Cold War Exam

What were the Major Causes of the Cold War?

Ideological differences between the U.S. and Soviet,

Yalta Conference agreements go into effect; Berlin, Germany divided into East and West,

Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan, Nato and Warsaw Pact,

Berlin Blockade and Airlift,

United Nations.

What did the U.N. replace, and what was its goals?

The UN replaced the League of Nations with the goals of keeping world peace, preventing the spread of disease, improving education, and protecting refugees.

What were the two main bodies of the U.N?

The General Assembly and the Security Council. The General Assembly is made up of 193 countries and is the policy making body. The Security council is made up of 16 countries, five of which are permanent members who can veto any council decision and works to maintain peace by applying economic sanctions or authorizing a military presence.

What was the iron curtain and what did it split?

A metaphorical barrier that split western europe and eastern europe, essentially divided capitalism/ democracy and communism (with the exception of Yugoslavia, however they were independent).

Who were the five permanent members of the Security council?

U.S., Soviet Union, Britain, France, and China

The Truman Doctrine is a foreign policy that pledges that the U.S. would provide money and support to democratic nations threatened by Soviet expansion, such as in the eastern Mediterranean, with nations like Greece and Turkey. This was to prevent communism from spreading to the Middle East.

What did the Marshall plan do?

The Marshall plan gave billions of dollars in economic aid to Western Europe to help rebuild after WW2 in the form of loans and investments. Importantly, the Marshall Plan was designed to deter these countries from Soviet Influence.

What were the effects of the Marshall Plan?

The Marshall Plan helped to protect US influence (democracy and access to free-markets) in the region but also was seen as a threat from the Soviet perspective leading to the Berlin Blockade and Airlift.

When and How did the Yalta Conference Agreements take shape?

Between June 1948-May 1949, Democratic/ free-market countries occupied Western Berlin and Soviet Union (authoritarian/ state-controlled market) occupied Eastern Berlin.

Why did Stalin Place the Blockade, What was it, and how did the U.S. respond?

Stalin responds to the increasing role of the French, british, and US by implementing an economic blockade (to stop goods and people from coming in and out) of West Berlin. U.S. counters Stalin's blockade by dropping off supplies in Western Berlin using airplanes, ending the blockade, but leading in increased tensions.

What Was Nato and who was in it?

NATO, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was formed in April 1949, and was a military alliance that agreed to provide mutual help if anyone was attacked. It had nations such as Greece, Italy, Turkey, France, Portugal, Luxemburg, U.K, Belgium, Netherlands, West Germany, Denmark, Norway.

What was the Warsaw Pact?

The Warsaw Pact, Created in 1955, was a response to NATo and was a military alliance which stated that members were required to provide mutual help if any other member was attacked, and the Soviet Union Wanted to increase its sphere of influence and protect Eastern Europe territories. East Germany, Poland, USSR, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania

What was the American Way?

Contain Communism, Spread Liberal Democracy, Support American business, Spread Capitalism and free trade, Oppose imperialism and support self determination (unless communist).

What was the Soviet Way?

Oppose imperialism and support self-determination, Spread communism and economic equality, support communist parties abroad, protect the soviet union.

What was the Third Way?

Oppose colonialism and dependence on former Imperialists, avoid copying Western/ European ideas, Develop industrial economic, end racism, pursue non-alignment.

What are the differences between the Soviet Union and the U.S.? economy, politics, key values, individual.

U.S. Economy was Capitalism, private ownership of industry, competition, different economic classes.

Soviet Economy was socialism: the government owns industries, classless society, economic equality

US Politics: Democracy, government by the people

Soviet Politics: totalitarian: government by one of a few total, no freedom of the press or speech, control people's lives.

US Key Values: Freedoms such as press, speech, to do business

Soviet Key Values: equality, basic needs met or food, housing, education, or jobs.

U.S. Society: stresses the need for people to do things on their own, competition.

Soviet: people do things for the benefit of all

 Define decolonization

When colonized nations gained their independnece either by fighting or getting it granted to them.

Define power vacuum and explain how it oftentimes resulted in proxy war.

Decolonization often led to a power vacuum, or a struggle to fill the political, social, and cultural void once the imperial power left the colony. This resulted in civil war with one side either looking to the Soviet Union or the U.S. for support. The superpowers saw this as an opportunity to spread their ideology and their support led to many proxy wars during the Cold War.

What is a proxy war?

A war instigated by a major power that they are not becoming directly involved in.

How did Korea become Decolonized?

After Japan lost WW2, they lost its colonies, and the Allies agreed to give stalin a portion of Korea at the Yalta Conference in exchange for the Soviet Union joining the Allies in their fight against Japan.

Who controlled what part of Korea, and what was the original plan?

The Soviet Union occupied North Korea, and the United Nations (mostly influenced by the U.S.) occupied South Korea. The original plan was to hold democratic elections after WW2 to reunify Korea, but tensions between the US and Soviet Union led to the Peninsula remaining divided at the 38th parallel.

What happened in Korea between June 1950 and November 1950?

In June 1950, Communist forces in North Korea invaded South Korea in an attempt to unify the peninsula under communist rule. Additionally, North Korea was also upset that they never recieved self determination or allowed to hold democratic elections.

What happened in Korea between November 1950 and July 1953?

South Korea (backed by the US) was almost successful in taking over the peninsula by the end of 1950. China mobilized for war and supported North Korea which helped push South Korean troops back down to the 38th parallel. The war ended with an armistice in 1953, and North and South Korea is still split at the 38th parallel.

Which ideology influenced North and South Korea after 1953?

North Korea supported communism , and South supported democracy

What is the domino theory?

The belief that if one country falls to communism in a particular region, neighboring countries may follow. This fear led to containment, or stopping the spread of communism.

What was the chinese civil war?

A war between 1911-1949 between the Chinese Nationalists led by Chiang Kai Shek, and the Chinese Communists led by Mao Zedong. The Communists were well established in the North, and the Nationalists had an advantage in numbers of men and weapons but they were exhausted by the long war with japan. In January 1949, Capital city was taken by Communists and named Beijing. Chiang Kai-Shek and a few hundred thousand Nationalists troops fled to Taiwan where they proclaimed Taipei Taiwan as the temporary capital of China in December 1949.

How did the Chinese Civil War begin?

The Majority peasant class in China perceived "taking from the rich and redistributing to the poor" (communism) as good, however the rich land owners did not agree with wealth redistribution, and fought to protect their private property from being taken.

How did the Chinese civil war end?

Communist Victory in 1949, and nationalists flee to Taiwan. Mao turned mainland China into a communist state, Taiwan developed into a more Westernized country which lasted into the 21st century.

Why was Communism appealing in China?

Mao won the support of China's large peasant population as:

peasants suffered from brutal landlords and high taxes,

communists promised to redistribute land to poor peasants and end the oppression by landlords

, Nationalist policies resulted in economic hardship and corruption.

Many Chinese resented Jiang's corrupt government and its reliance on Western imperial power's support,

They hoped that communists would build a new China and end foreign control.

Who did the US support, and why did they withdraw its aid?

The US aids the Nationalists to prevent the spread of communism but withdraws its aid in early 1947 because they could not stop the civil war.

How did the two superpowers respond?

After Chiang fled to Taiwan, the U.S. supported his Nationalist government as the rightful representative of China. The U.S. refused to recognize the mainland People's Republic of China which they saw a sa communist threat. China and Soviet Union built relations until 1960-70s, U.S. allowed China to replace Taiwan in the UN in 1971, in 1979, the U.S. built formal relations with China.

What was Mao’s great leap forward?

Was when in 1959, Mao combined 700,000 existing collective farms into 26,00 communes with more than 30,000 people in an effort to reach the final stage of communism. It didn’t work due to poor harvests and low productivity because there was no competition. Resulted in 15-30 million deaths from starvation.

What was the Great Cultural Revolution?

It was when the Red Guards were formed to purge oil ideas, culture, customs, and habits. They destroyed temples, anti-communist books/music, and beat intellectuals and artists for their pro-Western crimes.

What was the relations between China and the Soviet union like

First, Mao wanted more economic aid from the Soviet Union, wanted them to be more agressive in spreading communism across the world, and wanted help with getting Taiwan back under their control. These issues led to brief moments of conflict between the Soviet Union and China, which led to CHina building diplomatic relations with the US in the late 1970s and began to Westernize aspects of their society and culture.

What was China like under Mao Zedong?

There was the four modernizations, new policy in industry, agriculture, technology, and national defense by inviting foreign investors and sending thousands of students to study abroad.

More privatization of the economy as collective farms could now lease land to peasants who paid rent to the collective. Anything produce the value of rent could be sold as profit, increasing competition and production.

Special economic Zones were introduced which encouraged foreign investment by offering tax breaks and lower regulations.

China became the manufacturing hub of the world, as Western countries like the US began to outsource their companies to china because labor and production is cheaper.

Per Capita income in China increased.

How did the State resist Democracy?

In 1989, Chinese University students publicly protested for more individual rights in Tiananmen Square in Beijing but the CCP responded by killing 500-2000 protesters. To curb population growth, china implemented a one-child policy, then transitioned to a two child policy.

What did the U.S. do after the Spanish War, and how did that cause the Cuban revolution?

The US helped Cuba gain independence from Spain and occupied it until they government themselves. The US then passed the Platt Amendment which resulted in US troops leaving CUBa but basically gave them a huge amount of control over the economy and governance of CUba. The US businesses invested heavily in Cuba to profit off their natural resources, however Fidel Castro viewed this as an exploitative relationship.

What happened in Cuba in 1961?

Fidel Castro believed that the US was exploiting Cuba, and established a revolutionary socialist state in Cuba after he and a group of guerrilla fighters revolted against the Cuban president as Batista was supported by the U.S. for his anti communist stance. Castro strengthens relations with the Soviet Union.

What happened in Cuba in 1960? How did the U.S. respond?

Castro nationalizes all foreign assets in Cuba, hikes taxes on U.S. imports, and establishes trade deals with the Soviet Union. President Eisenhower shales the import quota for Cuban sugar, freezes Cuban assets, impods a near-full trade embargo, and cutt diplomatic ties with Castro's government.

What happened in Cuba in 1961?

The Bay of Pigs invasion occurred which was a plan in which President Kennedy deploys 1400 CIA-sponsored Cuban exiles to overthrow Fidel Castro. The Cuban military defeats the force within three days due to several mishaps and the revealing of US involvement.

What was Kennedy's policy?

On February 7, 1962, An embargo on Cuba that prohibits all trade, which causes them to lose 130 billion dollars over the next sixty years as their economy highly depended on the U.S.

What caused the cuban missile crisis?

U.S. spy satellites discovered that Cuba allowed the Soviet Union to build nuclear missile bases in Cuba, leading to Kennedy demanding the removal of Soviet weapons and ordering a naval quarantine of Cuba, which began the Cuban Missile Crisis.

How did the Cuban missile crisis end?

Nikita and Kennedy had a secret agreement in which Kennedy agreed to withdraw U.S. nuclear missiles from Turkey if the Soviet Union withdrew its missiles from Cuba. Kennedy also pledged not to invade cuba.Cuba

How did the West have influence/ control on Iran?

In the Early 20th Century, the British found a large supply of oil in iran, and then created the Anglo-Persian Oil Company. Additionally, Irans Ruler, Reza Shah, built diplomatic relations with the West in an effort modernize Iran. He did accomplish this, but through Authoritarian means. In 1930s, Reza Shah expanded trade with Nazi Germany leading to Allied occupation In World War 2, increasing iranian nationalism.

What happened due to the Iranian Nationalism?

Many Iranians supported autonomy from Western influence especially regarding the APOC which was which was named the British Petroleum Company because it benefited the British at the expense of the Iranian people.

What did Iranian Nationalism cause? (Think election).

Due to Iranian Nationalism, in 1951, the Iranian people democratically elected Mossadegh who nationalized the British Petroleum Industry, essentially put it under the control to the Iranian State.

What did the West fear about the nationalism, and what did they do?

The West believed that Nationalization was a threat to the private property and access of oil coming out of Iran, and was also viewed as a potential step towards communism in the Middle East. Therefore, the CIA organized a coup d'etat or top secret overthrow of the democratically elected Iranian government under Mossadegh.

What happened after the coup, and how did people view that individual?

After the coup in 1953, the US put the Shah back in power. Some Iranians viewed the Shah as good as he steered the country towards a Western model with the development of infrastructure, provided suffrage for women, and nonreligious education. Others, however, viewed him as a corrupt Western puppet and critiqued him through a nationalist and religious lens.

Who critiqued the Shah, what happened, and what did he cause?

In 1964, the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini, opposed the Shah's reforms because they challenged the traditional role and power of the religious clergy. His public criticisms resulted in his arrest and the Shah's exile him where he distributing anti-western writings, influencing the Islamic world and Iran. Then faced mass protests and worker strikes influenced by Khomeini's writings during exile. resulting in the Iranian Revolution. The Shah flee,s and Ayatollah returns, turns Iran into an Islamic Republic under Shariah law.

What is Shariah law and How is it different from the US constitution?

Sharia Law the interpretation of multiple Islamic texts and addresses both personal behavior and legal matters. Since Sharia is interpreted by an individual, interpretations differ depending on the person. It is also not codified like the consitution, there isnt a set of laws that all muslims agree upon.

What was the Iran nuclear deal and what happened to it?

The Iran nuclear deal in 2015 was that Iran promised to limit its nuclear program in exchange for lifting international sanctions. In 218, the U.S. withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal, and reimposed sanctions, increasing tensions.

What two treaties were created in 1955 (other than the Warsaw pact)

In 1955, The Southeast Asia treaty was created, and had nations such as the U.S, Britain, France, Australia, Pakistan, Thailand, New Zealand, and the Philippines. The CTO/ Baghdad pact had Britain, Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan.

What was the Non-Alignment Movement?

In 1961, the Non Alignment conference occured in which Countries sought to remain non-aligned with either the U.S. or Soviet Union, and many of these countries were decolonized after imperialism and resented foreign control. It was led by India and Egypt.

Why was the Soviet Union confident about its power and Status up until the early 1970s, how did the Soviet Union’s status change in the 1980s?

The Soviet Union was at the height of its power by the early 1970s as its economy was robust, the standard of living was high, and the Soviet Union got a communist Victory during the Vietnam war complemented by the growing support of communism and Soviet ideas in south America. However, in the 1980s, the Soviet economy began to slow down, then reached stagnation. As many Eastern European countries were satellite nations with the Soviet Union, they suffered as well. Additionally, a large portion of the state’s funds were spent on the military to support the involvement in Afghanistan and the arms race with the U.S. The involvement led to heavy casualties, high costs, and a loss of faith in the Soviet union. The Soviet union also struggled to keep up with the pace and costs of the arms race.

What were Mikhail Gorbachev’s reforms

Glasnost improved freedom of expression/ promoted transparency with freedom of press, access to Western press, books that challenged Soviet History or communist rule, freedom to travel, religious tolerance ect. Perestroika was used to restrict the economy as farmers were allowed to sell goods on the free market, supported limited private ownership., reduced size of the bureaucracy.

What was the purpose of the Berlin Wall, how did people try to escape, what was done to those who tried to escape?

Separate capitalist and socialist, and to prevent people essential to the economy from going to West Germany as many were leaving as it affected the economy, People tried by hopping the fence, going throw windows, swimming, digging tunnels, and hot air balloons. Soldiers were ordered to immediately shoot anyone who tried to escape.

What was the crack problem?

The fall of Berlin Wall was a symbolic event that signaled the end of the Soviet Power, and Gorbachev legalized the formation of other political parties and removed the article that guaranteed communist supremacy. Satellite states began to call for self rule, causing the Soviet union to lose control, and they became independent republics.

What did Gorbachev declare that all countries had the right to do, and why was it significant?

Gorbachev declared that he would abandon the idea of limited sovereignty for the Soviet Union’s republics in Eastern Europe. He declared that all countries had the right to declare what kind of political and economic system they wanted, which meant that countries could slowly leave communism, reducing communist control?

How did Mikhail Gorbachev contribute to the fall of communism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe?

He allowed more transperecy souch as freedom of press and the publishing of books that criticized Communist Rule, he declared that all countires had the right to decide what kind of political and economic system they wanted, he legalized the formation of other political parties, and Glasnot and Perestrokia allowed sattelite states to have free elections and leave communism.

Who is Nehru and what were his ideas?

Nehru was one of the leaders of Indian independence who adopted socialist ideas, and supported non-alignment. He wanted the preservation of peace and he saught to maintain friendly relations with all nations despite differences.

Which Nations were in the first, second, and third world and what side did they take?

France, Britain, U.S., Canda, and in general western European nations were in the first world, and supported free market/ capitalism. Eastern European states were communist and second world. The Third world consisted of South American, African, and South east asian nations who were Decolonized.

Why might World War 2 be responsible for the lack of emerging empires in the second half of the twentieth century.

It discredited the idea of empires as the Allie victory over the Natzis was essentially a fight against Natzi Imperialism, and the support for decolonization.