10: End of the Cold War – Lecture Review

These flashcards review major causes and events leading to the decline of détente, Reagan’s renewed Cold-War pressure, Gorbachev’s reforms, and the eventual collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the USSR.

What was the primary goal of détente between the United States and the USSR?

To reduce tensions and improve diplomatic, economic and security relations between the two superpowers.

Give one concrete example of superpower cooperation during the détente era.

The signing of the Helsinki Accords in 1975 (other acceptable answers: SALT I in 1972, joint space projects such as Apollo-Soyuz).

How did the Helsinki Accords (1975) aim to promote stability in Europe?

By committing signatories to settle disputes peacefully and to respect basic human rights such as freedom of speech and protection from arbitrary arrest.

Which U.S. president is credited with abandoning détente and why?

President Jimmy Carter, primarily because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, which he called a serious threat to peace.

Why was the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan considered the “final nail in the coffin” for détente?

It convinced the United States that the USSR was still willing to use force to expand influence, ending trust and reviving Cold-War hostility.

Describe the basic functioning of the Soviet command economy.

The state decided what to produce, how much to produce, and at what price, allocating resources through central plans rather than market forces.

What was the ‘Era of Stagnation’ in the USSR?

A period (1970s-1980s) of steadily declining industrial and agricultural growth, inefficiency and falling living standards.

How did supporting satellite states weaken the Soviet economy?

Financial subsidies, cheap energy exports and military aid to Warsaw Pact and proxy‐war partners drained resources needed at home.

List two pieces of evidence of a poor Soviet standard of living in the late 1970s.

Low wages and chronic shortages of consumer goods such as cars, televisions and telephones (other possible answers: housing shortages, long food queues).

In what ways did workforce disillusionment show itself in the late USSR?

Rising absenteeism, corruption, small-scale strikes and arrests of citizens demanding reform or higher pay.

How were Comecon economies linked to the USSR’s decline?

Eastern European states relied on Soviet energy subsidies and loans, so their growing debts and inefficiency deepened Moscow’s own financial crisis.

What was the stated purpose of the Warsaw Pact?

To provide collective defence for socialist states in Eastern Europe.

What was the unstated purpose of the Warsaw Pact?

To guarantee Soviet control by allowing intervention against internal anti-communist movements.

Summarise the Brezhnev Doctrine (1968).

If any Eastern Bloc country tried to abandon communism, all socialist states had the right to intervene to protect the system.

How did crushed uprisings (e.g., Prague 1968) expose communist weaknesses?

They showed popular resentment, reliance on Soviet troops for survival, and inability to deliver higher living standards.

How did Ronald Reagan describe the USSR in 1983, and why was this important?

He called it an “evil empire,” signalling a confrontational U.S. posture and justifying large defence buildups.

Name two key elements of Reagan’s domestic economic policy.

Cutting taxes and deregulating business to stimulate capitalist growth (often termed ‘Reaganomics’).

What was the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)?

A proposed U.S. missile-defence shield using land- and space-based technology to intercept incoming Soviet nuclear missiles.

How did Reagan’s defence buildup affect the Soviet Union?

Forced the USSR to raise military spending it could not afford, accelerating its economic deterioration.

What was Mikhail Gorbachev’s overall vision for the USSR, called ‘New Thinking’?

To revitalise socialism through openness, limited market reforms and a cooperative foreign policy without dismantling communism.

Define ‘Glasnost.’

A policy of ‘openness’ that encouraged public debate, reduced censorship and revealed government failures.

Why did Glasnost backfire on Soviet leaders?

It unleashed criticism, exposed corruption and highlighted superior Western living standards, undermining regime legitimacy.

State two economic features of Perestroika (1987 onward).

Greater management autonomy in factories and limited introduction of market pricing/profit incentives.

Why did Perestroika fail to boost Soviet production?

Infrastructure and technology lagged, many firms remained unprofitable, and citizens lacked confidence in new private ventures.

How did Gorbachev’s ‘New Thinking’ alter Soviet foreign policy spending?

He cut defence budgets, reduced nuclear arsenals and withdrew from costly conflicts like Afghanistan.

What did ‘de-ideologisation’ of Soviet foreign policy mean for Eastern Europe?

Moscow renounced intervention to prop up communist regimes, permitting Eastern Bloc nations to decide their own paths.

Which Gorbachev speeches confirmed non-intervention in the Warsaw Pact?

The July 1988 UN speech and the March 1989 address to the Communist Party.

Which symbolic event marked the collapse of communist control in Eastern Europe?

The fall of the Berlin Wall on 9 November 1989.

Give two long-term factors (besides Gorbachev) that led to the USSR’s 1991 collapse.

Structural weaknesses of the command economy and the costly arms race/proxy wars with the United States.

How did the Cold War arms race burden the Soviet economy?

Massive defence spending diverted resources from consumer goods, technology and infrastructure, worsening stagnation.

What is an ‘arms race’?

A competition between nations to build more powerful and numerous weapons systems, especially nuclear arsenals.

Define ‘containment’ in U.S. foreign policy.

The strategy of preventing the spread of communism by providing political, economic and military aid to threatened nations.

What is a ‘proxy war’?

A conflict where major powers support opposing sides without directly engaging each other militarily (e.g., Angola, Afghanistan).

Explain ‘Era of Stagnation.’

Brezhnev-era term describing low economic growth and technological lag in the Soviet Union during the 1970s-80s.

What were ‘summit meetings’ during détente?

High-level U.S.–Soviet talks (e.g., Nixon-Brezhnev) to negotiate arms limits, trade and crisis management.

Define ‘command economy.’

An economic system where the state plans and directs all major production and distribution decisions.

What is meant by ‘bipolarity’ in Cold War context?

A global power structure dominated by two superpowers—the United States and the Soviet Union.

How did Reagan’s tax cuts relate to Cold War strategy?

By stimulating U.S. economic growth, they aimed to show the superiority of free-market capitalism over Soviet socialism.

Why did Eastern Bloc debt rise in the late 1970s?

Governments borrowed heavily from Western banks to offset economic weakness and maintain living standards.

What lesson did the Prague Spring and Solidarity movements teach Soviet leaders?

Repression could quell dissent temporarily but increased popular desire for reform and independence.

How did the U.S. view Soviet support for Cuba and Afghanistan?

As evidence that the USSR violated détente and sought global expansion of communism.

Name one nuclear arms treaty signed under Gorbachev and Reagan.

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, 1987.

What economic advantage did the U.S. gain from the ‘Reagan boom’?

Higher growth and revenues that could fund sustained military superiority over the USSR.

In what year did the Soviet Union formally dissolve?

1991.