IB HISTORY HL PAPER 2 - COLD WAR

Flashcards for Cold War Study Guide

Military Power (Post-1945)

USA: Dominant nuclear and air power; USSR: Dominant land army, especially in Eastern Europe.

Economic Factors (Post-1945)

USA: Strong economy post-WWII; untouched by war destruction; USSR: Devastated economy but had influence via planned economy and rebuilding Eastern Bloc.

Political and Ideological Differences (Post-1945)

USA promoted liberal democracy and capitalism; USSR emphasized Marxist-Leninist communism. Each sought to shape the postwar world.

Yalta Conference (Feb 1945)

Division of Germany, free elections in Poland (USSR later violated this).

Potsdam Conference (July 1945)

Tension over Poland; US tested atomic bomb without telling USSR.

Salami Tactics

USSR imposed communist regimes using 'Salami Tactics'.

Long Telegram (1946)

US saw USSR as expansionist.

Iron Curtain Speech (1946)

Churchill warned of division.

Truman Doctrine (1947)

US would aid countries resisting communism (e.g. Greece, Turkey).

Marshall Plan (1948)

$13B for European recovery - USSR saw it as imperialism.

Berlin Blockade and Airlift (1948-49)

Stalin blockaded West Berlin -> Allies responded with massive airlift. Stalin backed down in 1949 -> Germany officially split into FRG (West) and GDR (East).

China (1949)

Mao's communist victory viewed as a major loss by USA. China aligned with USSR initially -> later Sino-Soviet split.

Korean War (1950-1953)

First proxy war of Cold War. US/UN backed South Korea; China/USSR backed North. Ended in stalemate but entrenched US military presence in Asia.

NSC-68 (1950)

US strategy calling for massive military buildup and global containment.

Berlin Crisis (1958-1961)

East Germans fled to West via Berlin -> economic drain on East Germany. Khrushchev issued ultimatums; Kennedy refused to back down. Berlin Wall built in 1961 -> symbol of Cold War division.

Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

USSR placed missiles in Cuba; US blockaded the island. 13-day standoff brought world to brink of nuclear war. Resolution: USSR removed missiles; US secretly removed missiles from Turkey.

Hotline and Test Ban Treaty

Cuban Missile Crisis led to Hotline between DC and Moscow and Test Ban Treaty (1963).

Cuba (Under Castro)

US embargo + Bay of Pigs pushed Cuba to ally with USSR. Economically supported by USSR (sugar-for-oil trade). Politically: Castro declared Cuba a Marxist state.

Egypt (Under Nasser)

Initially non-aligned; leaned USSR after Suez Crisis (1956). USSR helped build Aswan Dam -> economic reliance. Politically: One-party state; repression of Muslim Brotherhood.

Reagan & Gorbachev

Reagan: SDI, arms race, 'evil empire' rhetoric, then pivot to negotiations. Gorbachev: Glasnost, Perestroika, INF Treaty, withdrawal from Afghanistan. End of Brezhnev Doctrine -> collapse of Eastern Bloc.

Détente (1969-79)

SALT I (1972), Helsinki Accords (1975). Nixon visited China and USSR -> reduced tensions. Continued proxy wars in Africa.

Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan (1979)

Ended détente. US boycotted 1980 Olympics; escalated arms race.

Reasons For End of Cold War

USSR economic collapse. Gorbachev reforms undermined Soviet control. Eastern Bloc revolutions (1989): fall of Berlin Wall. 1991: USSR dissolved peacefully.

Glasnost

Policy of openness initiated by Gorbachev in the Soviet Union in the 1980s.

Perestroika

Policy of economic and political restructuring initiated by Gorbachev in the Soviet Union in the 1980s.