Unit 1: Causes of The Cold War

1920 - 1950

Who did Stalin replace as leader of the USSR and when?

Vladimir Lenin, 1920’s

What was the Great Terror and when they take place?

Stalin imprisoned or murdered political opponents (or those suspected), 1930’s

Stalinism

Opposing leaders, groups, and parts of the population were eliminated in order to keep power, 1945

When was the Nazi-Soviet Pact signed?

1939

Military Reasons for USA & USSR Strength

• USA had best air-force

• USSR had best land-force

• USA had established military in West. Europe

• USSR had established miliary in East. Europe

• France & Britain were weakened

• Neighbouring countries to USSR were weakened

Economic Reasons for USA & USSR Strength

• USA had strengthened economy (not fighting at start of war, selling goods, fixing the stock market)

• USA had open trade and wanted liberal trade and competition for economic gain

• USA had economic strength to support West. Europe (could loan to countries to help recover)

• East. Europe relied on economic support from USSR

Political Reasons for USA & USSR Strength

• Democracy & capitalism beat fascism in West

• Communism beat fascism in Soviet Union

• USSR losses & Red Army gave Stalin influence

• USSR had political & military strength to control stability in East. Europe

What were Stalin’s Five Year Plans?

Ambitious plans for industrialization (necessary for communism); Soviet farms collectivization and expansion of heavy industry (ex. fuel extraction)

Grand Alliance

Alliance between USA, Britain, & USSR after USA & Britain helped USSR fight against Germany in 1941

Tehran Conference

• Tehran, Iran

• November 1943

• Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, FDR

• Loosely agreed on FDR invading France in 1944 & Stalin going to war with Japan

• Wanted Germany to surrender but USA & Britain didn’t want to treat Germany harshly while Stalin wanted compensation for 1941 & 1942 USSR losses

• Stalin got the part of Poland he took in 1939 & Poland got part of Germany in return

• Britain & USA let Stalin keep Finland, Romania, & Baltic States territories

• UN was discussed

What is Roosevelt (FDR)’s full name?

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Yalta Conference

• Yalta, Ukraine

• February 1945

• USSR was stronger now & wanted more compensation for 1944 & 1945 losses

• Germany is almost defeated & Stalin would fight Japan after war in Europe

• Germany is to be divided & the ACC would govern it

• Lines for Poland’s new territory are drawn, though politically & territorially undecided

• Arguments between democratic London Poles (Churchill) and Communist Lublin Committee (Stalin) in Poland

• All East. Europe nations would have free democratic elections after WWII, though most nations were occupied by Red Army & Soviet agents

• USSR formally joins the UN & the permanent members of the Security Council are given veto power

What is the ACC?

Allied Control Commission; USSR, USA, France, Britain

Who were the nations in the UN Security Council (the nations with veto power)?

USA, USSR, France, Britain, Nationalist China

Which Soviet Republics were given seats in the UN?

Russia, Ukraine, Belarus

Potsdam Conference

• Potsdam, Germany

• July 1945

• Joseph Stalin, Harry Truman, Clement Alee

• Red Army occupies all of East Europe up to Germany

• War in Europe is over & USA didn’t invade Japan after testing their bomb

• Truman wanted to intimidate Stalin with his atomic bomb, but he already knew due to his spies

• Germany had surrendered and it was decided the nations would control their zones due to disagreements over how to govern it

• Truman wanted to re-establish Poland’s government, but he believed Stalin would ensure a communist gov. w/o London Poles

• UN was officially created at the San Francisco Conference in 1945

When did Roosevelt die and who replaced him?

April 1945, Harry Truman

When did the USA successfully test their first atomic bomb?

July 17, 1945

When did Germany surrender?

May 7, 1945

When and where was the UN officially created?

San Francisco Conference, 1945

Post-War Poland

Poland officially altered its borders, creating territory conflict & citizen displacement

Post-War Germany

Germany & Berlin were cut to be governed by France, USSR, USA, & Britain

What were the “2 Europe camps”?

West. Europe & East. Europe; West. Europe sought aid from the West, East. Europe turned to communism in fear of Red Army

Relation between Stalin & Churchill

Churchill was anti-communist & distrusted Stalin, despite the alliance between USSR & Britain

Relation between Roosevelt & Churchill

Roosevelt believed Britain was Imperialist, though he acted as the middleman of Churchill & Stalin

Relation between Roosevelt & Stalin

On good terms

Who named Stalin’s plan to spread communism “Salami Tactics”?

Hungarian communist leader Matyas Rakosi

Why is “Salami Tactics” called that?

Stalin is taking out the opposition by slicing them off piece by piece

What were the steps of Salami Tactics?

1. Establish a Red Army presence

2. Imprison, murder, or disqualify opposing parties

3. Replace communist party leader with Moscow-trained leader

What were the leaders trained in Moscow during WWII referred to as?

Baggage Train leaders

Who was the Poland baggage leader?

Boleslaw Bierut

Who was the Bulgaria baggage leader?

Vasil Kolarov

Who was the Romania baggage leader?

Ana Pauker

Who was the Hungary baggage leader?

Matyas Rakosi

What was agreed upon relating to Iran and when?

Britain & USSR would remove their troops from Iran, Yalta Conference

Why did Stalin refuse to remove his troops from Iran and when did he refuse?

He believed he had claim to Iranian oil & Black Sea Straits, January 1, 1946

What made Stalin remove his troops from Iran?

Truman claimed the USSR planned to invade Turkey & the Black Sea Straits, causing the UN to insist he remove them

In which countries were there communist rebellions after WWII?

Turkey & Greece

Which country had a Civil War between the state gov. and communist rebels and when?

Greece, 1946-1949

In which West. countries did communist parties start to gain support and why?

France & Italy, economic difficulties in working class

Who was George F. Kennan and what did his telegram claim?

USA diplomat in Moscow; claimed USSR was afraid of the world outside its borders & they wanted to advance and spread communism (USSR is hostile, not suicidal)

When was Kennan’s long telegram sent to the USA state department?

February, 1946

How did Kennan’s long telegram influence the USA?

Influenced their responses to USSR & policy of containment, as seen through the Truman doctrine, & Marshall Plan

When was Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech and where was it given?

March 5, 1946; Fulton, Missouri

What was the official name for Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech?

Sinews of Peace

What did Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech state?

There was an iron curtain around the USSR & nobody knows what they’re doing

What was Stalin’s response to Churchill’s Iron Curtain Speech?

USSR withdrew from the IMF, USSR increased anti-West propaganda, USSR starts a new Five Year Plan of defense

What was the IMF?

International Monetary Fund, a fund used to encourage economic growth and trade expansion

When was the Truman Doctrine expressed to the USA congress?

March 12, 1947

What did the Truman Doctrine state?

European nations needed USA military aid against communists & USA needed to abandon their isolationist ways

Which nations were the Truman Doctrine first used in?

Turkey & Greece

Who won the Civil War in Greece?

Britain & USA supported state gov.

Who created the Marshall Plan?

General George Marshall

What did the Marshall Plan state?

Congress needed to send money to European Nations including the USSR to protect the future of the USA economy & stabilize Europe politically & socially

What did the USA want in return for sending money to European Nations (Marshall Plan)?

Access to financial records

When did Congress approve of the Marshall Plan?

1948

What was Stalin’s response to the Marshall Plan?

Created the Molotov Plan/COMECON in January 1949, created Cominform, claimed it was Dollar Imperialism

Dollar Imperialism

The USA using economic influence to gain influence in Europe

What did COMECON do?

Linked the USSR economy & East. Nations economy in order to help East. Europe with agricultural collectivization & industrialization

What does COMECON stand for?

Council of Mutual Economic Assistance

What does Cominform stand for & when was it created?

Communist Information Bureau, October 5 1947

What did Cominform replace?

Comintern, 1919-1943

What does Comintern stand for?

Communist International

What did Cominform do?

Increased Stalin’s direct control over all communist parties (globally) & aid with communist propaganda; ensured communist parties’ actions & goals lined up with USSR’s policies & ideologies

Satellite Empire

Nations not considered part of USSR but are under Soviet control & have direct links to Moscow through Soviet military power, Salami tactics, state police & spy networks, COMECON, & Cominform

What were considered violations of wartime conferences?

• Stalin refusing to remove troops from Iran

• USSR’s Satellite Empire

What were the original & newer Cominform headquarters?

Belgrade, Yugoslavia; Bucharest, Romania

When did Yugoslavia cut ties with USSR & who?

Josep Broz Tito, June 1948

Why did Yugoslavia cut contact with USSR & leave COMECON & Cominform?

Wanted political independence; USSR stated they were diverging from Soviet political policy

What was the Czechoslovakian Coup?

Salami Tactics didn’t give complete Soviet control so Stalin threatened against a coalition gov., causing 12 non-communist members to resign

Who was pushed out of a window (mysteriously disappeared)?

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Masaryk

What was USA’s response to Czechoslovakian Coup?

USA congress passed Marshall plan bill & increased USA intervention in Europe

Who was the Allied Kommandantura?

Military generals of 4 German states

Who secretly stole from Germany?

Stalin stole materials & resources from East. Germany, USA & Britain stole coal from West. Germany

What was the communist party that failed to gain Stalin influence in Germany?

KPD: Communist Party of Germany

What was agreed upon at the Secret London Conference & when did it take place?

West would use West. Deutsche Mark to take Germany, 1948

Who was the Soviet general in Kommandantura?

Vasily Sokolovsky

When did Vasily leave the ACC and why?

March 20, 1948; West. didn’t discuss Secret London Conference

What were the steps of the Berlin Blockade & when did they take place?

Transportation restrictions to the West, March 1948; Total transportation blockade, June 23, 1948

Who was Lucius D. Clay and what was his role in Berlin?

American commander of West Berlin, wanted to force open the roadways (President Truman denied)

What did Stalin hope would come from the Berlin Blockade?

West. powers would abandon West Berlin, giving him control

Who was Ernest Reuter & what was his role in Berlin?

Leader of West Berlin, condemned the spread of communism in Berlin & told West not to abandon them at Reichstag (became Mayor of West Berlin)

Who was the Soviet commissar of Foreign Affairs? (Stalin’s righthand man)

Vyacheslav Molotov

How did USA & Britain supply West Berlin & when?

Used planes to transport food, coal, & supplies, 1948-1949

What was the Berlin counter blockade & what were it’s effects?

Supplies from West Germany to East Berlin were cut off, devastated East Berlin’s economy

When was the Berlin Blockade lifte?

May 1949

What government was established by the West in Germany & when?

FRG: Federal Republic of Germany, September 1949

What government was established by the East in Germany?

GDR: German Democratic Republic

What was West Germany’s capital (1949)?

Bonn (FRG operates there instead of West Berlin)

What was NATO & when did it form?

North Atlantic Treaty Organization, 1949; allowed USA to establish a military presence in West. Europe (if a member gets attacked, the others help)

When did West Germany join NATO?

May 1954

Who was part of NATO in 1949?

USA, Canada, Brussels Pact powers, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, & Portugal

What was Stalin’s response to NATO?

Created the Warsaw Pact (brought East. Europe military together)

What lead to the USA’s involvement in the Korean War & Vietnam War?

USA policy of containment

When did the USSR gain an atomic bomb?

1949

What does the Orthodox School believe?

USSR is responsible

What does the Revisionist School believe?

USA is responsible

What does the Post-Revisionist School believe?

USA & USSR are responsible (acting & reacting)

What does the Post-Cold War School believe?

Stalin is responsible

What were the dates of WWII?

(September) 1939-1945