Topic 8, Lesson 8: Kennedy's Cold War Foreign Policy

Topic 8, Lesson 8: Kennedy's Cold War Foreign Policy

The Berlin Wall Crisis (1961)

Why the Berlin Wall was built:

• Khrushev remained determined to force the West out of Berlin

• August 1961: Khrushev ordered the construction of a wall to separate East Berlin and West Berlin

• From 5pm of 27th October to 11am on 28th October, the US and USSR tanks, fully armed, faced each other in a stand-off

• After 18 hours, the US tanks pulled back

• Kennedy had been forced to back down but was furious with the USSR

The Berlin Wall was significant because:

• In some ways, it could be said to have brought some stability to Germany and Berlin

• Increased Cold War tensions

• Some historians believe Khrushev saw it as a success and it encouraged him to place missiles in Cuba, leading to the Cuban Missile Crisis

Topic 8, Lesson 8: Kennedy's Cold War Foreign Policy

Cuban Missile Crisis Causes (1962)

• The Cuban Revolution, 1959

• The Bay of Pigs invasion, 1961

• Soviet Nuclear Missiles in Cuba, 1962

• 90 miles away from the US

• 14th October 1962: An American U2 spy plane photographed missiles in Cuba

• Were in range of almost all US cities and posed a serious threat to the country’s security

Topic 8, Lesson 8: Kennedy's Cold War Foreign Policy

Cuban Missile Crisis Consequences (1962)

The American View:

• Khrushev had backed down

• Americans felt they had won

• led to over-confidence in Vietnam

The Soviet View:

• Soviets were determined that they would never have to back down again

• they worked hard and successfully to achieve nuclear parity by the end of the decade

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