Publishable

Cold War Summits 1945-1988

By dannihopkins

  • Yalta

    Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill.
    At Yalta it was agreed that:
    - Germany divided into 4 zones (USA, UK, France, USSR)
    - Berlin would be similarly divided
    - The UN would be formally ratified
    - The USSR would gain land from Poland and Poland would be compensated with land from Germany
    - A Declaration on Liberated Europe should be created (to create peace, provide emergency relief, free
    elections in states) BUT, disagreements over reparations,

  • Potsdam

    Stalin, Truman and Atlee
    Agreed that:
    - Germany was to be completely demilitarised and disarmed
    - Nazi Party was to be banned in Germany and De-Nazification to be carried out
    - Legal trials at Nuremberg of 21 Nazi leaders for war crimes
    - Decentralisation of Germany carried out
    - Freedom of speech, press and religion restored in Germany
    - Germany was to become a single economic unit
    - USSR to receive reparations from own zone and 25% from Western zones
    - New boundaries agreed (Germany&Poland)

  • The Geneva Conference

    It paved the way for ceasefire rather than a long-term solution to the question of Vietnam’s independence as a unified state. It was agreed that two zones were created, with the 17th parallel serving as the diving line between the two. French forces were to move out of the
    northern zone while the nationalist forces were to withdraw from the southern zone.

  • The Geneva Summit

    The Geneva Summit discussed nuclear disarmament and the future of Germany. However no satisfactory outcome was reached. Although not much was agreed, this summit demonstrated the dialogue between the superpowers and that peaceful coexistence was firmly in place. In the years following this summit the rebellions of Poland Hungary put peaceful coexistence under huge strain.

  • The Austrian State Treaty

    It agreed for the withdrawal of occupying powers and the declaration that Austria would be a neutral state. This also occurred in Finland and Yugoslavia and therefore meant these countries were not liable to be forced to join the Soviet sphere of influence. This showed mutual cooperation and removed a major conflict and proved the USSR were wiling to negotiate with the US.

  • Paris Peace Talks

    Khrushchev became the first Soviet leader to visit the USA, when he participated in Camp David talk with Eisenhower in 1959. This served to calm the German issue and led to the Paris Summit. The summit collapsed when an American U2-spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. Again, this summit was important for the continuing dialogue between the USSR and the USA but there was no agreement reached.

  • Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) I

    The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty limited both the Soviet Union and the USA to constructing two fields of Anti-Ballistic Missiles (AMBs), each with no more than 100 miles. The Interim Agreement of the Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms was reached in 1972 between the USA and USSR effectively linked strategic offensive and defensive arms agreements. It established a freeze in strategic missiles. SALT was the foundation for détente. The two major powers were equal.

  • The Moscow Summit

    The SALT agreements the summit also set out the guidelines for the
    American-Soviet relations, ‘The Basic Principles of Relations between the United States and the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics’ acted as a code of behaviour the two powers had for each
    other. There was no legal status instead it was dependant on each side sticking to the guiding principles. While SALT I produced an interim agreement both the USA and USSR desired a lasting agreement.This was referred to as SALT II.

  • SALT II and the Vladivostok Summit

    The Vladivostok Summit set out the basis for further negotiations; both sides agreed for equal limits for missile launchers and strategic bombers. However the Vladivostok Agreement fell short of a full
    treaty and SALT II negotiations continued into the late 1970s.
    SALT II proposals:
    - Reducing the strategic systems to 1800-2000
    - Reducing modern ICBM's to 150
    Brezhnev rejected these. Increasing feeling by the USSR that Carter was moving away from détente.

  • The Helsinki Accords

    Improving relations between Eastern and Western Europe led to the Helsinki Accords. The conference focused on the security and cooperation in Europe. A total of 35 countries participated, including the USA and Canada. The accords reflected agreements in three key areas which became referred to as baskets.
    No.1 - Security in Europe
    No.2 - Cooperation in the Field of Economics, of Science and Technology and of the Environment
    No.3 - Cooperation in Humanitarian and Other Fields

  • Geneva

    Gorbachev and Reagan worked towards cutting offensive nuclear weapons by 50%. They also made plans for a provisional agreements on limiting/ eliminating medium- range nuclear missiles. Also they discussed collaboration to end nuclear proliferation to
    other countries and the banning of chemical weapons. there were no concrete outcomes, the joint statement they issued stated that ‘a
    nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought’.

  • Reykjavik

    The purpose of the summit was to put US-Soviet relations back on track, and in many respects the summits accomplished this. However little concrete agreements were made as Gorbachev would not discuss things unless Reagan agreed to abandon his plans for SDI.
    Both sides wanted arms reduction and wanted to discuss human rights and humanitarian issues. Thus Reykjavik was important in that both sides gained insights into each other.

  • Washington, December 1987

    At this summit Reagan and Gorbachev signed the INF Treaty. This agreement was generally regarded as the most significant step taken by the USA and the USSR to bring an arms race to an end. The treaty ended the use of all intermediate-range ballistic and cruise missiles, meaning those that could travel between 500 and 5500 kilometres, and these were destroyed by 1991. By the deadline the USA had destroyed 846 weapons to the USSRs 1846.

  • Moscow, May-June 1988

    The official stated goal of the Moscow Summit was to agree to the Strategic Arms Reduction, or START. This agreement was initially proposed in Geneva and was intended to limit the number of nuclear to 5000 for each side. In total, Gorbachev and Reagan signed seven agreements that included fishing rights and student exchange programmes.

  • The Malta Summit

    George H. W. Bush reviewed US policy towards the Soviet Union. Arms control negotiations with the USSR resumed with hopes of finalising START. Agreements reached over Eastern Europe with Gorby making it clear that the USSR would not use force to determine states deciding their political futures.USA would not intervene in the Baltic Seas or Germany. No formal agreements were signed. Led to the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty that was signed by Gorbachev, Bush&other European leaders in 1990.