Cold War Key Concepts and Figures Flashcards

A vocabulary list of significant terms, people, and events from the Cold War era as provided in the student notes.

38th Parallel

The line of latitude that serves as the boundary between North and South Korea, established as a temporary border after World War II.

Adlai Stevenson

The Democratic presidential candidate in 1952 and 1956 and later the US Ambassador to the UN during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Admiral Radford

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Eisenhower administration who advocated for the 'New Look' and nuclear options.

Allen Dulles

The Director of the CIA from 1953 to 1961 who oversaw significant covert operations in Iran and Guatemala.

Arms Race

The intense competition between the United States and the Soviet Union to achieve superiority in the development and accumulation of weapons.

Aswan Dam

An Egyptian infrastructure project; US withdrawal of funding for it contributed to the Suez Crisis.

Bay of Pigs

A failed 1961 CIA-sponsored invasion of Cuba by exiles intended to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro.

Berlin Crisis (1958)

A period of diplomatic tension initiated by Nikita Khrushchev's demand for Western powers to leave West Berlin.

Berlin Wall

A physical barrier constructed by East Germany in 1961 to prevent its citizens from fleeing to West Berlin.

Bipolarity

A global power structure characterized by the dominance of two opposing superpowers, namely the US and USSR.

Bomber Gap

A mid-1950s US fear that the Soviet Union had gained a significant lead in the number of long-range strategic bombers.

Brinkmanship

The policy of pushing a conflict to the edge of war to force an opponent to back down, famously associated with John Foster Dulles.

Camille Chamoun

The President of Lebanon who requested US military intervention in 1958 under the Eisenhower Doctrine.

Charles de Gaulle

The French President who sought an independent diplomatic path for France and often challenged US leadership within NATO.

Che Guevara

An Argentine Marxist revolutionary and key figure in the Cuban Revolution and international guerrilla warfare.

Chiang Kai-shek

The leader of the Chinese Nationalist government who fled to Taiwan after the communist victory in 1949.

Clement Attlee

The British Prime Minister who replaced Winston Churchill in 1945 and attended the Potsdam Conference.

Collective Security

A system in which a group of nations agrees not to attack each other and to defend each other against an attack from others.

Cominform

The Communist Information Bureau founded in 1947 to coordinate the actions of communist parties under Soviet influence.

Common Market (European Economic Community)

An organization created in 1957 aimed at bringing about economic integration among its member states in Western Europe.

Containment

The primary US foreign policy strategy during the Cold War focused on preventing the geographical spread of communism.

Cuban Missile Crisis

The October 1962 confrontation between the US and the USSR over the placement of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba.

Dean Acheson

The US Secretary of State under Truman who played a central role in defining the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan.

Dien Bien Phu

The site of the 1954 battle where Vietnamese forces defeated the French, leading to France's withdrawal from Indochina.

Domino Theory

The belief that if one country fell to communism, neighboring countries would also inevitably fall like a row of dominoes.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

The 34th US President who implemented the 'New Look' defense policy emphasizing nuclear deterrence.

Eisenhower Doctrine

A 1957 policy stating that the US would use armed force to help any Middle Eastern nation threatened by communist aggression.

Fidel Castro

The revolutionary leader who established a communist state in Cuba after overthrowing Fulgencio Batista in 1959.

Flexible Response

The defense strategy under John F. Kennedy that developed multiple options rather than relying solely on nuclear weapons.

Formosa (Taiwan)

The island to which Chiang Kai-shek and the Chinese Nationalist government retreated in 1949.

Francis Gary Powers

The American pilot of the U-2 spy plane that was shot down over the Soviet Union in 1960.

Fulgencio Batista

The US-backed dictator of Cuba who was overthrown by Fidel Castro's revolution in 1959.

Gamal Abdel Nasser

The President of Egypt who nationalized the Suez Canal and became a leader of the pan-Arab movement.

Garrison State

A term used to describe a country that prioritizes military preparedness above all other social and economic goals.

Geneva Accords (1954)

The agreement that temporarily divided Vietnam at the 17th Parallel and ended French colonial rule in Indochina.

George C. Marshall

The US Secretary of State who proposed the European Recovery Program, famously known as the Marshall Plan.

Guantanamo Bay

A US naval base in Cuba established by treaty, which remained under US control after the Cuban Revolution.

H. Rowan Gaither, Jr.

The chairman of the committee that produced the 1957 Gaither Report, which warned that the US was falling behind the USSR in defense.

Harry S. Truman

The 33rd US President who initiated the policy of containment and the Truman Doctrine.

Ho Chi Minh

The communist leader of North Vietnam who led the struggle for independence from French and later American influence.

Hungarian Uprising (1956)

A nationwide revolt against the government of the People's Republic of Hungary and its Soviet-imposed policies.

ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile)

A long-range missile capable of reaching targets across oceans, typically carrying nuclear warheads.

Imre Nagy

The Hungarian leader during the 1956 uprising who attempted to liberalize the government and was later executed by the Soviets.

Inchon

The site of a daring amphibious landing by UN forces during the Korean War, led by General Douglas MacArthur.

Jacob Arbenz Guzman

The democratically elected President of Guatemala who was overthrown in a 1954 CIA-backed coup.

John Foster Dulles

Eisenhower's Secretary of State who advocated for 'Massive Retaliation' and the policy of brinkmanship.

Joseph McCarthy

The US Senator who led a public campaign in the 1950s against suspected communists in the US government.

Kim Roosevelt

The CIA officer (Kermit Roosevelt Jr.) who coordinated the 1953 coup in Iran to reinstate the Shah.

Massive Retaliation

A defense policy that threatens 'massive' nuclear response to any act of aggression by an adversary.

Military-Industrial Complex

A term coined by Eisenhower warning against the influence of the informal alliance between a nation's military and its defense industry.

Missile Gap

The perceived deficit in US nuclear missile capacity compared to that of the Soviet Union in the late 1950s.

Mohammed Mossadegh

The Prime Minister of Iran who was overthrown in 1953 after nationalizing Iran's oil industry.

NATO

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization; a collective security alliance formed in 1949 by Western nations.

NSC 68

A 1950 National Security Council paper that recommended a massive increase in US military spending to counter the Soviet threat.

Sputnik

The first artificial satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, which triggered the Space Race.

Test Ban Treaty (1963)

A treaty signed by the US, USSR, and UK that banned nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere, outer space, and underwater.

The New Look

The national security policy of the Eisenhower administration that prioritized nuclear weapons over conventional forces.

Truman Doctrine

The 1947 policy of providing economic and military aid to any country threatened by communism or totalitarianism.

U-2 Flights

High-altitude reconnaissance missions over the Soviet Union used by the US to gather intelligence.

Warsaw Pact

The military alliance formed in 1955 by the Soviet Union and its Eastern Bloc satellite nations as a counter to NATO.