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Yalta Conference
Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and FDR agreed to demand Germany's unconditional surrender and began planning for a post-war world. -
Potsdam Conference
This was the last World War II meeting held by the "Big Three". They discussed postwar Europe and issued a declaration demanding for Japan's unconditional surrender. -
Formation of the United Nations
This is an intergovernmental organization that promotes co-operation. It replaced the ineffective League of Nations after World War II in order to prevent another conflict like it. The United States is a part of the UN even though the US was not a part of the League of Nations. -
Arms Race
The nuclear arms race was a period of time during the Cold War in which both the U.S. and Russia increased their stockpiles of nuclear weapons. Many people believed that the more nuclear weapons you had, the more powerful you were. -
Truman Doctrine
It was an American foreign policy to stop Soviet imperialism during the Cold War. Truman pledged to contain Soviet threats to Greece and Turkey. -
Marshall Plan
It was an American initiative to help aid Western Europe at the end of World War II. The United States gave over $13 billion in economic support to help rebuild Western European economies. -
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Berlin Blockade
The Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' road, railway, and canal access to areas of Berlin under Western control. -
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Berlin Airlift
The Western Allies carried supplies, such as fuel and food, to the people of West Berlin. -
Formation of NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an alliance founded by Belgium, Luxembourg, USA, Canada, France, The Netherlands, Great Britain, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Iceland. It began when there was a fear that communism would take over the world, so these countries agreed to provide mutual help if any of the other ones are attacked. -
Soviets Explode their First Atomic Bomb
The explosion of "First Lighting" made the tension between the USA and the USSR much greater. It was a crucial event in the nuclear arms race. -
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Korean War
It began when North Korean forces, supported by the Soviet Union and China, moved into South Korea. The United States came to aid South Korea. There was eventually a ceasefire and an armistice. -
First Hydrogen Bomb Tested
The United States detonated the world's first thermonuclear weapon. This bomb was 1,000 times more powerful than conventional nuclear devices and gave the US an advantage over the USSR in the arms race. -
Joseph Stalin Dies
The leader of the Soviet Union since 1924 died of a heart attack. He is remembered as the man who saved his nation from Nazi domination, and the mass murderer of the century. -
Nikita Kruschchev comes to Power
He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and then as Premier. He was responsible for the de-Stalinization of the Soviet Union, backing the progress of the early Soviet space program, and for several domestic policy reforms. -
SEATO Established
The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization was directed by President Eisenhower in order to put together an alliance to contain any communist aggression in the free territories of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, or any other Southeast Asian nation. -
Formation of the Warsaw Pact
This was a mutual defense organization between the Soviet Union, Albania, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, and Poland. The Soviets were in command of the armed forces. -
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Vietnam War
This was fought between North Vietnam and the government of South Vietnam. The North was supported by the Soviet Union and other communist allies. The South was supported by the United States and other anti-communist allies. The North wanted to reunify Vietnam, but the South and its supporters did not want a communist takeover. It resulted in a North Vietnamese victory. -
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Space Race
The U.S. and Russia fought to prove that they were the superior power with their technology, political system, and economy. Space was seen as the next frontier of exploration. -
Sputnik 1 Launced
The Soviet Union launched the Earth's first artificial satellite. Many Americans feared what Russia would do with this new technology, so the Space race began. -
U-2 Incident
The USSR shot down an American U-2 spy plane and captured its pilot. President Eisenhower was forced to admit to the Soviets that the CIA had been flying spy missions over Russia for several years. This raised tensions between the two countries. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
In order to overthrow Fidel Castro, the CIA trained Cubans to invade Cuba and start a revolution. The plan failed because the invaders were greatly outnumbered and they surrendered in less than 24 hours of fighting. -
Creation of the Berlin Wall
The purpose of the wall was to keep Western "fascists" from entering East Germany. It was one of the most powerful symbols of the Cold War. -
Cuban Missle Crisis
The U.S. and Soviet Union engaged in a tense political and military standoff because of the nuclear weapons in Cuba that were placed by the Soviet Union. -
First Man to Walk on the Moon
The American space mission Apollo 11was a crucial achievement during the Space Race and Cold War. -
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan
The Soviet Union intervened in support of the Afghan communist government in its conflict with the anticommunist Muslims during the Afghan War. The Soviets overthrew the president, Hafizullah Amin, and put a Soviet, Babrak Karmal, in his place. This started the Soviet-Afghan War. -
INF Treaty
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is an agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union. It eliminated all nuclear and conventional missiles with ranges of 500-1,000 km and 1,000-5,500 km. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
The spokesperson for East Berlin's Communist Party announced that citizens could cross the country's borders. The event was a symbol that the war was ending and led to the re-unification of Germany. -
Mikhail Gorbachev comes to Power
He is credited for instituting a large number of reforms that weakened the power that communism held over the Soviet people. He resigned in 1991 and the USSR was dissolved. -
German Re-Unification
East Germany joined West Germany to create the reunited nation of Germany. Berlin was once again a single city and the capital of united Germany. -
USSR Breakup
Gorbachev's reforms led to the end of the Cold War and the breakup of the USSR. From August to December all individual republics, including Russia, had seceded from the Union. 11 of them signed the Alma-Ata Protocol, which stated that the USSR no longer existed.
