Transcript The New Europe

Chapter 29
Europe and the Western Hemisphere since 1945
The New Europe
1. The Soviet Union broke up into its fifteen constituent republics in December 1991. The new states included Russia, Kazakhstan, Kirghizia,
Tadzhikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkinenistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Moldavia, Ukraine, Belorussia, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.
They are loosely joined in the Commonwealth of Independent States. Independence unleashed many of the people's frustrations that have turned
some states such as Georgia and Azerbaijan into war zones.
2. In East Germany the continued economic slump of the 1980s created popular unrest. Mass demonstrations followed the government's refusal to
institute reforms and increasing use of violent repression. Capitulating to popular pressure, the Communist government opened its entire border to
the West. Moreover, the Soviet Union declared it would no longer support the leaders of the East German Communist Party. In 1990 East Germany
had its first ever free election. That same year Germany was economically and politically united.
3. Czechoslovakia peacefully divided itself into the Czech Republic and Slovakia on January 1, 1993.
4. Yugoslavia fell into violent civil war in 1991.
Questions:
1.Why did the breakup of the Soviet Union have an impact on the restructuring of Europe?
2.What is the impact upon Europe with the creation of several new nations, especially the former Soviet states?
The New Europe
 The Recovery of Western Europe
 Impact of the Marshall Plan
 France
Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970), 1958-1969
Fourth Republic
 Algerian crisis
Fifth Republic, 1968
 Greater global presence
 Growth of the economy
 Weaknesses in the 1970s
François Mitterand (1916-1995), 1981-1995
 Reforms and nationalization
 Economic weaknesses of the 1990s
The Economic Division of Europe During the Cold War
1. France, Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy formed the European Coal and
Steel Company (ECSC) in 1951. This was the first post-war attempt to create a sense of European economic unity. The arrangement sought to
establish a common market for coal and steel among the members by eliminating tariffs and trade barriers.
2. The success of the ECSC led the Europeans in 1957 to create the European Economic Community (EEC). The Common Market, as it is called,
by 1968 had eliminated customs barriers for the six member nations and created a large free trade area protected from the outside nations by a
common external tariff. In 1973 it expanded to include Great Britain, Ireland, and Denmark. Spain, Portugal, and Greece were added in 1986.
3. In 1959, Britain, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, and Portugal formed the European Free Trade Area. Nevertheless,
Britain sought membership in EEC but was turned down in 1963 and 1967 due to the veto of France's president Charles de Gaulle who said that
Britain was too closely tied to the United States. Finally, Britain was admitted in 1973.
4. The leaders of the EEC (now called the European Union) in 1991 signed the Treaty of Maastricht that would eventually lead to a universal currency
and a strong central bank. It failed to be adopted in Denmark and only narrowly was approved in France and Britain. On January 1, 1999, Austria,
Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain fixed their currencies according to the
value of the Euro. By 2002 the national currencies of these states will be replaced by the common currency of the Euro.
5. In 1949 the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance was established by the Eastern European states for economic cooperation and
integration. This was more to serve the Soviet Union than anything else.
Questions:
1. Why is it important for the European states to form a single economic community?
2. What kind of difficulties could undermine the EEC?
3.Why was France opposed to British membership in the EEC?
The Economic Division of Europe during the Cold War
 Germany
Konrad Adenauer (1876-1967), 1949-1963
 German rearmament and membership in NATO, 1955
 Ludwig Erhard and economic recovery
Willy Brandt (1913-1992), 1969-1974
 Ostpolitik
Rise of neo-Nazis
 Decline of Great Britain
Welfare state and reduced expenses abroad
Northern Ireland
Margaret Thatcher (b. 1925), 1979-1990
 Thatcherism
 Falklands War, 1982
 Anti-tax riots force her to resign, November 1990
 Western European unity
NATO, 1949
European Coal and Steel Community, 1951
European Economic Community, 1957
Treaty on European Union
 The United States
 Economic boom after World War II
 Red Scare of the 1950s
 John F. Kennedy (1917-1963), 1961-1963
 Lyndon Johnson (1908-1973), 1963-1969
War on Poverty
Desegregation, Civil Rights Act, 1964
Race riots 1965-1967
Vietnam War, Anti-war protests
 Shift to the Right
Richard Nixon (1913-1994) elected in 1968
 Visits China, 1972
 Ends Vietnam war, 1973
 Resignation, August 9, 1974
Jimmy Carter (b. 1924), 1976-1980
 Stagflation – high inflation and unemployment
 Oil embargo, 1973
 53 hostages held by Iran
Ronald Reagan (b. 1911), 1981-1989
 Reverses the welfare state
 Military buildup
 Supply-side economics
Political trends in Latin America
in the 1960s and 1970s
 Development of Canada
 Lester Pearson (1897-1972)
Welfare state created
 Brian Mulroney (b. 1939)
Privatization of industry
Free trade agreement with the United States
 Quebec
 Democracy, Dictatorship, and Development in Latin
America since 1945
 Economic dependency and import-substitution
 Debt crisis
 Move to democracy
 Population growth and increased gap between rich and
poor
 Role of the church
 Cuban Revolution
Fidel Castro (b. 1926) overthrows Fulgencio Batista, 1959
October 1960 U.S. trade embargo on Cuba
U.S. breaks diplomatic relations with Cuba, January 3, 1961
Failed Bay of Pigs invasion, April 17, 1961
Missile Crisis, October 1962
 Chile
Salvador Allende (1908-1973), 1970-1973
 Marxist socialist society
 Nationalization of corporations, especially copper
 Overthrown by the army, March 1973
 Nicaragua
General Anastasio Somoza seized the government in 1937
Sandinista National Liberation Front gain control, 1979
 Argentina
Group of United Officers overthrows government,
June 1943
Juan Perón (1895-1974), elected president 1946
 Increased industrialization
 Frees Argentina from foreign investors
 Eva Perón
 Overthrown by the military 1955
 Returns in 1973 and elected president, died in
1974
Military seizes power, 1976
 Disappearance of opponents
 Falkland Islands (Malvinas) War, April 1982
 Return of civil power, 1983
Barrio, Rio de Janeiro.
Slum site south of Copacabana Beach in Rio
 Nicaragua
General Anastasio Somoza seized the government in
1937
Sandinista National Liberation Front gain control, 1979
 Brazil
Getúlio Vargas (1883-1954), 1935-1945
 New State, 1938-1945
 Vargas forced to resign, 1945
 Military seizes power, 1968
 Return to democracy, 1985
 Mexico
Institutional Revolutionary Party controls Mexican
politics
Foreign debt
North Atlantic Free Trade Association
 Society and Culture
 Changes in the middle class; managers and technicians
 Changes among the traditional lower class
 Leisure activity
 Education
 Student protests of the 60s and 70s
 The “permissive society”
Sexual revolution
Breakdown of the traditional family
Drug culture
 Women
Working women at lower wages
Simone de Beauvoir (1908-1986)
Terrorism
 Munich Olympic games, 1972
 Denounce injustices of capitalism
 Militant nationalism
 Antiterrorism and counterterrorism
Guest workers and immigrants
Green movements and Green Parties
Modern art
Literature
 “Theater of the Absurd”
Science and technology
 Government and military sponsorship of science
Religion
Americanization of the world