Transcript The Cold War - SoYoung Kim

The Cold War
AP World History
Superpowers Emerge From WWII
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United States – wanted
to strengthen
democracy & build
prosperous economies
Soviet Union – wanted
to establish pro-Soviet
governments in
Eastern Europe to
prevent future attacks
& build an empire
Soviet Union
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Lost 20 million people in
World War II
U.S. and Allied view of Stalin
changed at the end of World
War II
Stalin broke promise of free
elections (Yalta)
Eastern European nations
become satellites of the
Soviet Union
Barrier splitting Europe called
“iron curtain” by Churchill
Explode 1st atomic bomb in
1949
United States
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President Truman – wanted
to resist Soviet moves
1947 - Policy of
“containment” adopted to
prevent the spread of
communism
Truman Doctrine (1947) –
foreign policy to aid
countries resisting
communism (Greece &
Turkey)
Germany & Austria Divided
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1945 – Four zones of
occupation by U.S.,
France, Britain, &
Soviet Union
Berlin also divided
East & West Germany
are formed
Cold War Grows
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Became global
Alliances develop – NATO (formed by
the U.S.) & Warsaw Pact (formed by
the Soviets)
Test of military strength & ideologies
Military buildups, space exploration, &
local and regional conflicts were all
part of the Cold War
1948 - Berlin Blockade/Airlift
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Soviets block all land
access to West Berlin
2 million West
Berliners need
food/supplies
U.S. & Britain respond
by airlifting supplies
Every 3 minutes a
plane lands carrying
approximately 4,000
tons of supplies
Continues for 11
months
1950 - Korean War
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U.S./Soviet occupation of
Korea following WWII
North Korean communists
invade South Korea
U.N. authorizes use of force
to help South Koreans (U.S.
90% of forces)
MacArthur pushes North back
to China’s border & China
enters war
Stalemate occurs – 38th
parallel divides N & S
Korean War
1956 – Invasion of Hungary
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Harsh communist rule
(purges, confiscation,
executions)
Stalin dies in 1953 –
control eased &
workers revolt
Hungary’s leader
(Nagy) proclaims
neutrality & withdrawal
from Warsaw Pact
Soviets invade & crush
revolt while Western
countries do nothing in
response
1961 – Berlin Wall
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Large numbers of
East Germans are
fleeing to the West
East Germans
build a wall around
West Berlin to stop
flow
Became a major
symbol of the cold
war
1962 – Cuban Missile Crisis
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Soviets secretly install
missiles in Cuba
Kennedy (U.S.)
blockades Cuba
Khrushchev removes
missiles
Kennedy agrees not to
invade Cuba
Helped lead to
Khrushchev’s downfall
Prague Spring
(Czechoslovakia)
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Public pressure for reform
gains strength in the 1960s
Alexander Dubček (liberal
communist reformer) eases
press censorship & allowed
some political groups to
meet (in the Spring of
1968)
Brezhnev (Soviet leader) –
responds by sending
500,000 Soviet & Warsaw
Pact troops to occupy
Czechoslovakia
Soviet Union declares its
right to intervene in
Communist States
1965-1973 – Vietnam War
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French ruled IndoChina as a colony
The Vietminh
(Vietnamese
communists led by
Ho Chi Minh) win
major battle at Dien
Bien Phu
French pull out of
Indochina
1965-1973 – Vietnam War
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U.S. takes over role of
the French by sending
advisors (16,000) and
financial aid to South
Vietnam
U.S. supported Diem in
the South
1964 – Gulf of Tonkin
attack(?) leads to G.O.T.
Resolution and
increased U.S.
involvement
1965-1973 – Vietnam War
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By 1968, 500,000 U.S.
troops are in Vietnam
Soviet Union and
China send aid to
Communists
1968 – Tet offensive
launched (was a win
and loss for
Communists)
1973 – cease fire; U.S.
begins to pull out
troops
1975 – war resumes;
Communists take over
South Vietnam