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Chinese Civil War (between Jiang Jieshi and Mao Zedong)
Jiang Jieshi ruled China and wanted to eradicate the Communists. Mao Zedong became an important Communist military leader and fought against him. -
Berlin Blockade
During the multinational occupation of post-war Germany, the Soviet Union blocked all Western Allies' access to sectors of Berlin under allied control. The goal was to force western powers to let the Soviets start supplying Berlin with aid, fuel, and food, giving the Soviet Union practical control over the city. -
Berlin Airlift
In response to the Berlin Blockade, the Western Allies organized the airlift to bring supplies to Western Berlin. Aircrews from the United States Air Force, the British Royal Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and the South African Air Force flew over 200,000 flights in one year, providing up to 4700 tons of necessities daily, such as fuel and food, to the Berliners. -
Formation of NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an intergovernmental alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty. The organization constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. -
National Security Council Report NSC-68
A 58-page top secret policy paper issued by the United States National Security Council during Truman's presidency. NSC-68 largely shaped U.S. foreign policy in the Cold War for the next 20 years, and involved a decision to make Containment against global Communist expansion a high priority. -
Korean War
A war between the Republic of Korea (South Korea), supported by the United Nations, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), at one time supported by China and the Soviet Union. It was primarily the result of the political division of Korea by an agreement of the victorious Allies at the conclusion of the Pacific War at the end of World War II. -
President Truman fires General MacArthur
President Harry S. Truman relieved General of the Army Douglas MacArthur of his commands for making public statements that contradicted the administration's policies. MacArthur was a popular hero of World War II who was then the commander of United Nations forces fighting in the Korean War, and his relief remains a controversial topic in the field of civil-military relations. -
Formation of the Warsaw Pact
The pact was a mutual defense treaty between eight communist States of Central and Eastern Europe in existence during the Cold War. The founding treaty was established under the initiative of the Soviet Union.