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Diplomacy
The United States formally recognizes the USSR, and the countries establish diplomatic relations. -
Roosevelt helps in fight against Nazi attacks
President Franklin Roosevelt gives the USSR millions of dollars worth of weapons and other help for their fight against Nazi Germany. -
WWII ends with victory of US and USSR
The United States and Soviet Union end World War II as allies -
The Space Race
The Soviets launch Sputnik, the first manmade object to orbit the Earth. Americans, who had confidently felt they were ahead of the Soviets in technology and science, redouble their efforts in science, engineering, and the overall space race. -
Spys
The Soviets shoot down an American spy plane gathering information over Russian territory. -
missile launch
The stationing of U.S. nuclear missiles in Turkey and Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba leads to the most dramatic and potentially world-shattering confrontation of the Cold War. -
Agreements
At a summit in Reykjavik, Iceland, U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev came close to agreeing to eliminate all nuclear weapons and share the so-called Star Wars defense technologies. -
The end of the USSR
In the final days of December, the Soviet Union dissolved itself and was replaced by 15 different independent states, including Russia. Russia honors all treaties signed by the former Soviet Union and assumes the United Nations Security Council seat formerly held by the Soviets. -
Missile Treaty
U.S. President George Bush unilaterally withdraws from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty signed by the two countries in 1972. -
Iraq War
Russia strongly opposes the American-led invasion of Iraq.
