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Yalta Conference
Second wartime meeting of Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and Franklin D. Roosevelt. The three leaders agreed to demand Germany's surrender and begin plans for Post world War. The meeting was to discuss the re-establishment of the nations of war torn Europe, but within a few years the Cold War divided the continent. -
Arms Race
Competition between the US and the Soviet Union for superiority in the development and accumulation of weapons. The destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by American atomic bombs in August 1945 began this race. -
Truman Doctrine
American foreign policy whose purpose was to counter soviet geopolitical expansion during the Cold War. It was announced to the Congress by President Harry S. Truman. The Truman Doctrine became the basis of American Cold War policy in Europe and around the world. -
Marshall Plan
American aid too Western Europe, which gave 13 billion dollars to help rebuild Western European economies. In the Cold War the Marshall plan reduced the influence and power of the communist parties power in Western Europe. -
Berlin Airlift
During the Multinational occupation of post-world war II Germany, the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies Roadway and canal to the western controlled sectors of Berlin. In response, the Western Allies executed the Berlin Airlift where they flew supplies such as fuel and food into West Berlin by planes for over a year. -
Berlin Blockade
An attempt by the Soviet Union to limit the ability of France, Great Britain, and the United States to travel to their sectors of Berlin, which was in East Germany. By 1949, the blockade had failed and rose the Cold War tensions and made the USSR look cruel to the rest of the World. -
Korean War
War between North Korea and South Korea, when North Korea invaded South Korea following a series of clashes along the border. The Korean war represented an important shift in US Cold War policy. This war prevented North Korea from taking over all of Korea, it showed that America would send troops to stop communism, and the Soviet Union would send troops to expand it. -
Joseph Stalin Dies
Former general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist party of the Soviet Union. Austria regained its sovereignty and became independent. Krushchev denounced Stalin’s policies at the 20th Communist party conference. -
Geneva Conference
Conference among several nations that occurred in Geneva, Switzerland. It was intended to settle issues from the Korean War and the first Indochina War. As part of the agreement the French agreed to withdraw their troops from Northern Vietnam. -
Space Race
Competition between the Soviet Union and the US, for dominance in spaceflight capability. The launch by the Soviet Union of the first artificial satellite Sputnik 1 into orbit shocked the US. This indicated the Soviets advanced technology and that they could launch intercontinental ballistic missiles. -
Vietnam War
Long, costly conflict between the Communist government of North Vietnam against South Vietnam and it's ally the United States. The conflict was intensified by the Cold War between the U.S and Soviet Union. More than 3 million people were killed, and half of them were Vietnamese civilians. -
Suez Crisis
Israeli armed forces pushed into the Egypt toward the Suez Canal after Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal in the same year, starting the Suez Crisis. The Israelis joined the French and British forces, which almost brought the Soviets into the crisis, and also damaged their relationship with the US. -
U-2 Incident
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics shot down an American U-2 spy plane in Soviet air space and captured the pilot, Francis Gary Powers. President Eisenhower was forced to admit to the soviets that the CIA had been flying spy missions over the USSR for years. This showed the USSR that they could not trust the US. -
Berlin Wall build started
This wall cut off West Berlin so refugees from all surrounding East Germany and East Berlin could not enter. -
Non-Proliferation Treaty
International treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and it's technology. This treaty slowed the ongoing arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. -
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
Two rounds of bilateral conferences and international treaties involving the United States and the Soviet Union. The 2 talks and agreements were called SALT I and SALT II. SALT I led to the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and an interim agreement between them. -
Olympic Boycott by USA
U.S. President Jimmy Carter led the boycott of the 1980 Moscow Summer olympics. The purpose was one of many actions by the U.S. to protest the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan. -
INF Treaty
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. This treaty eliminated all nuclear and conventional missiles, and launchers within 500-1000 Km and 1000-5500 Km between the U.S. and Soviet Union. -
Berlin Wall torn down
The spokesman for East Berlin's Communist party announced a change of relationship with the West. At midnight he said citizens of the German Democratic Republic could cross the wall. -
German Re-Unification
The process in 1990 when the German Democratic Republic became part of the Federal Republic of Germany to form the reunited nation of Germany. With the Waning of the Soviet power in the late 1980’s the Communist part in East Germany began to lose its power. Tens of thousands of Germans fled the nation, by late 1989 the Berlin Wall started to come down
