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Soviet Union's Rise and Fall of Power
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Truman Doctrine
The President of the United States of America in 1947 was Missouri-native Harry S. Truman. President Truman presents the Truman Doctrine to Congress stating that the Doctrine will provide economic and military aid in hopes to prevent the spread of communism. -
The Marshall Plan
President Harry S. Truman signs another bill that plans to give further economic aid to help rebuild Europe and prevent the spread of communism. -
Berlin Airlift
Soviets hoped to control all of Berlin, so they blocked off West Berlin from everything in hope to drive out France, Britain, and the United States. The Berlin Airlift was Western leader's efforts to provide West Berlin with vital supplies by air, after they were blocked off by land. This blockade lasted until May 12, 1949. -
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was established by the United States, Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway, Iceland, Canada, and Portugal. These countries formed to create an alliance aganist the Soviet aggression. -
Nuclear Race
The Soviet Union successfully tested the first ever atomic bomb, but the United States reacted by then creating their own hydrogen bomb nicknamed the "Manhattan Project". The competition to make more atomic bombs became an arms race. -
Warsaw Pact
A treaty was signed by the Soviet Union, Albania, Poland, Romania, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Bulgaria. The Warsaw Pact was a mutual defense organization that put the Soviets in charge. -
Sputnik
The Soviet Union launched the world's first artificial satelite, Sputnik. The United States thought they would be the first and were shocked on the Soviet's progress. The United States worked to catch up and brought them and the Soviets into a space race. -
The Berlin Wall
The Communist Government of East Berlin began building a giant wall to divide East and West Berlin to keep the people from crossing over into the West because the conditions were better. The wall stood until November 9, 1989. -
The Cuban Missile Crisis
October 15, 1962 marks the day that a United States spy plane discovered Soviet missiles in Cuba. Due to the threat on the United States, President John F. Kennedy demanded that the missiles be removed and the Soviet Union complied. This incident almost caused a nuclear war between two powerful countries. -
SALT I and II
May 27, 1972 marks the day that the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT) agreements were signed. Both the United States and Soviet Union came to agree on two terms: a limit on Anti-Ballistic Missiles sites for each country and a freeze on the intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched ballistic missiles at current levels. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
There was an upbringing in the demands for independence from the citizens in the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union goverment was already breaking down and eventually the Soviet Union collasped and marked the end of the Cold War.
