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The Potsdam Conference formally divided Germany and the capital, Berlin, into four zones. -
President Truman promised to help any country facing a Communist takeover -
The French, USA, and UK merged their sections fo Germany to make West Germany -
Russia responds by cutting off all road and rail links to that sector so people in Western Berlin starved -
The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation formed with member states Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States -
The Korean War began when North Korea invaded South Korea. -
Joseph Stalin died at the age of 74. He was succeeded by Nikita Khrushchev. -
The Korean war ended. North Korea remained affiliated with Russia while South Korea was affiliated with the USA. -
The Warsaw Pact was formed with member states East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, and the Soviet Union. -
Following military bombardment by Israeli forces, a joint British and French force invaded Egypt to regain control of the Suez Canal which had been nationalized by the Egyptian leader Nasser. The attack was heavily criticized by World leaders, especially America because Russia had offered support to Egypt. The British and French were forced to withdraw and a UN peacekeeping force was sent to establish order. -
USSR Sputnik II carried Laika the dog, the first living creature to go into space. -
Berlin wall built and borders sealed between East and West Germany. -
A US spy plane reported sighting the construction of a Soviet nuclear missile base in Cuba. President Kennedy set up a naval blockade and demanded the removal of the missiles. War was averted when the Russians agreed on 28th October to remove the weapons. The United States agreed not to invade Cuba. -
JF Kennedy was assassinated while on a visit to Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested for the murder but there has always been speculation that he was not a lone killer and that there may have been a communist or CIA complicity. -
150,000 US troops sent to Vietnam.