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Potsdam Conference Part 2
They did this because the war was ending and the Allies needed a plan. Germany was divided up into four occupied zones. Allied countries could take reparations from the zone that they occupied. This was the last conference that everyone was able to work together. This is the division between the Soviet Union and the U.S. -
Potsdam Conference
The Potsdam Conference started on July 17 and ended on August 2,1945. U.S. President Harry S. Truman, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (later replaced by Clement Attlee), and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. “The leaders discussed peace settlements for Europe but did not attempt to write peace treaties.” (Potsdam Conference, Par. 2) Their main issue was the control of Germany and battle against Japan. They dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki because Japan wouldn’t surrender. -
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Potsdam Conference
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Berlin Airlift
The crisis started on June 24, 1948 and ended May 12, 1949. The United States and the United Kingdom airlifted food and fuel to Britain when Soviet forces blockaded rail, road, and water access. “The announcement ended the costly full-scale civil war between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang (KMT), which broke out immediately following World War II and had been preceded by on and off conflict between the two sides since the 1920’s.” (Berlin Airlift) -
Berlin Airlift Part 2
On May 11, 1949, Moscow lifted the blockade of West Berlin. The Berlin Crisis of 1948–1949 solidified the division of Europe. Shortly before the end of the blockade, the Western Allies created the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Two weeks after the end of the blockade, the state of West Germany was established, soon followed by the creation of East Germany. -
Berlin Airlift Part 3
The incident solidified the demarcation between East and West in Europe; it was one of the few places on earth that U.S. and Soviet armed forces stood face-to-face. It also transformed Berlin, once equated with Prussian militarism and Nazism, into a symbol of democracy and freedom in the fight against Communism. -
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Berlin Airlift
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NATO
Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom, and the United States were part of the NATO. “In NATO’s early period, member countries jointly planned, financed, and built infrastructure such as bases, airfields, pipelines, and communications networks.” (NATO, Par. 3) -
NATO Part 2
They made the NATO because many countries advocated for greater military spending and planning to counter Soviet strength. The NATO destroyed NATO. The Cold War started to end when the Soviet Union began to unravel. -
Warsaw Pact
Soviet Union, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania were all part of the Warsaw Pact. Warsaw pact troops were called into countries after riot started. “In 1955 the Soviet Union wanted to establish a strong defense alliance against any potential military or economic threats from the West. Another purpose was to strengthen the hold of the Soviet Union over its Eastern European satellites and to prevent their seeking close ties with the West. -
The Chinese Revolution
On October 1, 1949, Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong declared the creation of the People’s Republic of China. -
The Chinese Revolution Part 2
“The announcement ended the costly full-scale civil war between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang (KMT), which broke out immediately following World War II and had been preceded by on and off conflict between the two sides since the 1920’s.” (The Chinese Revolution, Par. 1) After the Chinese Revolution of 1949, there were few contracts, limited trade, and no diplomatic ties between the two countries. -
Korean War
The Korean War was a war between North and South Korea that lasted from about June 1950-July 1953. “The United Nations (UN) wanted to put the country back together quickly. However, the Soviets refused to allow the people in their section to vote on a new government. In 1948 the country was officially divided into North Korea and South Korea.” (Korean War, Par. 3) On June 25, 1950, the North Koreans, supported by the Soviets, attacked southward across the 38th parallel. -
Korean War Part 2
The U.S., China, and 15 other countries sent troops to aid South Korea in their fight. The Korean War took the lives of about 1,300,000 South Koreans, 1,000,000 Chinese, 500,000 North Koreans, and 37,000 Americans. After the war, Korea still remains divided into North and South. -
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Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a war that lasted from 1954-1975 between North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and the U.S.. South Vietnam fought North VIetnam to prevent from being reunited under Communism. “North Vietnam wanted to reunite the country under Communism, its political and economic system.” (Vietnam War, Par. 1) 1.3 million Vietnamese soldiers and about 58,000 U.S. troops were killed, and more than 2 million civilians died. -
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Warsaw Pact Part 2
One means of maintaining such control was the stationing of Soviet troops and weaponry in Eastern Europe.” (Warsaw Pact, Par. 2) In November 1990 Warsaw Pact and NATO leaders declared that they were “no longer adversaries,” ending the Cold War. -
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis was a crisis between U.S., France, Britain, Egypt, Soviet Union, and Israel. Israeli brigades invaded Egypt and advanced toward the canal. U.S.’s ally, Israel invaded Egypt because Egypt always invaded Israel. The Suez Crisis started when the Egyptian President nationalized the Suez Canal. -
The Suez Crisis Part 2
“The Suez Crisis was provoked by an American and British decision not to finance Egypt’s construction of the Aswan High Dam, as they had promised, in response to Egypt’s growing ties with communist Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union.” (Suez Crisis, Par. 2) Israel regained shipping rights in the Straits of Tiran. Nasser emerged as a victor and a hero. Britain and France lost most of their influence in the Middle East. -
Space Race/Sputnik
The Space Race was started after the launch of Sputnik-1. It was a race between the Soviet Union and the U.S.. “On October 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched the earth’s first artificial satellite,Sputnik-1. The successful launch came as a shock to experts and citizens in the United States, who had hoped that the United States would accomplish this scientific advancement first.” (Space Race/Sputnik, Par. 1) -
Space Race/Sputnik
The launch of Sputnik-1 served to intensify the arms race and raise Cold War tensions. The fact that Soviets were successful fed fears that the U.S. military had fallen behind in developing new technology. -
Berlin Wall
On November 10, 1958, Soviet Premier delivered a speech demanding that the Western Powers of the U.S., Great Britain, and France pull their forces out of Berlin within six months. “This ultimatum sparked a three year crisis over the future of the city of Berlin that culminated in 1961 with the building of the Berlin Wall.” (Berlin Wall, Par. 1) -
Berlin Wall Part 2
Shortly after the wall was erected, a standoff between U.S. and Soviet troops on either side of the diplomatic checkpoint led to one of the tensest moments of the Cold War in Europe. A dispute over whether East German or Soviet guards were authorized to patrol the checkpoints and examine the travel documents of U.S. diplomats passing through led the United States to station tanks on its side of the checkpoint, pointing toward the East German troops just beyond the wall. -
Berlin Wall Part 3
Concerns that U.S. forces would either attempt to take down the wall or force their way through the checkpoint led the Soviet Union to station its own tanks on the East German side. A wrong move during the face-off could have led to war, and any conventional skirmish between two nuclear powers always brought with it the risk of escalation. -
Berlin Wall Part 4
Instead, Kennedy made use of back channels to suggest that Khrushchev remove his tanks, promising that if the Soviet Union did so, the U.S. army would reciprocate. The standoff ended peacefully.
The Berlin Wall remained in place until November 9, 1989, when the border between East and West Berlin was reopened and the wall itself was finally dismantled. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was an argument of Soviet missiles residing in Cuba and how the missiles could easily bomb the U.S.. “During the Cuban Missile Crisis, leaders of the U.S. and the Soviet Union engaged in a tense, 13-day political and military standoff in October 1962 over the installation of nuclear-armed Soviet missiles on Cuba, just 90 miles from U.S. shores.” (Cuban Missile Crisis, Par. 1) -
Cuban Missile Crisis Part 2
The Soviet missiles on Cuba were able to quickly bomb targets in the eastern U.S.. When an American reconnaissance plane was shot down over Cuba, the U.S. invasion force was readied in Florida to invade Cuba. -
Glasnost & Perestroika
Glasnost and Perestroika were polices that were instituted by the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. “He believed that the opening up of the political system—essentially, democratizing it—was the only way to overcome inertia in the Soviet political and bureaucratic apparatus, which had a big interest in maintaining the status quo.” (Glasnost, Par. 2) Glasnost dramatically enlarged individual freedom of expression in the country. -
Glasnost & Perestroika Part 2
It gave the media greater freedom to publish, and editorials complaining of depressed conditions and of the Soviet government’s inability to correct them began to appear. Ultimately, fundamental changes to the political structure of the Soviet Union occurred: the power of the Communist Party was reduced, and multicandidate elections took place. -
Glasnost & Perestroika Part 4
The economic bureaucracy, fearing the loss of its power and privileges, obstructed much of Gorbachev’s program, however. He also proposed reducing the direct involvement of the Communist Party leadership in the country’s governance and increasing the local government's’ authority. -
Glasnost & Perestroika Part 5
In 1988 a new parliament, the Congress of People’s Deputies, was created. Similar congresses were established in each Soviet republic as well. For the first time, elections to these bodies presented voters with a choice of candidates, including noncommunists, though the Communist Party continued to dominate the system. -
Glasnost & Perestroika Part 3
“Gorbachev introduced the concept of perestroika. He intended it to be a program of moderate and controlled reform that would revitalize the stagnant Soviet economy. Seeking to bring the Soviet Union up to economic par with capitalist countries such as Germany, Japan, and the United States, he decentralized economic controls and encouraged enterprises to become self-financing.” (Perestroika, Par. 1)
