The Cold War: An Overview

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The Cold War An Overview
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The Arms RaceA Missile Gap?

• The Soviet Union exploded its first A-bomb in
  1949.
• Now there were two nuclear superpowers!

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• The nuclear bomb gave America a lead which was
  expected to last at least 5 years. The rapid
  Russian development of nuclear technology, helped
  by the work of the atom spies was a
  shock.Significantly, Russia hurriedly declared
  war against Japan at the beginning of August 1945
  and rushed to advance into Asia to stake out a
  position for the post-war settlement. This helped
  make both the Korean and Vietnamese conflicts
  more likely.

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Premier Nikita Khrushchev
About the capitalist states, it doesn't depend
on you whether we (Soviet Union) exist.If you
don't like us, don't accept our invitations,
and don'tinvite us to come to see you. Whether
you like it our not, history is on our side. We
will bury you. -- 1956
De-Stalinization Program
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The Ideological Struggle
Soviet Eastern Bloc NationsIron Curtain
US the Western Democracies
GOAL ? spread world-wide Communism
GOAL ? Containment of Communism the eventual
collapse of the Communist world.George Kennan

• METHODOLOGIES
• Espionage KGB vs. CIA
• Arms Race nuclear escalation
• Ideological Competition for the minds and hearts
  of Third World peoples Communist govt. command
  economy vs. democratic govt. capitalist
  economy ? proxy wars
• Bi-Polarization of Europe NATO vs. Warsaw Pact

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The Cold War Roots of the Conflict
Soviet Expansion The Soviet Union occupied
most of Eastern Europe by the end of World War II.
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• In 1946, Winston Churchill correctly warned that
  the Soviets were creating an iron curtain in
  Eastern Europe.

Winston Churchill giving the Iron Curtain
address at Westminster College on March 5, 1946
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Post-War Germany
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Iron Curtain A term used by Winston Churchill
to describe the separating of Those
communist lands of East Europe from the West.
Divided Germany
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Divided Berlin

• The Russians took very high casualties to capture
  Berlin in May 1945. They spent the early
  occupation trying to take over all zones of the
  city but were stopped by German democrats such as
  Willy Brandt and Konrad Adenauer. Reluctantly the
  Russians had to admit the Americans, French and
  British to their respective zones.

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The Truman Doctrine

• Truman had been horrified at the pre-war Allied
  policy of appeasement and was determined to stand
  up to any Soviet intimidation.The Truman
  Doctrine in March 1947 promised that the USA
  would support free peoples who are resisting
  subjugation by armed minorities or by outside
  pressures.
• Triggered by British inability to hold the line
  in Greece, it was followed by aid to Greece and
  Turkey, and also money to help capitalists to
  stop communists in Italy and France.It
  signalled the end of isolationst policies.

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The Marshall Plan

• The Marshall Plan offered huge sums to enable the
  economies of Europe to rebuild after World War
  II, and, by generating prosperity, to reject the
  appeal of Communism.
• The Soviet Union (USSR) prevented Eastern
  European countries from receiving American money.

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An overview of the Cold War

• How can a war be cold?
• What were the Hotspots of the Cold War?

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After World War 2 the Cold War began and caused
tension throughout the world.

• The USA and the USSR were the two world
  Superpowers.
• The USA was a capitalist society with a
  democracy.
• The USSR was a communist country with a
  dictatorship.
• Both wanted to be the most powerful nation in the
  world.

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Nuclear tensions

• The USA had shown its atomic power when it
  exploded the A-bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at
  the end of World War 2.
• The USSR was also developing atomic
  weapons/bombs.
• The USA and the USSR were in competition with
  each other to have the best, most powerful
  weapons in the world this was called the Arms
  Race.

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After World War 2, the world changed!

• Many countries became communist after World War 2
  including
• Czechoslovakia (1948)
• Poland (1947)
• Hungary (1947)
• China (1949)
• Cuba (1959)
• North Korea (1945)

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Germany - divided

• Germany, which had been ruled by the Hitler and
  the Nazis until their defeat in 1945 was split in
  two.
• The western side became West Germany and the
  eastern side became East Germany.
• East Germany became another communist country.

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The domino effect

• The USSR had a lot of influence over many of the
  new communist countries (especially those in
  Europe).
• The USA was very worried that the USSRs
  influence over these countries was making the
  USSR and communism more powerful.
• The USA did not want communism to spread any
  further they were worried about the domino
  effect (one country becomes communist, then
  another, then another etc)

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Cold War?

• The tension and rivalry between the USA and the
  USSR was described as the Cold War (1945-1990).
• There was never a real war between the two sides
  between 1945 and 1990, but they were often very
  close to war (Hotspots). Both sides got involved
  in other conflicts in the world to either stop
  the spread of communism (USA) or help the spread
  (USSR).

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The Korean War 1950-1953
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The Berlin Wall 1961
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Berlin

• West Berlin, was an outpost of Western democracy
  and economic success deep within the communist
  zone like a capitalist island within communist
  East Germany
• The Berlin Blockade was an attempt to starve
  West Berlin into submitting giving up to the
  communists
• The Allied western powers airlift signalled the
  Wests determination to use all resources to
  defend Berlin.It was feld by both sides that
  Berlin could act as the trigger for general war
  between capitalist and communist countries

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The Cuban Missile Crisis 1962
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The Vietnam War c.1963-1975
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• Berlin and the Wall

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THE BERLIN WALL
By Mr Crowewww.SchoolHistory.co.uk
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Another Cold War crisis

• Background
• East West rivalry
• Berlin divided contrast the two halves.

WEST Prosperous, helped by US, attracted people
from the East. Seen by USSR as infection in the
heart of Communist East Germany.
EAST Much less prosperous and under Communist
control
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Focus on refugees from East Germany or East
Berlin to West

• 1949-129,245
• 1951- 165,648
• 1953- 331,390
• 1955- 252,870
• 1957- 261,622
• 1959- 143,917

• 1961- 207,026
• 1962- 21,356
• 1963- 42,632
• 1964- 41,876

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What they wanted

• The West
• Prevent USSR from gaining control of East Germany
• To see a united, democratic Germany

• The East
• Maintain control over E Germany
• Make the West recognise it as an independent
  state
• Stop the flood of refugees especially the skilled
  and professional ones much needed in E Germany

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1958-Soviet demands

• West should
• Recognise GDR
• Withdraw troops from West Berlin
• Hand their access routes over to the East German
  government
• West refused and Khrushchev backed down.

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Events of 1961

• June - Khrushchev pressured new American
  President John F Kennedy
• Demanded withdrawal of Western forces from West
  Berlin Kennedy refused
• July 23 Flow of refugees from East to West
  1000 a day
• July 25 Kennedy repeats support for West Berlin
  and announced increase in arms spending

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Events contd

• 13-22 August Khrushchev and East German govt.
  orders barbed wire barrier across Berlin,
  followed by a wall of concrete blocks
• All of West Berlin encircled apart from access
  points
• This was against the Four Power agreement made in
  1949.

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Results

• Important results for Berlin, Germany and the
  Cold War
• Berlin was divided, free access ended between
  East and West, many families split, many
  attempted to escape to the West-between 1961 and
  1989 86 people died trying to cross the Berlin
  Wall

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Results continued

• Kennedy accepted the Soviet action. He refused to
  use US troops to pull down the wall to avoid war.
• Kennedy looked weak but West turned it into
  propaganda why if Communism was so attractive
  was a wall needed?
• 1963 Kennedy visited West Berlin pledged
  continued support Ich bin ein Berliner (I am
  a Berliner) famous speech
• Khrushchev lost face by failing to remove the
  West from Berlin
• LINKCNN - Cold War-The Wall

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