Transcript The Cold War

The Beginning of the Cold War
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
The United Nations
The Cold War
Satellite Nations Created
U.S. Counters Soviet Expansion
Germany
Tensions Grow
A. The United Nations
• International organization established to maintain
peace after the war
The Set-up
• General Assembly – where all members meet to
discuss issues and vote
• Security Council – 11 member body with the real
power to investigate & settle disputes
• Five permanent members: Soviet Union, United
States, Great Britain, France, China
B. The Cold War (1946-1991)
• 45 year long state of hostility between the Soviet
Union and the United States
• No direct confrontations (fighting) between the two
• Beginning at Yalta, the
2 sides had different
goals for the postwar
world
• They were divided by
what type of
governments the
postwar world would
have: Communist or
Democratic
C. Satellite Nations Created
• Major goal of the USSR after WWII was to
shield itself from an invasion from the west
• Stalin established Communist governments in
Eastern Europe to create a buffer
• “Iron Curtain” –
phrase used to
describe the
division of Europe
into two:
democratic v.
communist
D. U.S. Counters Soviet Expansion
• Containment – policy directed at blocking Soviet
expansion
• Truman Doctrine – Support for countries who were
fighting against Communism
• $400 million to Turkey & Greece to stop the spread
of Communism
• Marshall Plan – assistance program for European
countries to rebuild after the war
E. Germany
• Germany & Berlin
divided into 4
zones of occupation
after the war
• 1948 Britain, France, & U.S.
withdrawing from West
Germany so it can be
independent
• Stalin responds by holding
west Berlin hostage from June
1948 to May 1949
– Known as the Berlin Blockade
• Results in 11 month airlift of
supplies from the West
– Known as the Berlin Airlift
• Shows the U.S. will not
appease Stalin
F. Tensions Grow
• North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) – In
1949, 10 western European nations joined with
the U.S. & Canada to form a defensive military
alliance
• Warsaw Pact – 1955 Soviet’s military alliance
in response to NATO
• Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) –
created by the U.S. to oppose the spread of
Communism in that area
• OAS – Organization
of American States
was created to stop
the spread of
Communism into the
Western Hemisphere
• Arms Race – Cold War
would begin a massive
arms race between the
two Superpowers.
• Began in 1949 when the
USSR successfully
tested its 1st atomic
weapon
• Brinkmanship –
willingness of the two
nations to go to the brink
(edge) of war