Reagan & Thatcher

who was Ronald Reagan?

Hollywood film star turned right-wing Republican. He cut spending on domestic social programmes whilst increasing military spending. He adopted an aggressive policy towards Central America and communism.

Reagan had been…before becoming president

anti-communist for 5 decades

when did Reagan become president

1981

Reagan was a….& vowed to

patriotic American

to destroy communism

Reagan planned to with the CW from a position of…

strength

how much did Reagan spend on defense

$1.5 trillion

what did the Reagan Doctrine promise

US support to all those who opposed communism (e.g. the Mujahideen in Afghanistan)

Reagan’s policies were…

controversial & denounced by opponents

Reagan was not interested in simple…

containment

What did Reagan support in 1983

the Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI)

when was the SDI

1983

what was the aim of the SDI

to destroy incoming Soviet missiles with lasers

what was the SDI called by the media

Star Wars

when did Sino-American relations change for the Americans

after Gorbachev came to power after the Geneva Summit

when did Sino-American relations change for the Soviets

The explosion of Chernobyl (1986) was viewed as symbolic of the failure of the Soviet economy, Gorbachev wanted reform & he needed to abandon the arms race to pay for it thus arms control treaties were signed

what is an example of a arms control treaty signed

the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear forces treaty - agreed on the destruction of medium range nuclear missiles

what did Reagan do in Berlin

pleaded Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin wall in a speech which became a key part of the Reagan presidency

what did the arms race do under Reagan?

accelerated with the superpowers gaining and surpassing the capability for global destruction

what did Reagan believe about nuclear war

Reagan believed that a limited nuclear war could be winnable, instead of MAD, Nuclear Utilisation Target Selection (NUTS) was implemented.

how did Reagan intend to change Soviet behaviour

through aggressive policies

what did Reagan believe about détente

had resulted in the USA’s trust in the Soviet Union being misplaced, blaming the previous administration for allowing America to be taken advantage of by the USSR and its global power being eroded

how did Reagan want to address the Soviet challenge

by abandoning detente & the cooperative resolution of conflicts upon which it was founded.

Raegan desired the USA to return to …

unilateralism & restore its military strength.

what did Reagan fear about communism

that it was still expansionist and that it would spread unless the USA was able to contain it which returned the US to a period of containment & confrontation

what did the Reagan administration do in response to pressure from Europe & the popular nuclear freeze movement?

the Raegan administration accepted the need for limited cooperation by the end of 1981

why did the Raegan administration accepted the need for limited cooperation by the end of 1981?

in response to pressure from Europe & the popular nuclear freeze movement

what happened as a result of the acceptance for a need of limited cooperation by the Reagan administration

 the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks (START)

why did the START talks stall?

in November 1983 the US deployed cruise & Pershing II missiles in Europe leading the USSR to abandon the talks as they viewed the US as not serious

when was the START talks

mid 1982-Nov 1983

who was Margaret Thatcher?

became Britain’s first female prime minister in 1979. She was an important link between Gorbachev & Reagan (and later Bush) in bringing the Cold War to an end

What did Reagan do in June 1982

Reagan visited Britain & delivered a speech attacking the Soviet Union in Parliament calling for a ‘crusade of freedom’

when did Reagan deliver a speech in parliament

June 1982

what was the shared view of Reagan & Thatcher

that the CW had gone on for too long and that the USSR had been supported and sustained by detente

how did the UK & US support eachother?

Thatcher agreed to allow the USA to launch F-111 bombers against Libya in 1986 & Reagan allowed Britain to extradite for trial in Northern Ireland suspected IRA terrorists who were taking refuge in the USA

when did Thatcher agreed to allow the USA to launch F-111 bombers against Libya?

1986

what did Thatcher allow the US to do

launch F-111 bombers against Libya in 1986

what did Reagan allow Britain to do?

extradite for trial in Northern Ireland suspected IRA terrorists who were taking refuge in the USA

why did Thatcher disagree with Reagan’s SDI

she believed that Western Europe would be defenceless without the protection of the US nuclear arsenal which the SDI threatened to bring about as the absence of nuclear weapons would create a massive imbalance between the conventional forces of West & East

when was the shooting down of KAL 007

1 September 1983

how many people died in KAL 007

269 people, including 61 Americans

what was the impact of KAL 007 on Sino-American relations

This was a major blow to Soviet-American relations & demonstrated the growing division between the two.

who was Yuri Andropov

General Secretary of the USSR from 1982-1984. Was a lifelong member of the Communist Party. As an ambassador to Hungary, he had a key role in the suppression of the revolution in 1965 and later became the director of the KGB until his appointment as General Secretary. His tenure was marked by a move towards transparency, especially towards gov spending.

what did Yuri Andropov do

issue a statement on 28 September 1983 evaluating the Soviet perception of the Reagan administration. The USSR believed that the US had abandoned detente & was attempting to undermine the USSR.