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Yalta Conference
Joseph Stalin, Franklin Roosevelt, and Winston Churchhill meet to discuss the post-war world. They agreed on the division of Germany and its captial city Berlin into 4 zones of influence. Also, they agreed to make Germany pay reparations, de-militarize and de-nazify. -
Postdam Conference
~August 2
Stalin, Churchhill, Clement Atlee, Harry Truman (new American president) meet in the final conference of the war.
Relations between the Western powers and the Soviet had worsened since Yalta, the US has a new President (Harry Truman) with a tougher stance towards the USSR than Roosevelt. -
Civil War in China
~1949
After WWII, civil war raged in China between Mazo Zedong's communist NOrth and Jiang Jieshi's Nationalist South -
Truman Doctrine
Support for countries that reject Communism. Contributed $400 million to Greece and Turkey. -
Marshall Plan
Provided $12.5 billion to help rebuild Western Europe (to stop communism from spreading, get money back and interest, want to rebuild the economy with Europe) -
Mutual Defense Pact
US and its allies create a mutual defense pact called the North American Treaty Organization (NATO) -
China falls into communism
China falls to communism and signs a treaty of friendship with USSR -
Berlin Blockade
Soviets blocked off access to West Britaiin, the Allied controlled zone. -
Korean War
~1953
North Korea invades the South in 1950 with the use of Soviet weapons and supplies. -
Arms Race
~1970
Created in 1952, the Hydrogen Bomb is 1000 times more powerful than the atom bombs used in Japan. 1953, USSR tests its first Hydrogen Bomb and both nations start stockpiling nuclear weapons. Both nations commit a large amount of money to build up their nation's military strength over the next several years. This becomes a mutually asusred destruction. -
Warsaw Pact
The USSR creates its own defense pact with its member nations in Eastern Europe. -
Space Race
~1969 USSE develops Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICMB's) and launches the first ever satelite into space called Sputnik.
In 1958, the US launches their own satelite. Preisdent John F. Kennedy promises to land a man on the moon by the end of the decade. In 1961, Soviet Yuri Gargarin becomes the first man to orbit the Earth. In 1962, John Glenn becomes the first American. In 1969, US lands on the moon. -
Cubsn Missile Crisis
In 1962, US U-2 spy plane photographs missile sites being set up in Communist Cuba, only 100 or so miles from Florida. Soviet Union is secretly supplying and building what the US believes to be nuclear missiles in Cuba. -
Vietnam War
~1974 Communist North Vietnm supported by the Soviets with weapons and money. South Vietnam supported by the US not only with weapons and money but also hundreds of thousands of troops. -
Detente (rest in war)
~1979 Us and Soviet Union decided to have a relaxation in war because the Soviet Union and US were in armsrace and they were almost equal but Soviet Union did not have enough money. -
SALT 1 Treaty
Soviet Union and US were willing to make agreements with each other to freeze the number of nuclear bombs and long-range missiles. -
Joint Soyuz-Apollo Space flight
US and Soviet Union's first joint experiment. -
New Cold War
~1985 New Cold War happend because the detente failed and they were always supporting opposite sides. -
Change of leadership in Soviet Union
Mikhail Gorbachev became the new Party chairman. He had new thoughts about the country, for example to modernize industry and make it more efficient. -
INF
Gorbachev held a meeting with US and signed an INF (Intermediate Nuclear Forces) promising the elimination of all medium-rangemissiles in Europe within three years. -
End of Cold War
Presidents of the USA and the Soviet Union held a meeting on the Mediterranean island of Malta. And agreed that the Cold War was over.