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Hungarian Revolt of 1956
Khrushchev gave a speech that denounced Stalin's rule. Growing discontent in Hungary exploded into aggressive combat, fuelled by the new freedom of discussion and criticism. Imre Nagy was elected after deciding to create a multiparty structure. He declared Hungarian neutrality and demanded UN assistance, but Western powers were unwilling to risk global war. The Soviet Union invaded hungry on the 4th to put an end to the revolt, and Nagy was executed for treason. -
The Space Race
Another point of contention between the two greatest powers, the United States and the Soviet Union, was the space race. Beginning in the late 1950s, space and the advancement of space technology became another field of rivalry between the two superpowers to demonstrate their dominance in terms of strength and technology. -
USSR development of Hydrogen bomb
The Soviet Union continued to work on developing a hydrogen bomb, after America's successes. Using a "Layer Cake" style made up of alternating layers of hydrogen fuel and uranium. Although it wasn't as effective as the American bomb. The Soviet Union tested its first true hydrogen bomb at the Semipalatinsk test site on November 22, 1955. -
The Suez Crisis
After Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal, a valuable waterway that controlled two-thirds of the oil used in Europe, Israeli armed forces advanced into Egypt toward the Suez Canal. The Israelis were soon joined by French and British forces, almost drawing the Soviet Union into the conflict and jeopardizing their ties with the US. Egypt was triumphant in the end, and the British, French, and Israeli governments withdrew their forces. -
Sputnik
Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite, was launched by the Soviet Union. People in the United States were taken aback by the successful launch, as they had hoped that the United States would be the first to achieve this. The Soviets' success fueled concerns that the US military had fallen behind in developing advanced technologies in general. As a result, Sputnik's launch exacerbated the arms race and increased Cold War tensions. -
U2 Incident
When the Soviet Union shot down an American U2 spy plane and arrested its pilot, a crisis erupted. When confronted, Eisenhower was forced to confess that the U.S. had been conducting spy missions over the Soviet Union. He was sentenced to prison by the Soviets, but he was released after a “spy swap” between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. The U2 incident heightened tensions during the Cold War, a predominantly diplomatic struggle that arose after WWII between the two superpowers and their allies. -
Berlin Crisis
Berliners discover a barbed wire fence dividing Berlin and prohibiting movement between the two sides had been erected overnight. A standoff between the US and the Soviets occurred. Tensions between two nuclear powers carried the possibility of escalation, and a wrong move during the face-off may have led to war. Kennedy used back channels to recommend that Khrushchev withdraw his tanks, promising that the US Army would do the same. The standoff came to a peaceful conclusion. -
Bay of Pigs
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was a failed attempt by the CIA to depose Cuban leader Fidel Castro during the Kennedy administration. 1,400 American-trained Cubans who had left their homes when Castro took power launched a full-scale invasion of the island. The invasion did not go well: the invaders were outmanned by Castro's forces, and after less than 24 hours of battle, they surrendered. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
Leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union engaged in a tense 13-day political and military standoff over the installation of nuclear-armed Soviet missiles in Cuba. The presence of the missiles was announced by President John F. Kennedy. Following the news, many people feared the world was on the brink of nuclear war. When the US accepted Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev's offer to withdraw Cuban missiles in exchange for a promise not to invade Cuba, catastrophe was avoided. -
JFK
In 1960, John F. Kennedy was elected as the United States' 35th president. He dealt with cold war conflicts in Cuba, Vietnam, and Berlin during his presidency. On November 22, 1963, he was assassinated, shocking the entire nation. -
Vietnam
After two US destroyers were torpedoed by DRV torpedo boats in 1964, Johnson ordered the retaliatory bombing in N Vietnam. Johnson made the decision to send US combat forces into Vietnam in 1965. A lot of S Vietnam had been declared as "free-fire zones" by 1966. The number of American troops in Vietnam had risen by 1967. Nixon was elected, and his Vietnamization strategy was adopted. The US and N Vietnam signed a final peace agreement in 1973. The conflict between N and S Vietnam raged on. -
Nuclear Buildups-1965
Many nuclear buildups occurred in 1953, the US launched the first nuclear-tipped missiles. The Soviet Union performs its first hydrogen bomb test on Aug 12th. On Aug 20, the US tests the PGM-11 Redstone missile, and on Oct 30, the U.S. formalizes its Fresh Look foreign policy with NSC 162/2, stressing the US's nuclear and conventional dominance. Finally, on Dec 8, President Eisenhower of the United States announces the Atoms for Peace initiative at the United Nations General Assembly. -
Six-Day War,
A brief conflict following years of international tensions, the Israeli Defense Forces conducted preemptive air attacks against Egypt's and its allies' air forces. The war ended with an UN-brokered truce, but it permanently altered the map of the Middle East and sparked geopolitical tensions. To show support, the Soviet Union directed Egyptian forces to push into the Sinai Peninsula, where they expelled a UN peacekeeping force that had been stationed along Israel's border for over a decade. -
Vietnamization
Vietnamization was an attempt to limit American involvement in the Vietnam War by delegating all military duties to South Vietnam. Nixon hoped that by doing so, South Vietnam would be better equipped to protect themselves against a North Vietnamese invasion, allowing the US to withdraw from Vietnam, as the war was becoming increasingly unpopular and creating deep rifts in American society. -
Nixon
Richard Nixon, the 37th president of the United States, is the first president to ever resign. Rather than face impeachment for his attempts to cover up criminal activity in the Watergate affair, he stepped down in 1974. During the Cold War, Nixon forging diplomatic relations with China and the Soviet Union, as well as withdrawing US troops from the unpopular Vietnam war. Nixon's role in Watergate, on the other hand, tainted his reputation and deepened American skepticism of government. -
SALT
The Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) negotiations were the most far-reaching attempts to regulate nuclear weapons ever made by Soviet President Leonid Brezhnev and US President Richard Nixon. Both leaders desired stronger diplomatic ties between their countries, as the Soviet Union was embroiled in an increasingly aggressive war with China and the United States sought assistance in exiting the Vietnam War. -
Nuclear Buildups-1974
In 1974, the nuclear build-ups spread even further, as South Africa secretly decides to pursue nuclear bomb capability, seemingly for peaceful nuclear explosions, and the Iranian nuclear program is launched by Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who establishes the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran. In May, India tests its first nuclear device, "Smiling Buddha," at Pokhran, and Pakistan's Project-706, led by General Zahid Ali Akbar, is founded around the same time.