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The significance of events in Asia for superpower relations: USSR's support for Mao Tse-tung and Communist revolution in China, and the military campaigns waged by North Korea against the UN and by the Vietcong against France and the USA. Military rivalries: the arms race; membership and purposes of NATO and the Warsaw Pact; the space race, including Sputnik, ICBMs, Polaris, Gagarin, Apollo. The ‘Thaw’: Hungary, the protest movement and the reforms of Nagy; Soviet fears, how they reacted and the effects on the Cold War; the U2 Crisis and its effects on the Paris Peace Summit and the peace process.
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When did Ho Chi Minh create the Vietcong?
1960
How did the Vietcong fight?
They fought using guerrilla tactics: sneak attacks + booby traps + blend in with ordinary people so the enemy didn't know who to fight
What was the Ho Chi Minh trail?
A netowork of tunnels and pathways used to get supplies whilst they attacked South Vietnam
What did President Eisenhower of the USA believe in?
The domino theory
What was the domino theory?
If one country in Asia fell to communism then the ones next to it would become communist aswell
How did the USA originally get involved with Vietnam?
They sent money and 'advisers' to help South Vietnam
What happened at the Gulf of Tonkin in 1964?
Where Vietnamese ships attacked USA ships
What did the attack at the Gulf of Tonkin allow for the USA?
Gave an excuse for American soldiers to enter Vietnam and fight
When was operation rolling thunder?
February 1965
What was operation rolling thunder?
Used planes to bomb large parts of Vietnam and chemicals to destroy the forests the Vietcong would hide in
What chemicals did the Americans use in operation rolling thunder and how did they react?
Napalm which would stick to people's skin and burn through their flesh
What happened in the town of My Lai?
American soldiers murdered hundred of civilians
What were the consequences for the events at the town of My Lai?
American soldiers were attacked in the Tet Offensive in 1968
When did the Americans pull out of Vietnam?
1973
How and when did Vietnam become communist?
In 1975, North Vietnamese attacked the South again and Vietnam became communist
Why were the USA upset of the communisation of Vietnam?
Containment had failed once again in Asia (China + Vietnam)
What was the NSC 68?
They wouldn't just 'contain' communism, they would now roll it back = more aggressive
When did America release NSC 68?
April 1950
When was Korea freed from Japanese control?
1945
Why was Korea split along the 38th parallel?
There was supposed to be a vote but they couldn't agree
Who controlled North Korea after 1945?
USSR
Who controlled South Korea after 1945?
USA
Who ran the communist North Korea?
Kim Il Sung
Who ran the capitalist South Korea?
Syngman Rhee
What did Kim Il Sung and Syngman Rhee both claim?
They were the rightful ruler of the whole of Korea
How did Stalin encourage the North Koreans?
By giving them money and weapons and China might have encouraged them too
When did the North Koreans attack South Korea and triggered the war?
1950
Who was the UN ran by?
A security council of Britain, France, UK, USA, USSR
What did having the security council mean for the UN?
If any of the members said 'no' to something, the UN couldn't do it
Why didn't the USSR go to any UN meetings?
They were in protest as UN had not recognised communist China as an official country after their revolution
How did the UN help South Korea without the USSR blocking it?
When the UN voted on whether to help South Korea, the USSR wasn't there to block it due to their retaliation and the UN voted to in and help
Who led the UN army into Korea?
US General Douglas MacArthur
What was the UN army made up of?
Soldiers from 16 nations mostly led by American troops
What were the events of the war?
1) North Korea captured all of South Korea except for a small area called the Pusan Pocket
2) The UN army landed at Inchon and pushed the communists all the way back to the 38th parallel. General MacArthur convinced President Truman to keep going and the UN forces invaded North Korea. They reached the Yalu river which bordered China
3) China was now worried about and American invasion. They pushed the UN troops all the way back and captured the capital of South Korea, Seoul
4) MacArthur asked Truman to drop an atomic bomb on China, sacked him
5) UN pushed back to the 38th parallel. Peace talks began in 1951 and in 1953, the war would end and Korea remained split
What happened at the beginning of the Korean War?
North Korea captured all of South Korea except for the Pusan Pocket
Where did the UN army land when they went to help the Korean War?
Inchon
How did China help North Korea in the Korean War?
They sent 250,000 soldiers described as 'volunteers' into North Korea
Why did Truman say no to MacArthur's suggestion for the drop of the atomic bomb on China?
He didn't want to instigate a hot war with the USSR
What happened at the end of the Korean War?
UN forces pushed back and reached a stalemate at the 38th parallel. Peace talks began in 1951 and in 1953 it was decided the war would end and Korea would stay split along the 38th parallel
What was the significance of the Korean War?
Could have caused a hot war
Korea remains split even after the UN stepped in to maintain peace
Shows the USA and USSR don't want a hot war
Truman was loyal to his doctrine
4 million died including 54,000 Americans. Whole of Korea was destroyed
What did the Korean War nearly start a hot war?
USSR and American pilots fought each other but they wore different uniforms
How did the Korean War show that the USSR and the USA didn't want to start a hot war?
Truman sacked MacArthur instead of using the atomic bomb and Stalin sent Russian troops to fight in disguise
How did the Korean War show Truman staying loyal to his doctrine?
He fought to stop communism spreading
How did MacArthur overstep his mark whilst fighting the Koreans?
He sent a letter to the Chinese, threatening them with the atomic bomb if they did not back down even though he hadn't confirmed with Truman
What started the race in science and technology?
The use of the atomic bombs on Japan
How did the US Strategic Air Command put the USA in a state of constant readiness?
He drew up a list of 6,000 targets in the USSR to hit in a war
Why did everyone build so many nuclear weapons?
They believed the more nuclear weapons you had, the stronger your country was
How much did the USA spend of the defence budget on aircraft and bomber planes?
40%
Why did the USA build new planes such as the Bison jet bomber and the TU-95?
They feared the 'bomber gap'
What was the 'bomber gap'?
The belief that the USA had less planes and couldn't keep up with the USSR
What was the space race? 1957 - 1969
A competition between USSR and USA to be the first in space and on the moon
When did the USSR launch Sputnik 1?
October 1957
What was Sputnik 1 and what did it do?
The first man - made satellite, it orbited the Earth
When did the USSR launch Sputnik 2?
November 1957
What was Sputnik 2?
The bigger satellite of Sputnik 1 and sent a dog called Laika into space
When did the USA launch the explorer (satellite)?
January 1958
When did the USA create the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)?
July 1958
Who is Yuri Gagarin?
Russian cosmonaut who was the first human in space, he did a lap of the Earth in 108 minutes
When was the Soviet Vostock rocket sent into space with Yuri Gagarin?
12th April 1961
When did JFK launch the Apollo programme?
1961 - 1975
What was the Apollo project?
A project to land a man on the moon
When did Apollo 11 land on the moon?
July 20, 1969
Who were the first humans on the moon?
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin
What was the significance of the space race on the Cold War?
1) Big competition
2) Propaganda
3) Missiles
How was space race significant via competition in the Cold War?
The Cold War was a big competition to see who was best: the capitalists or the communists - racing to space
How was space race significant via propaganda in the Cold War?
The space race was watched around the world and posters and films were made about the successes to show how great they were
How was space race significant via missiles in the Cold War?
Nuclear weapons had to be sent by planes which could be easily shot down, the USA and USSR figured out how to take the space rocket technology and create nuclear missiles which could fly to their target
What were ICBMS?
Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles: Missiles that could be launched from a base in minutes, fly to the target and land accurately
When and where did the USSR make the first ICBM?
USSR made the first one at a top-secret base called Baykonyr on 15th May 1957
What were the Polaris?
The USA developed missiles which could be fired from submarines, the sub was hard to spot and could get very close to the enemy to make the missile more accurate
What is MAD?
Mutually Assured Destruction, you take me down I take you down
When was NATO formed?
April 1949
What does NATO stand for?
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
What was NATO?
The countries would all protect each other from attack
How did the USA utilise NATO?
It let the USA have bases in Europe where they could put soldiers and nuclear weapons closer to the USSR, this was also a way of protecting the West from Communism and also threatening the USSR
Who joined NATO in 1955?
West Germany
Who led the USSR after Stalin?
Khrushchev
What did Khrushchev think of the buffer zone and NATO?
Khrushchev wanted to keep the 'buffer zone' of Eastern Europe strong and saw NATO as a threat
Why was Khrushchev so worried when West Germany joined NATO in 1955?
He didn't want Germany, the country that did so much damage to them in WW2, get strong again
When was the Warsaw Pact formed?
May 1955
What was the Warsaw Pact?
A military alliance of communist nations in eastern Europe, just like NATO
Who were the members of the Warsaw Pact?
USSR, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania
How did the USSR utilise the Warsaw Pact?
It meant the USSR could send the Red Army into any of the countries that are members to keep control and make sure they stayed communist
What was Stalin's legacy?
He transformed USSR from peasant country to a military and industrial superpower
He became a war hero to millions when he defeated Hitler
USSR was a world power that's only competition was USA
Ruled by terror: restricted freedom of speech, imprisoned and killed, millions died of paranoia
What did Khrushchev do to initiate the thaw?
Became friendlier with China and Yugoslavia
Peaceful coexistence
Planned to reduce military weapons
Went to Geneva conference (1955)
DESTALINISATION
What is De-Stalinisation?
Khrushchev made a speech ("secret speech") attacking Stalin in 1956: Stalin was an evil man who loved power and was an enemy of the people
How did Khrushchev solidify de - stalinisation?
Released political prisoners
Closed down Cominform
Invited Marshal Tito to Moscow
Dismissed Stalin's former Foreign Minister, Molotov
What did Khrushchev want to door the people of Eastern Europe?
Wanted to improve the living standard of people in the USSR and Eastern Europe
When was the U2 introduced?
1956, President Eisenhower
Why were the U2 planes special?
Could fly at the edge of space and had powerful cameras
When was a U2 plane shot down over the USSR?
1st May 1960
Why was the U2 plane shot down by the USSR?
It was taking photos of USSR military bases for the CIA
When was the Paris Peace Summit?
May 1960
Who attended the Paris Peace Summit May '60?
Britain, France, USA, USSR
What was the purpose of the Paris Peace Summit May '60?
Hoped that all 4 powers could reach agreements and the Cold War would end
What did Eisenhower do when confronted by Khrushchev about the U2 plane?
Tried to lie and said it was a weather balloon, not knowing Khrushchev had the spy photos
Why did Khrushchev storm out of the Paris Peace Summit?
He was upset that Eisenhower lied about the U2 plane
What happened to the pilot of the U2 plane?
Gary Powers, put on trial, 10 years in a Soviet prison, swapped with USSR spy
What was the impact of the U2 crisis?
Hopes for peace ruined (PPS M60)
Peaceful coexistence between USA + USSR ended
Eisenhower being blamed, rise of Kennedy
Propaganda victory for Khrushchev
When was John F. Kennedy's presidency?
1961-1963