Cold War Overview and Fall

1
Cold War Overview and Fall

• Directions
• Answer questions 1-8 in the PPT.

2
1945 The Cold War Begins

• Rivalry between the United States and the U.S.S.R
• Democracy and the Free Enterprise System v.
  Communism and Command Economic System

Superpowers
1. Why are these two nations Superpowers?
3

• By 1945, there were two Chinese governments

The Communist government of Mao Zedong in
Northern China Soviet Union supported.
The Nationalist government of Chiang Kai-shek
based in southern and central China United States
supported.
4

• In 1946, a civil war broke out between the
  Nationalists and the Communists. Many peasants
  were attracted to the Communists by the promises
  of land.
• By 1949, the Peoples Liberation Army, commanded
  by Chairman Mao had defeated the Nationalists.
  Chiang Kai-shek and two million followers fled to
  the island of Taiwan.

5

• Officially, in 1949, the Communist Party, led by
  Mao Zedong, took over China.
• Today, communism is still the government of
  China, but changes have taken place since 1949.
• http//www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/world/jan-june11/ch
  ina2_04-04.html
• http//abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/beijing-air-pollut
  ion-forces-20-million-people-indoors-18204753
• 2. Do you think China is changing politically to
  give people more voice and freedom? Why or why
  not?

6
Iron Curtain

• Iron Curtain divides the continent, symbolized
  by Berlin Wall
• (Built in 1961)
• The Soviet East v. Democratic West

3. What did you learn from the video?
http//www.history.com/topics/cold-war/berlin-wall
/videos/deconstructing-history-berlin-wall?m528e3
94da93aesundefinedf1freefalse
7
NATO v. Warsaw Pact

• NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization allied
  with the USA
• Warsaw Pact allied with the USSR

4. Alliances!! Where have we seen this
in history before? What was the outcome?
8
Policy of Containment

• US President Trumans foreign policy aimed at
  stopping the spread of communism

5. What exactly is President Truman Trying to
contain? Why?
9
Cold War Heats Up
Vietnam War
Korean War
6. What similarities do you see?
10
Nuclear Threat

• Cuban Missile Crisis
• Nuclear Weapons and theory of deterrence

11
New Leader for Soviet Union

• Mikhail Gorbachev
• Come to power 1985
• Calls for glasnost
• Urges perestroika
• Last president of the Soviet Union

12
Cold War Ends

• Fall of Communism 1989
• Berlin Wall comes down November 9, 1989
• Germany unifies October 3, 1990
• 7. What words would you use to describe the
  feelings during the fall of the Berlin Wall?

http//www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/33773894
/33773894
13
Why Cold War Ends

• Nationalism in Warsaw Pact countries
• Soviet economic collapse
• Expansion of NATO
• 8. Which reason in the song do you think most
  contributed to the end of the Soviet Union.

http//www.history.com/topics/cold-war/fall-of-sov
iet-union/videos/the-fall-of-the-soviet-union