Cold War

By ninjaqueen

  • Sputnik

    Sputnik
    • first artificial Earth satellite, means satellite in Russian
    • promoted Space Race (Soviet Union vs. U.S.)
    • lead to expanded space program for both sides
    • went elliptical low Earth orbit
    • traveled 3 weeks, died, traveled for two months before coming back to earth
    • diameter of 22 inches and weighed 184 pounds, 18000 mph
    • showed Soviet Union was ahead of the U.S. in space tech
    • lead to first U.S. satellite, Explorer, was launched on January 31, 1958
    • beneficial for Soviet, U.S. threatened

  • U2 Incident

    U2 Incident
    • single seat spyplane shot down by Soviet Air Defense Forces
    • aerial photography in Soviet Union
    • Pilot Francis Gary Powers = POW
    • Hit by S-75 Divina surface to air missile Crashed @ Sverdlvosk
    • Summit conference cancelled between France, Soviet Union, UK, US
    • Khrushchev saw the U-2 plane as “aggressive act” by U.S., angered and U.S. worried
    • Powers admitted working for the U.S. CIA
    • Khrushchev got Turkey, Pakistan, and Norway -> NO unauthorized U.S. aircrafts above their territories

  • Bay of Pigs

    Bay of Pigs
    • CIA & 1400 Cuban exiles attempt to overthrow Castro
    • Castro was a threat to American affairs in Cuba compared to Bautista
    • CIA tried to have Castro killed bc communist influence & told Kennedy that the involvement would be kept secret and may spark a rebellion on Cuba
    • First part was to destroy Castro’s air force
    • Castro’s troops pinned the rebels to the beach
    • 114 rebels killed, 1100 prisoner (all Cubans), surrendered 24 hours after fighting started
    • Kennedy blamed himself for failure

  • Building Berlin Wall

    Building Berlin Wall
    • Built the wall to prevent people from emigrating from E. Berlin
    • keep Western “fascists” from entering E. Germany and ruin socialist status
    • Symbol of Cold War and heightened tension between the Soviet Union and the US
    • August 12 sealed points into W. Berlin and E. Berlin
    • built concrete wall with sentry ways and minefields
    • U.S. troops planned to break down the wall but Soviet troops had armored units to protect
    • 96 miles of barrier between the East and West
    • US saw how Soviet unjust

  • Cuban Missile Crisis begins

    Cuban Missile Crisis begins
    • Photographs taken by a high-altitude U-2 spy plane offered medium-range missiles in Cuba
    • Khrushchev believed U.S. was going to invade Cuba & used weapons as prevention, thought United States was trying to threaten Soviet Union
    • revenge for U.S. nuclear missiles stationed near the Soviet Union
    • 13-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union
    • wanted the Soviet Union to back down and get rid of the nuclear weapons
    • informed the nation of the naval blockade around Cuba

  • Kennedy's Speech for Cuban Missile Crisis

    Kennedy's Speech for Cuban Missile Crisis
    • Nuclear strike capability in Cuba, missiles medium range ballistic missiles (travel 1000 nautical miles, hit America/Caribbean) & intermediate range ballistic missiles (travel twice as far as medium missiles)
    • Defied Rio Pact of 1947
    • Strict quarantine on exports of military products to Cuba
    • Surveillance of Cuban military buildup
    • attack on Cuba = Soviet Attack
    • Emergency meeting of the Security Council, under charter of United Nation
    • Call upon Khrushchev to stop the threat of peace

  • DEFCON 2

    DEFCON 2
    • Soviet Union indifferent, let US decide whether there would be a nuclear war
    • aggravated by Soviet tanker Bucharest heading towards the quarantine of Cuba
    • 40 nation of U.N. begged for both Soviet Union and US to not begin war
    • B52 planes were on lookout, ready for war
    • worried about Soviet threat and went to initiate high military alert in postwar era DEFCON 2
    • Kennedy was worried and wanted to prepare for the possibility of nuclear war
    • DEFCON 3 -> DECON 2

  • U-2 pilot Rudolf Anderson Jr. Shot Down in Cuban Missile Crisis

    U-2 pilot Rudolf Anderson Jr. Shot Down in Cuban Missile Crisis
    • Rudolf Anderson Jr. streaked through the stratosphere, 14 miles above a planet tied up in knots
    • his unarmed, high-altitude U-2 spy plane appeared as a blip on Soviet radar
    • U2 shot down, shrapnel hit cockpit & Anderson’s pressurized flight suit and helmet
    • Anderson died
    • the first-ever recipient of the Air Force Cross, the service’s highest designation after Medal of Honor
    • Kennedy realized severity of crisis, the direct impact on American citizens' families, realizing Anderson had kids

  • End Cuban Missile Crisis

    End Cuban Missile Crisis
    • at 5:00 pm Moscow time Radio Moscow broadcast message from Soviet Prime Minister Nikita Khrushchev to U.S. President John F. Kennedy
    • remove missiles from Cuba in exchange for U.S. to respect Cuba’s territorial sovereignty
    • Fidel Castro accused the Russians of backing down from the Americans and deserting the Cuban revolution
    • tensions between American allies due to being uninformed about negotiations
    • relief through the nation, being close to nuclear would have killed many, conflict over

  • Kennedy Visits Berlin Wall

    Kennedy Visits Berlin Wall
    • visited Berlin in 1963, gave speech in Rudolph Wilde Platz,
    • had lots of support than any other American politician in Germany (greeted with flowers, rice, scraps of paper)
    • “Ich bin ein Berilner” (I am a Berliner) mistranslation, said I am a jelly donut instead
    • demonstrated America was together with West Berlin
    • told Communist supporters to 'Come to Berlin!'' to see what Communism truly looks like
    • felt the wall was unjust, Kennedy was angered by the unwanted separation of people