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Creation of the United Nations
After World War Two the League of Nations had proved that they couldn't stop war too well. As a new, improved League of Nations, the United Nations was introduced as a group that was better at arbitrating international conflict and negotiating peace. -
The Little Boy
The atomic bomb "Little Boy" was dropped on Hiroshima. This is the first time nuclear weapons have ever been used in war. -
Period: to
The Cold War
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The Fat Man
The U.S.A drops their second nuclear bomb titled "Fat Man" over Nagasaki. This was a different type of bomb than "Little Boy" but still did horrific amounts of damage. Nuclear weapons have not been used in combat since then. -
Gouzenko Affair
Igor Sergeievich Gouzenko fled the Soviet Embassy in Ottawa carrying a number of documents that proved a Soviet spy ring in Canada. Gouzenko was able to turn in these documents while avoiding the Soviets coming after him. The Canadian Government was able to arrest 29 spies linked to the document. -
Formation of Nato
In 1949, there was still possibility of communist expansion, so the United States and 11 other Western nations formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. -
Korean War
The Korean war officially started when about 75000 soldiers from North Korea crossed into the 38th parallel. This invasion was the first military action of the Cold War and American troops came to help out South Korea by July. People feared the start of World War Three, but after some 5 million casualties, the Korean War came to an end -
The Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union and its allies founded a rival group to NATO, the Warsaw Pact. European countries each took their sides between the two groups, forming the military standoff that took place during the Cold War -
The Vietnamese War
The Vietnamese war started when Northern Vietnam decided to invade South Vietnam. The US decided to back up Southern Vietnam and take on the Viet Cong. The war lasted 20 years until the US withdrew their forces in 1975. -
The Suez Crisis
Egyption Prime Minister Gamal Abdel Nasser announced the nationalization of the Suez Canal owned by Britain and France. British and French governments were outraged by the nationalization. Discussions went on until 1960 about the Suez Canal, with Britain and France hinting many times that the argument may resort to force. -
NORAD
A new agreement was signed between Canada and the United States known as NORAD or the North American Air Defence Agreement. The US expected an air attack over the artic and down through Canada during this time, so they created NORAD as a defence system where Canada was instructed to give the USA an early warning in the case of an attack. -
The Cancellation of The Avro Arrow
The Avro Arrow was a fighter jet created by A.V Roe in 1949. Costs of building the planes jumped from 2 to 12.5 million dollars an aircraft, and the advanced creation of long ranged missiles were becoming more of a priority. The project was cancelled on February 20th, 1959 and the government ordered all planes and prototypes destroyed. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
During a 13 day standoff between the US and the Soviet Union, President John Kennedy informed the public about the standoff, and how he had decided to make a blockade around Cuba with intentions to use military force to neutralize the situation -
SALT Treaty
In 1967, the US discovered that the Russians had built defence missiles capable of reaching the United States. US President Johnson told the piblic about the missiles. Johnson called for a stragetic arms limitations talk (SALT) and met with the Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin. a temporary fix was agreed on, and in 1969 formal SALT talks began in Finland. For the first time in the Cold War, both sides agreed to limit the number of nuclear weapons they have. -
Strategic Defense Initiative
Also known as Star Wars, the SDI was first initiated by President Ronald Regan to develop a sophisticated anti-ballistic missile system in order to prevent missle attacks from other countries, most importantly the soviet union. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
When the cold war began to come to an end, the spokesman for East Berlin's Communist Party announced that the wall was no longer needed. Citizens from both the east and west crowded the wall and had "the greatest street party in the history of the world" while the wall was being destroyed -
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev resigned and declared his office extinct. The Soviet Union split up into multiple seperate countries and the CIS was created, ending the Cold War.
