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Detente (What)
What- A French word meaning “release from tension.” The peaceful period started when the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty in 1968 was signed. Then, in 1972, the first round of Strategic Arms Limitations Talks yielded the Antiballistic Missile Treaty along with an interim agreement setting limits on the number of ballistic missiles each side could develop. In 1975, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe emerged from two years of intense negotiations to sign the Helsinki Final Act. -
Detente (Who, When, Where, Why, Significance)
Who- United States and the Soviet Union
When- Began in 1969 and stopped in 1979 when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan.
Where- The United States and the Soviet Union
Why- To decrease the conflicts between The United States and The Soviet Union.
Significance- Détente led to formal agreements on arms control and the security of Europe -
Richard Nixon Visits China
Nixon during the 1940s and 1950s had been an outspoken person against communism. He was angry with the Truman administration for losing China to communism and he didn't want Vietnam to fall to Soviet or Chinese Communism as well. Nixon planned a trip to China in efforts to drive a wedge between the two world leaders in Communism. All to prevent Vietnam fall to PRC or S.U. Nixon made diplomatic overtures with the PRC to gain influence in Vietnam. This led to the Détente period during the Cold War -
Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty
U.S and S.U. negotiated the ABM treaty as part of an effort to control the nuclear arms race. Each side was only allowed to have 2 missile complexes with 100 anti-ballistic missiles in each complex. This treaty essentially tried to subside some of the aggression toward each of the countries by limiting their use of nuclear weapons. This treaty was dismissed in June 2002 because the U.S and USSR “no longer needed to base their relationship on the ability to destroy each other.”- President Bush -
SALT 1
An agreement between SU and the US in Moscow in attempts to control Nuclear weapons. The Soviets and China, both Communist countries were in a pissing contest over border disputes. SALT 1 addressed two issues, they limits on the number of anti-ballistic missiles sights each country to two. Also the number of intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine launched ballistic missiles was frozen at existing levels. This caused the Cold War to somewhat be at a stand still. -
Paris Peace Accords
The Vietnam War was a conflict that pitted the communist regime of North Vietnam, against South Vietnam and its ally, the United States. The Paris Peace Accords was the agreement on ending the war and restoring peace in Vietnam. The U.S wanted to allow South Vietnam to have sovereignty. In 1975, North Vietnam takes over the South and turns all of Vietnam to communism. The Peace Accords tried to lower tension between the communist side of Vietnam and the democratic United States. -
Coup to Overthrow Chilean Government
Chile’s forces stages a coup against their president Salvador Allende. They killed him in an air raid. After that, another powerful dictator, Augusto Pinochet, came into power. President Nixon stepped in and used the former CIA to try to bribe Pinochet out of office. Pinochet expressed being open to democracy. However, he ruled as a dictator until he was arrested by the British under the power of Spanish Nationals. The overthrow of the Chilean government shows the rise of communism. -
South Vietnam Falls to Communism (Who, What, When, Where)
Who- South Vietnam and North Vietnam
What- Communist North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces captured the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon, forcing South Vietnam to surrender and bringing about an end to the Vietnam War.
When- April 30, 1975
Where- Saigon, South Vietnam -
South Vietnam Falls to Communism (Why, Significance)
Why- The United States was an ally of South Vietnam until they pulled out of the war in 1972 with the signing of the Paris Peace Accords. Without the support of the United States, South Vietnam fell to the power of North Vietnam.
Significance- Ended the Vietnam War. -
Sandinista Revolution in Nicaragua
Who- Sandinista Front for National Liberation
What- The revolution developed a new constitution for Nicaragua, following the principles and practices of representative democracy.
When- July 19, 1979
Where- Nicaragua
Why- To overthrow the communist dictator.
Significance- The Revolution marked a significant period in Nicaraguan history and revealed the country as one of the major proxy war battlegrounds of the Cold War with the events in the country rising to international attention. -
Salt II (Part 1)
The Second Round of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, SALT II, began almost immediately after the first round ended in 1972. The negotiations led to a treaty on nuclear arms control between the United States and the Soviet Union. Although it was never ratified by the U.S. Senate, both countries adhered to the terms of the agreement. The agreement included a treaty and a protocol. -
Salt II (Part 2)
The treaty set limits on the number of strategic launch vehicles each country could deploy, set quotas for the number of intercontinental ballistic missiles as well as further restrictions on the number of warheads that any one ICBM could carry. The protocol banned either country from developing or deploying mobile ICBMs or cruise missiles with ranges longer than 375 miles. SALT II was a sort of extension of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. -
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan
Afghanistan’s gov. was overthrown by communist military officers. The new gov. forged ties with the Soviet Union and launched violent attacks on the largely anti-communist population. The United States supported the urban groups who rebelled and supplied them with missiles to attack the Soviets who tried to take over the unstable government. This represents a proxy war between the U.S and the Soviet Union; it shows the increasing tension between the two superpowers.
