if one S.E. Asia nation falls
to communists then they all will.
– Vietnam - country divided at 17th
parallel between communists in
North and capitalists in South. US
Support.
BERLIN AND THE BERLIN
WALL
• City is divided among
democratic West and
communist East
• Berlin Wall divided
the city.
Cuban Missile Crisis
• US got involved in affairs
of Latin American
countries in the 50’s as
well.
• US did not support
Castro’s takeover of the
Cuban government in
1959.
• Castro relied on the
support from the Soviets.
• The Bay of pigs purpose
was to try and take Castro
out of power and dethrone
the communist
government.
• Date: April 17, 1961
• Called Bay of Pigs because
of the place where it
happened; a small bay in
southern Cuba
• Looked good because the
army was well prepared
and ready to fight with lots
of supplies.
Bay of Pigs
The Significance of the Bay of
Pigs:
• America stranded soldiers in Cuba
• Castro’s popularity was at an all time high
• Embarrassment to the United States and
President Kennedy
Missile Crisis
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The Soviet Union puts missiles in Cuba
This makes the United States nervous
The U.S. puts up a blockade
President Kennedy announces that the United States will
attack if the missiles are not removed
• Soviets back down and remove the missiles twelve days
later
• This embarrassed Castro greatly for he was being used
by the Soviet Union
Nuclear Weapons and
Deterrence
• Deterrence – was an idea that a country
would need large weapons to protect
itself and that if they had these
weapons, no one would attack you.
• As a result, build up of nuclear weapons
increases.
The Collapse of Communism
• Official date – 1989
• What contributed to this collapse?
– Soviet economic collapse
– Nationalism in Warsaw Pact countries (Poland,
Czechoslovakia)
– Tearing down of the Berlin Wall (November 9,
1989). Germany reunited under Democratic
government.
– Official end of the U.S.S.R. – 1991 coup of
Gorbachev. Taken over by Boris Yeltsin.
• Established the C.I.S. – Commonwealth of Independent
States.