World Studies: Test on Russia and the Cold War

Stalin

Leader of the Soviet Union after Lenin, known for establishing a totalitarian regime and implementing Five-Year Plans.

Collectivization

The consolidation of individual landholdings into collective farms (kolkhozes), leading to increased state control and widespread famine.

Gulags

Forced labor camps in the Soviet Union for political dissidents and criminals, symbolizing Stalin's repressive regime.

Iron Curtain

A term describing the division between Western democracies and Eastern communist nations, marking Cold War tensions.

Marshall Plan

A US initiative to provide economic aid to Western European countries to prevent the spread of communism post-WWII.

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organization; a military alliance formed in 1949 for collective security against the USSR.

Warsaw Pact

A military alliance of communist nations in Eastern Europe established in 1955 in response to NATO.

Sputnik

The first artificial satellite launched by the USSR in 1957, starting the space race during the Cold War.

Berlin Blockade

An event in 1948 where the USSR blocked access to West Berlin, leading to the Berlin Airlift by Western nations.

Berlin Wall

Built on August 13, 1961, to stop East Germans from emigrating to the West, symbolizing the Cold War divide.

Fall of the Berlin Wall

Occurred on November 9, 1989, marking the decline of communist influence in Eastern Europe.

Reunification of Germany

Officially occurred on October 3, 1990, symbolizing the end of the Cold War and German unity.

Deterrence

A military strategy to prevent an adversary from attacking by maintaining a strong military capability.

MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction)

A principle that both superpowers would avoid nuclear war due to guaranteed total destruction.

Non-Proliferation Treaty

A treaty aimed at preventing the spread of nuclear weapons and promoting peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Detente

A period of eased tensions between the US and USSR in the 1970s characterized by diplomacy and arms control.

SALT Talks

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks aimed at curbing the arms race, particularly concerning nuclear weapons.

Satellite Nations

Eastern European countries under Soviet influence and control, acting as a buffer against Western powers.

Containment

A US strategy to prevent the global spread of communism during the Cold War.

Truman Doctrine

A US policy to support countries resisting communism, notably Greece and Turkey.

Vietnam War

A conflict aimed at stopping the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, which resulted in Vietnam under communist rule.

Soviet Reforms

Reforms introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1980s, including Glasnost and Perestroika, that contributed to the end of the Cold War.