Studied by 73 people
Soviet Union
a communist nation that consisted of Russia and 14 other states; participated in the Cold War
United Nations
An international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues; founded after the second world war
Security Council
the 15-member council within the UN given the primary responsibility within the UN for maintaining international security and authorizing peacekeeping missions
World Bank
initially created to fund the rebuilding of a war-torn world and encourage world trade; founded at the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944
Iron Curtain
a metaphor coined by Churchill that refers to the division between the US allies in Western Europe and the Soviet allies in Eastern Europe
Containment policy
designed to prevent Soviet expansion without starting a war by creating alliances and helping weak countries to resist Soviet advances; firm containment of soviet expansion would halt communist power
Truman Doctrine
Truman asked Congress for $400 million in economic and military aid to assist the “free people” of Greece and Turkey against “totalitarian” regimes; US foreign policy would be to aid any power fighting communists
Marshall Plan
an extensive program of US economic aid to help European nations revive their economies and strengthen democratic governments; if they had money, they could buy American goods; $17 billion
Berlin Airlift
President Truman’s response to the Soviet’s blockade of access to Berlin by land; constant flying in of supplies to the people of West Berlin; lead to West and East Germany
West vs East Germany
caused by the Soviet’s blockade of Berlin; one side is allied with the US and the other with the Soviet Union
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
a military alliance for defending all members from outside attack; created to protect Western Europe from Soviet rule
Warsaw Pact
a military alliance for the defense of communist states of Eastern Europe; Soviet’s response to NATO
Arms Race
an intense competition between the US and USSR to develop superior weapons systems
Taiwan
the island that Chiang and his nationalists retreated to after all of mainland China was controlled by the Communists
People’s Republic of China
Communist government of mainland China
38th Parallel
the line by which Korea was divided along
Korean War
the first “hot war” of the Cold war; Soviet-backed North Korea invaded South Korea and the UN forces supported the South Koreans; eventually the war ended in a stalemate, neither side being able to overwhelm the other and fighting was stalled just above the 38th parallel
Brinkmanship
a hard line created by John Foster Dulles that declared that if the US pushed Communist powers to the brink of war, they would back down because of American nuclear superiority; the act of pushing a situation to the verge of war in order to threaten and encourage one's opponent to back down; breaking point
Massive Retaliation
a military doctrine and nuclear strategy in which a state commits itself to retaliate in greater force in the event of an attack; relying more on nuclear weapons and air power and spending less on conventional military forces would save money, help balance the fed budget, and increase pressure on potential enemies
Korean Armistice
the truce made between the US/SouthKorean alliance and the Chinese/NorthKorean alliance to end the Korean War; the exchange of prisoners, the halt of fighting, and the withdrawal of most US troops; Korea remained divided near the 38th parallel
Open-Skies Policy
a policy to have all US and USSR territory open to aerial photography by the opposing nation in order to eliminate the chance of a surprise nuclear attack; rejected by the Soviets
Spirits of Geneva
the first thaw of the Cold War; At a summit, Eisenhower called for a slowdown in the arms race; the Soviet Union withdrew troops from Austria and developed peaceful relations with Greece and Turkey.
Peaceful Coexistence
Term used by Nikita Khrushchev (new Soviet Premier) to promote compromisation and to reduce tensions between the USSR and the US
Hungarian Revolt
a popular uprising in Hungary that succeeded in overthrowing a government backed by Moscow; Khrushchev sent in Soviet tanks to crush the freedom fighters and restore control over Hungary; the US was limited in the actions they could take in this situation as to not launch major war in Europe
Sputnik
the satellites launched into orbit around the earth by the USSR; shocked the US and raised questions about the technological leadership of the US
U-2 Incident
the US spy plane that was shot down by Russians; revealed the secret US tactic for gaining information about their enemy’s missile program; led to Khrushchev denouncing the US and walking out of the Paris summit (temporarily ending the thaw)
Military-industrial complex
a term used by President Eisenhower during his farewell address; if the military becomes the biggest client for manufacturers, then the nation will begin to invest more of its economy into military contracts; presented his fear that the arms race was taking on momentum and logic all its own
Bay of Pigs
an American attempt to overthrow the newly established communist government in Cuba by training and sending Cuban rebels; failed because Kennedy rejected the idea of using US forces to save them
Berlin Wall
a gloomy symbol of the Cold War; created around West Berlin by Easter Germans (with Soviet backing) to stop East Germans from fleeing to West Germany
Cuban Missile Crisis
the most dangerous moment in US-Soviet relations; Castro (leader of Cuba) invited Khrushchev to build underground missile sites that could launch offensive missiles capable of reaching the US in mins; led to Kennedy blockading Cuba until the weapons were removed and Soviet and after 13 days, the USSR decided to remove the missiles from Cuba; could have lead to a full-scale nuclear war
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
treaty created to end the testing of nuclear weapons in the atmosphere; offset by a new round in the arms races for developing missile and warhead superiority
Flexible-response policy
developed an array of military options that could match the gravity of whatever crisis came to hand; increased spending on conventional (nonnuclear) arms and mobile military forces; reduced the risk of using nuclear weapons
Detente
a deliberate reduction of Cold War tensions
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
discussions between the USSR and the US talking about limiting the numbers of ballistic missiles in both nations; didn’t end the arms race, yet was a significant step toward reducing Cold War tensions and bringing about détente
Winston Churchill
former British Prime Minister; declared: “An iron curtain has descended across the continent”
George Marshall
Secretary of State for President Truman; helped formulate the containment policy that was designed to prevent Soviet expansion without starting a war
George Kennan
an expert on Soviet affairs; claimed that only “a long-term, patient but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies” would eventually cause the Soviets to back off their plan to spread communism; also helped formulate the containment policy
*Dean Acheson
Undersecretary of State for President Truman; also helped formulate the containment policy that was designed to prevent Soviet expansion without starting a war
Douglas MacArthur
A US general that took firm charge of the reconstruction of Japan; this general also commanded the UN forces expedition during the Korean War and stabilized fighting near the 38th parallel
Chiang Kai-shek
leader of the Chinese Nationalists; he and his followers fled to Taiwan when the mainland was taken over by the Communists
Mao Zedong
the leader of the Chinese Communists; took over mainland china and formed the regime of the People’s Republic of China
Kim Il Sung
the Communist leader of North Korea; approved the initial attacks of North Korea on South Korea, starting the Korean War
Syngman Rhee
the conservative nationalist leader of South Korea
Nikita Khrushchev
the New soviet leader after Stalin’s death; denounced the crimes of Stalin and supported “peaceful coexistence” with the west
Fidel Castro
overthrew the Cuban dictator; once denied support by the US, he turned towards the Soviets and set up a Communist totalitarian state
Joseph Stalin
Russian leader who succeeded Lenin as head of the Communist Party and created a totalitarian state by purging all opposition Bolshevik revolutionary
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