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The first use of the Atomic Bomb
The first use of the atomic bomb took place in 1945 when America had targeted Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, this resulted in the death of 120,000 civilians. This was also the 'spark' and the underlying cause of the Cold War. (This occured on both August 6th and August 9th, 1945.) -
Gouzenko Affair
Igor Gouzenko was a Russian cipher clerk and intelligence officer at the Soviet Embassy, he had found papers containing evidence that there was a Soviet Spy Ring operating in Canada. In an attempt to keep his family safe, he brought the papers to the RCMP, after some convincing, him and his family got sent to Camp X and the Canadian Politicians were tried for treason. -
The Formation of the United Nations
The formation of the United Nations happened in 1945 but on January 1st, 1942, representatives from 26 different nations went to war against the Axis Powers (Japan, Italy, Germany) and they met to Washington to sign the Declaration of the United Nations endorsing the Atlantic Charter. Canada has been active in the United Nations since it began in 1945, this has developed friendly relations among many nations, and in the end, it is a system meant to prevent war. -
The Formation of NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed in 1949 to protect members from the USSR, and they pleaded to protect one another if any such attack had occurred. This is significant because this was Canada's first peacetime military alliance. -
The Korean War
North Korea invades South Korea, and the UN steps in and assists South Korea to fight off North Korea. The war lasted for three consecutive years from June 25th, 1950 until July 27th, 1953. Canada had sent over 26,791 military personnel, it was later claimed to be Canada's third bloodiest over sea conflict. There were nearly 30 groups and countries involved, but to this day, North and South Korea still don't get along. -
Formation of the Warsaw Pact
A treaty was signed in Poland and was officially called 'The Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation, and Mutual Assistance'. The Soviet Union and seven of its European satellites signed a treaty establishing the Warsaw Pact, a mutual defense organization that put the Soviets in command of the armed forces of the member states. The Warsaw Pact was also the rival alliance to the NATO. -
The Vietnam War
Although there were many countries and groups involved, the war began on November 1st, 1955 when communist North Vietnam went against capitalist South Korea; with the USA on their side. The USA failed to defeat North Vietnam, so the communist North Vietnam went and took over South Vietnam and the war ended twenty years later on April 30th, 1975. -
Suez Crisis
There were was military and political issues and confrontations in Egypt, which lead to the threatening of turning America against Britain, but since the UN and Canada tried to gain peace in society, they were able to stop things before it got out of hand. -
Formation of NORAD
The North American Defense Command (NORAD) was created when the Canadian and American aerospace defense forces integrated together; with America in command. This was the first time Canada had relied on a country that wasn't Britain. -
The Cancellation of the Avro Arrow
The CF-105, or Avro Arrow as it was known, was a supersonic jet interceptor developed by A.V. Roe of Canada, it was one of the fastest and more advanced aircraft's, so when it was canceled, the helpers and creators of the Avro Arrow were part of Canada's 'brain drain'. After this had occurred many of them left to go to the USA and help with the aerospace industry. It was also a serious setback for the Canadian aerospace industry as a whole. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
There was a major confrontation between the USA and the Soviet Union that almost led to a war in October of 1962, this occurred after there were Soviet nuclear-armed missiles found in Cuba. America and Canada felt uncomfortable about this situation because Cuba was so close to America so if missiles were fired from Cuba there would be a possibility of it hitting their countries. This was the closest point that the world has ever come to a global nuclear war. -
SALT Treaty
Nixon and Soviet General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev signed the ABM Treaty and interim SALT agreement in Moscow. This was the first time during the Cold War that America and the Soviet Union agreed on actually agreed to limit the number of nuclear missiles in their arsenals. -
Strategic Defense Initiative
The Strategic Defense Initiative was the United States’ response to the possibility of any nuclear attacks, but there were concerns brought up about the program “contravening” the anti-ballistic missile (ABM) of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks years before. This plan was later all set aside and was a huge contributor to the end of the cold war nuclear confrontation. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The spokesperson for the East Berlin Communist Party said that there was a change in the relations with West Berlin and that the members of the GDR (German Democratic Republic) were able to cross the country’s borders. This wall was an ongoing reminder of the separation between capitalism and communism, it is one of the biggest and most powerful symbols of the Cold War. -
Breakup of the Soviet Union
In 1991, representatives from each of the eleven Soviet Republics all met up to announce that would no longer be a part of the Soviet Union, but instead, they had actually declared that they would establish a commonwealth of independent states. Everybody believed that there deserved to be better relationships throughout the world, and since the United States has resigned, there has been no reason for the other countries to fight, so the threat of communism and nuclear was no longer there.
