(Unfinished) Edexcel GCSE History: Superpower relations and the Cold War, 1941-91

This set contains the notes from Seneca about the Cold War (Paper 2 Booklet P), turned into questions. This is currently unfinished. Key Topic 1 - The origins of the Cold War, 1941-58: Cards 1-20 Key Topic 2 - Cold War crises, 1958-70: Cards 21-28 Key Topic 3 - The end of the Cold War, 1970-91:

What was the Grand Alliance? Which countries were in it?

What was the Grand Alliance? Which countries were in it?

The Grand Alliance was created in 1941 with the sole purpose of defeating Nazi Germany, and the other Axis powers including Japan.

It was a marriage of convenience (practical partnership) between three very different countries:

Britain (a democracy, at war since 1939)

The USA (a democracy, at war since December 1941)

The Soviet Union (the USSR, a one-party communist state, at war since 1941)

These countries shared one core aim: to defeat Nazi Germany and its allies.

What happened at the Tehran Conference?

The Tehran Conference was the first meeting between the British, American and Soviet Leaders. The Tehran Conference happened in November-December 1943.

USA and Britain agreed to invade Nazi-occupied France (using Britain as a base for the invasion).

The Soviet Union agreed to invade Germany from the East (from the place that is now Russia).

This was known as opening up a 'second front' against the Nazis. It is notoriously harder to fight 2 wars at the same time.

The Soviet Union also agreed with the Americans that it would declare war against Japan. Japan had bombed the American navy at Pearl Harbour on the 7th December 1941.

The USA and Britain agreed that the Polish border would be moved westward, to fall along the Oder and Neisse rivers. This would give the Soviet Union more of Poland's land at the end of the war.

An international organisation, a bit like a successor to the League of Nations would try to peacefully solve problems between countries. This meeting lay the foundations for the United Nations.

For Stalin, the Tehran Conference was a success. He would gain Polish territory after the war.

Churchill was less pleased.

What happened at the Yalta Conference?

The Yalta Conference was the second conference between the USA, Britain and the Soviet Union. The Yalta Conference happened in February 1945.

At Yalta, the superpowers agreed on the Declaration of Liberated Europe. This was designed to aid the people who the Grand Alliance had liberated from Nazi control.

Germany would be forced to pay reparations (payments to the victors after a war). Stalin thought that Germany should pay $20bn in reparations. However, it was agreed that no monetary reparations would be paid - instead, the Alliance would each run parts of Germany.

Germany would have its army banned - something called demilitarisation.

Nazi war criminals would be tried in courts of law.

Britain and America pushed very hard for there to be free and democratic elections in Eastern Europe. The Soviet Union was less keen on this. As a compromise, the Grand Alliance agreed that Poland could exist in a 'Soviet sphere of influence'.

This Soviet sphere of influence would cause problems for decades to come in the Cold War.

After the discussions at the Tehran Conference, the United Nations was finally set up at the Yalta Conference of February 1945.

What happened at the Potsdam Conference?

Germany was defeated in May 1945. Then in August, Japan was defeated on 'VJ' Day. The Potsdam Conference happened between July and August 1945. It was the third and final meeting between the USA, Britain and the Soviet Union.

Franklin D. Roosevelt died in April 1945 and was replaced by Harry S. Truman. Truman was more reluctant to compromise with the USSR.

After the UK General Election in July 1945, Clement Attlee replaced Churchill during the conference.

The leaders met at the Cecilienhof Palace in Potsdam.

The Nazi Party was banned in Germany.

War criminals would be tried in court (prosecuted) during the Nuremberg trials.

Something called the 'Council of Foreign Ministers' was created. It held its first session in London in September 1945. Its aim was to accelerate the recovery of Europe and to settle peace treaties with the Nazi allies (like Italy, Bulgaria, and Finland).

Berlin and Germany were divided between the Grand Alliance powers. The Soviets would receive 1/4 of all the output produced in the British, American and French zones. This seemed to compensate the Soviet Union for not getting reparations. Truman wanted free, democratic elections to happen in the Eastern European countries 'liberated' by the Soviet Union but Stalin was not keen on this idea.

The UK and USA considered Stalin's installation of an entirely pro-communist government in Poland to be a violation of the Yalta agreement. 2 Polish Communists, Gomułka and Bierut, were very influential and were being supported by the Soviet Union.

What were the ideological differences between Truman, Stalin and Churchill?

Truman became president of the USA after Roosevelt's death.

He was less sympathetic towards the communist dictatorship in the Soviet Union.

Roosevelt had held the alliance together and after his death. Truman's approach was more hard-line.

Stalin was distrustful of Truman, who demanded lots of things at Potsdam.

He was angry that, before the conference, Truman had successfully tested the atomic bomb without consulting him.

However, Stalin was already aware of the progress the USA was making.

Churchill believed that a defeated Germany should be rebuilt.

But Stalin wanted to weaken Germany as much as possible through reparations.

Churchill also suspected that Soviet troops would not leave the Eastern European countries that they had liberated.

Britain's economy had been severely impacted by the war, and it could not act against the Soviet Union on its own.

As a result, it allied more closely with the United States.

This process led to the divisions which would become known as the Cold War.

The Soviet Union supported communism, whilst the USA and Britain were capitalist countries.

Communism advocated confiscating all private property, with the government owning all assets and controlling all enterprise. Communism stood against capitalism and liberal democracy.

Capitalism advocated that entrepreneurs and businesses compete via innovation to create the best goods & services for consumers, with a large portion of the benefit of their work going to the business.

How did the development of the atomic bomb impact US-Soviet relations?

The USA had a usable atomic bomb by the end of the war. It dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on the 6th of August 1945.

This gave it an advantage until the Soviet Union developed its own in 1949.

This arms race increased the suspicion between the former allies (USA and Soviet Union).

What did the Long telegram (1946) say?

The Long telegram was a top-secret memo sent by US Ambassador to the Soviet Union, George Kennan, to Washington.

It argued to President Truman that the Soviet Union was a threat to capitalism (free markets and free trade between people and nations) and that the Soviet Union had to be destroyed.

It suggested that the Soviets were building up their naval, military and nuclear power. He was partly right. The Soviets developed the atomic bomb in 1949.

Most importantly, it said that peace between the USA and the USSR was impossible.

What did the Novikov telegram (1946) say?

Nikolai Novikov was the Soviet Union's Ambassador to the USA. He wrote a telegram to Joseph Stalin saying that the USA aimed to be the greatest power in the world, that it was preparing to go to war and that the Soviets were the only nation that could stop the USA from becoming the dominant military and economic power in the world.

How did the Soviet Union create satellite states? How did this impact US-Soviet relations?

The allies had agreed at Yalta that Poland would be run under a democratic model. However, Stalin broke this promise, turning it into a satellite state (a country effectively controlled by the Soviet Union). The Polish communists, Gomułka and Bierut, led a movement driven by the Soviets.

As the Soviet Union had been invaded twice by Germany (in 1914 when it was Tsarist Russia and 1941), resulting in huge territorial, industrial and human loss, Stalin viewed the satellite states as a necessary buffer against invasion.

However, Britain and the USA saw this extension of authority as an example of how the Soviet Union wanted to spread communism. They viewed this as a threat to the West.

While the Soviet Union had agreed to hold democratic and fair elections at the wartime conferences, they broke their promise between 1945 and 1950.

They used something called 'salami tactics' to fix elections. In some Eastern European nations, the Soviet candidates won the elections. In others, like Hungary, even if they lost, the Soviet candidates would imprison or kill the winning candidates and take control.

By 1950, the Soviets had satellite states in East Germany, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Poland.

The Soviet Union’s actions were seen by many as an attempt at expansion.

But Stalin saw them as merely consolidating their position, creating a buffer zone in Eastern Europe to protect it from attack.

What was the Truman Doctrine? Why did Truman feel it was necessary?

The Truman Doctrine describes a speech given by the US President, Harry Truman. In the speech, he committed to intervening to help to spread capitalism and limit the spread of communism. This was a policy called ‘containment’.

The exact contents of the Truman Doctrine said:

"I believe that it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures. I believe that we must assist free peoples to work out their own destinies in their own way."

He committed to giving political, military and financial aid to countries to stop the spread of communism.

In 1947, when Truman gave the speech, communist parties, supported by the Soviet Union had control of Poland, Romania and Bulgaria. Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria already had communist governments in 1947.

President Truman was scared that other countries in Eastern Europe and the Middle East would fall to Communism.

Truman was scared of something called a ‘domino effect’. As more nations got communist governments, they would then support communist revolutions in nearby countries funding populist uprisings.

What was the Marshall Plan? What were the USSR and USA’s perspectives on it?

The Marshall Plan (also known as Marshall Aid) formalised the economic assistance that Truman described in the Truman Doctrine of 1947. It was named after George Marshall, the US Secretary of State at the time.

The USA gave European nations $12.7bn. However, the biggest recipients were Britain and France. Britain received $2.7bn in Marshall Aid. West Germany only received $1.7bn. Turkey received £137 million.

The money was spent to encourage trade with the United States and a Technical Assistance Program was designed to implement improvements aimed at increasing productivity.

Josef Stalin stopped any communist nations supported by the Soviet Union from accepting Marshall Aid.

Through the Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan, the USA sought to contain communism through military and economic assistance to primarily Western European countries. This was part of a policy known as ‘containment’.

The Truman Doctrine and the 1947 Marshall Plan increased tensions between the Soviets and the US.

The Soviet Union saw both the 1947 Truman Doctrine and the 1947 Marshall Plan as a threat to Eastern Europe.

The Soviet Politburo (leadership board of the communist party in Russia) viewed the Marshall Plan as an example of America's 'economic imperialism'.

On the US side, politicians argued that the Soviets were trying to isolate Eastern Europe from the West by installing communist governments and from banning them from accepting aid.

In reality, given the fact that most of the aid went to Britain and France, this view is challenged.

The USA thought that giving rebuilding, poor nations money would stop people from supporting communism. Demanding equality and redistribution of all wealth was likely to be more attractive to starving & unemployed people than employed and wealthy individuals in a prosperous nation.

What was Cominform (1947)?

Cominform was a Soviet organisation that tried to encourage communist uprising in nations across Europe.

Cominform would try to encourage communist parties, like the Revolutionary Communist Party in Great Britain, whilst also trying to destroy communist opposition in the USSR's satellite states in Eastern Europe.

The historian Mark Pittaway says that the USSR didn't try to look like they were working democratically. USSR-supported communists used military influence and in Yugoslavia and Albania the Communists governed through a democratic front until they got 93% of the vote in rigged elections of 1945.

What was Comecon (1949)?

Comecon was Stalin's answer to the Marshall Plan.

Comecon gave countries financial aid and encouraged them to trade with the USSR.

Any nation that joined the Comecon was banned from accepting any money from the Americans under the Marshall Plan.

The Soviet Union's satellite states - Bulgaria, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, and East Germany all joined Comecon.

What is NATO?

NATO is a military alliance that is still in place today. It was founded in 1949 and united the USA, France and Great Britain under a new military alliance with the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, and Canada.

NATO is based on the idea of 'collective security'. Collective security means that if 1 nation is attacked, all the others will fight on its behalf.

In 1955, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) became a member of NATO.

How did tensions build leading up to the Berlin Crisis?

At Potsdam (July 1945), the Allies agreed that Germany, and within Germany, the city of Berlin, would be divided into four zones of occupation. One would be run by each of the USA, Britain, France and the USSR.

The USA wanted a united, capitalist Germany.

On the other hand, the Soviet Union wanted Germany to be divided and under the communist sphere of influence. This would make sure that Germany could not attack the Soviet Union again.

On the 6th of September 1946 AD, The US Secretary of State James Byrnes said 'the US has formally announced its intention to unify the economy of its zone with any or all other zones'.

On the 1st of January 1947 AD, the USA and Britain joined their German zones. This created a new quasi-country called 'Bizonia'.

In April 1949 AD, the French part of Germany joined Bizonia to make 'Trizonia'.

Trizonia began to get funding under the Marshall Plan (and West Germany would receive $1.45bn in funding from the Americans).

Stalin and the Soviets thought that the creation of Trizonia broke the agreements made about the end of the war at Yalta and Potsdam.

After the creation of Trizonia, West Berlin was controlled by France, Britain and the USA. Berlin was positioned in the Eastern part of Germany, which was controlled by the Soviet Union.

So Berlin was very reliant on Soviet-controlled Germany for food and other vital resources.

On the 20th of June 1948, Bizonia introduced a new currency called the 'Deutschmark' in Operation 'Bird Dog'. Businesses could get Deutschmarks for Rentenmarks at a 1:1 exchange rate, but savers would get 1 Deutschmark for 15 Rentenmarks.

West Berlin was also becoming wealthier and more prosperous as it began to receive money from the Americans under the Marshall Plan.

What was the Berlin Crisis? What was its impact?

On the 24th of June 1948, 8 days after the introduction of the Deutschmark, the USSR shut down all transport links into West Berlin. West Berlin was now isolated from Trizonia. Essentially no food or supplies from Trizonia could reach West Berlin.

The Western powers did not want to look weak and also wanted West Germany to be a strong economic force against communism.

However, attacking or breaking down the Soviet military blockades of roads and railway lines could cause a war between the Soviet Union & Trizonia allies.

The Western allies, led by the USA decided that an airlift would be the best solution. It was peaceful, did not cause a war with the Soviet Union, but kept control of West Berlin. On the 26th of June 1948 until the 12th of May 1949, the Americans flew supplies into West Berlin.

The pilots flying in the supplies were often called “Rosinenbombers” (raisin bombers) because they dropped confectionery, sweets, and other food from the skies.

A new airport, Tegel, was built in West Berlin to help the Airlift run more efficiently.

The airlift was a peaceful show of strength from America. The USA peacefully mounted a huge operation to give West Berlin supplies. The Soviets looked mean and self-interested, having shut down rail and road links into West Berlin for clearly political reasons.

The operation was also a humiliation for the Soviet Union and Stalin. Whatever their plan had been, it failed.

The divisions between East and West hardened as a result of the Berlin Blockade and Airlift. On the 23rd of May 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany in West Germany was created, with Bonn as its capital. On the 7th October 1949, the Soviet Union would create the German Democratic Republic, a Soviet satellite state within Germany.

How did the arms race develop? How was it significant?

On the 6th and 9th August 1945, the USA dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to defeat Japan and bring them to surrender. This ended World War 2.

On the 29th of August 1949, the Soviet Union completed its development of an atomic bomb. The USSR was 4 years behind the USA with its nuclear capabilities.

In 1952, the United States successfully built a Hydrogen bomb. Hydrogen bombs are estimated by experts to be 1,000x more destructive than the atomic bombs used in Japan in 1945.

In 1953, the USSR built their own Hydrogen bomb (H-bomb). They were now only 1 year behind the USA.

Atomic bombs and hydrogen bombs were important because they allowed countries to do lots of damage to their enemies.

Missiles became very important because they allowed countries to remotely fire lots of missiles at their enemies quickly. The atomic bombs over Japan had been dropped out of planes.

In 1958, the USSR completed a test of an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile, called an ICBM. These missiles could be fired 5,500km (the distance from Lisbon to New York over the Atlantic Ocean).

The USA developed ICBMs in 1959, but the USSR had taken the lead in the Arms Race.

Whilst the Soviet Union didn't have nuclear weapons (before 1949), the USA knew that in a war, it could use nuclear weapons and win.

After 1949, both the USA and USSR had nuclear weapons.

After 1959, both sides could fire nuclear weapons 5,500km at each other.

If there were to be a nuclear war between the 2 countries, it is likely that both countries would have been completely destroyed, firing nuclear missiles at each other. This concept was called Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD).

This made using nuclear weapons seem like a worse option.

What was the Warsaw Pact?

The Warsaw Pact was signed on the 14th of May 1955.

The Warsaw Pact was a rival to NATO (which was created in 1949).

It was an alliance between the Soviet Union and its satellite states in Eastern Europe (East Germany, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and more).

As Comecon was a response to the Marshall Plan, the Warsaw Pact was the Soviet Union's response to NATO.

This created a split camp of nations in NATO and accepting Marshall Aid vs nations in the Warsaw Pact and accepting Comecon money.

What was the Hungarian Uprising? Why did it happen?

Josef Stalin had died in 1953, with Nikita Khrushchev taking over as the leader of the Soviet Union.

Under Stalin, Hungary's labour, land, and raw materials had been used to produce industrial goods, many of which had been sent straight to the Soviet Union.

Hungary was led by Matyas Rakosi from 1953 until the end of 1955. Hungary had become a 1 party state under Stalin, and then Rakosi's rule.

Khrushchev made a speech in 1956 and said that a process called 'destalinization' could happen in Eastern Europe, with a more liberal regime.

In the winter of 1956, Hungarian people began demonstrating on the streets and pulled down statues of Stalin. There had been food shortages and a year of bad harvests due to adverse weather. This seems to be what triggered the protests.

Nikita Khrushchev asked Imre Nagy to become the Hungarian Prime Minister. Nagy was a communist, but he was viewed as more liberal and open than Rakosi.

However, Nagy was more extreme than Khrushchev had expected.

Nagy announced plans to allow other political parties, end 1 party rule, and then in November 1956, announced that Hungary would be leaving the Warsaw Pact.

These moves threatened the Soviet Union's control of Hungary and if they happened across Eastern Europe would wipe out the 'buffer' of satellite states that they had created.

How did Khrushchev respond to the Hungarian Uprising? How did the rest of the world react?

Khrushchev saw the threat to the Soviet Union from Nagy leaving the Warsaw Pact and ending the 1-party-state in Hungary. If this happened in other Soviet satellite states in Eastern Europe, then the Soviets would have no buffer zone and very little influence in Europe. He had to discourage the behaviour.

The Soviet Union invaded Hungary on the 4th of November 1956.

2,500 Hungarians and 700 Soviet soldiers died as an army of over 200,000 men rolled into Budapest in tanks.

Khrushchev justified the invasion by saying that communist people were being killed by protestors.

Imre Nagy was executed by hanging in June 1958.

After Nagy was overthrown, Janos Kadar became the Prime Minister of Hungary, appointed by Khrushchev and the Soviet Politburo (leadership committee).

Hungary then adopted something called the '15 Point Programme'. This aimed to reverse Nagy's suggestions and tighten up communist control in Hungary.

However, Kadar was more moderate than other satellite state leaders, like Josip Tito in Yugoslavia.

The reaction to the Soviet Union's conduct in Hungary was vocal but weak.

The 1956 Olympics were in Melbourne, Australia. Spain, the Netherlands and Switzerland boycotted in protest.

The United Nations wrote a statement 'condemning' the actions of the Soviet Union.

America accepted tens of thousands of Hungarian refugees (estimated at about 80,000), like Andy Grove (CEO of Intel), Kesha's grandmother and Milton Freidman (the economist).

However, writing statements does not free people from military rule.

The USA and West looked weak. They had shown that in a world with nuclear weapons, they would not intervene in Eastern Europe.

Why was there a refugee problem in Berlin in the 1950s? How did Khrushchev respond?

The living conditions in West Berlin were better than the living conditions in East Berlin.

Wages in West Berlin were higher than wages in East Berlin. The Hans Böckler Foundation has found that wages in areas that were in West Germany were still 17% higher than in East Germany in 2018. The difference was even greater in the 1950s.

Many East Germans were aware that living conditions were better and wages higher in West Berlin.

Because West Berlin was a US-controlled haven in East Germany, people could move from East Berlin to West Berlin and then move to West Germany.

Between 1952 and 1961, it is estimated that 3.5 million East Germans migrated to West Germany.

This was a propaganda defeat for the Soviets - people were leaving their territory and moving to American-controlled territory. It also caused a problem for East Germany. Skilled workers tended to leave East Germany, so East Germany's output, productivity and wealth didn't rise as much. There was a shortage of skilled labour.

In November 1958, Khrushchev issued a memorandum (written document), claiming that Berlin should be absorbed into East Germany.

Khrushchev threatened that all American, British and French troops should leave Berlin within 6 months.

The ultimatum led to a series of summit meetings between the leaders of the great powers.

The first summit happened in Geneva and the second summit happened in September 1959 at Camp David. The Camp David summit was led by the US President, Dwight Eisenhower, and Krushchev.

The U2 Spy Plane Crisis undermined all progress at the 1960 Paris Summit. Talks broke down after the USSR shot down an American 'U2' spy plane in Russian airspace.

What was the Berlin Wall? How did other countries react to it?

The summits at Geneva, Camp David, Paris and Vienna failed to resolve the USA and Soviet Union’s differences.

On the 13th August 1961, the USSR (Soviet Union) began to build the Berlin Wall.

Krushchev's Berlin Ultimatum of 1958 ordered Western troops to leave Berlin, but they did not.

The Berlin Wall was an effort to solve the refugee crisis and keep people in East Germany and East Berlin.

Initially, the Berlin Wall was a flimsy fence with razor wire at the top. Over time, it became a heavier concrete border between East and West Berlin.

The Allies (Britain, France, and the USA) kept control of West Berlin.

It was far harder for East German refugees to move into West Germany.

The Berlin Wall was a propaganda defeat for the Soviet Union. Having to build a wall to keep your citizens in is not a great look.

Although the Berlin Wall was not great, it was less violent than the events of the Hungarian Uprising and was a peaceful solution to the refugee crisis.

Some refugees tried to cross the Berlin Wall anyway. On the 17th of August 1972, a man was shot by East German soldiers firing machine guns. Between 80 and 200 people are estimated to have been killed trying to cross the Berlin Wall.

Initially, foreigners were allowed to travel into East Berlin from West Berlin by crossing 'Checkpoint Charlie'. There was a tense stand-off between the Soviet army (including tanks) stopping American citizens from crossing into East Berlin on the 27th October 1961.

On a visit to West Berlin on the 26th June 1963, John F Kennedy, the US President who would be assassinated in November 1963, described himself as a 'Berliner' in a symbolic speech.

What was the Prague Spring? How did Dubcek initially respond?

Living standards in Czechoslovakia had fallen under Soviet rule (led by Antonin Novotny). This led to growing opposition to communism.

In January 1968, Alexander Dubcek became the leader of Czechoslovakia.

Dubcek had a good relationship with the Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev and supported the Warsaw Pact, but wanted communism to have a ‘human face’, introducing reforms that improved the lives of the Czechoslovakian people.

There were reforms and measures that increased political freedom.

In April 1968, censorship was relaxed, more criticism of communism was allowed. Other political parties were also permitted.

The secret police had their powers reduced and arresting and detaining without trial was restricted.

Some capitalist elements were even allowed in the economy to create a form of “market socialism”.

Many Czechoslovakians were enthusiastic about the reforms.

But the events horrified many old Czech communists, who thought that the reforms would lead to the collapse of communism.

Brezhnev and the East German leader Erich Honecker, were especially concerned. They feared that the Prague Spring would lead to calls for reforms elsewhere in the Soviet Union’s “sphere of influence”.

Brezhnev was unsure how to act. He was close to Dubcek and did not want to risk his country’s reputation by going to war.

So he did nothing.

How did Brezhnev re-establish Soviet control in Czechoslovakia?

In the early morning of the 21st of August 1968, troops from all the countries in the Warsaw Pact entered Prague and Dubcek was arrested. Dubcek was flown to Moscow.

Nobody in Czechoslovakia was expecting an invasion, especially their armed troops, who were completely unprepared. Before his arrest, Dubcek urged Czechoslovakians not to resist the invasion with violence.

Czechoslovakia became a strictly-run Soviet satellite state again, led by Gustav Husak.

The process of rolling back Dubcek's proposed reforms was called “normalisation”.

Unlike in Hungary, where Imre Nagy was killed, Dubcek returned to the Czechoslovakian government in a less important position. He lived until the age of 70, dying in 1992.

Doctrine is defined as 'a belief or group of beliefs'.

The Brezhnev Doctrine installed the policy or belief that the Soviet Union would use Warsaw Pact troops to maintain their position of influence in Eastern Europe. Anyone threatening the status quo, proposing reforms, or threatening communism in the Soviet Union's sphere of influence was likely to be invaded.

What was the international reaction to the Brezhnev Doctrine like?

The Doctrine was condemned by America and Britain, but again the West did not want to go to war over a relatively peaceful invasion within the Soviet Union's sphere of influence.

However, the Brezhnev Doctrine and the invasion of Czechoslovakia harmed the Soviet Union's brand of communism internationally.

Communist leaders in France (Waldeck-Rochet) and Italy (Longo) broke off their ties with the Soviet Union.

The CIA's report into the 'World Communist Reaction to the Invasion of Czechoslovakia' said that 'that Yugoslavia, Romania, China, and Albania would be opposed was never in question' and that French Communist leader, Waldeck-Rochet and Italian Communist leader, Longo, both opposed the invasion.

The French Communist Party had previously supported the invasion of Hungary under Imre Nagy.

No other countries tried to make liberal reforms after the invasions of Hungary and Czechoslovakia.

Adopting a hard communist line caused problems in Poland, with people protesting against communist rule.

According to the CIA 'Moscow received virtually no support from West European Communism'.

Romania (under Nicolae Ceausescu) and Yugoslavia (under Josip Tito) divided the communist world by signing partnerships with China (led by Zhou Xiangyu).

The Chinese Communist Party and media, who you would have expected to be supported called Brezhnev and Soviet leaders 'a pack of robbers'.

The USA and West Germany were critical of the Soviet Union’s actions in Czechoslovakia. However, the USA didn't get involved in Czechoslovakia. It did not want a nuclear war and was already fighting Communists, with no success in Vietnam. 58,220 US troops would die in the Vietnam War.

Fundamentally, there wasn't much damage to the US-Soviet relationship.

Latin American nations, like Fidel Castro's Cuba, usually supported all Soviet action. However, Mexico, which had previously supported the Soviet Union broke away.

This was not hugely significant but was a blow for the Soviets. It reflected that using military force to maintain your influence is not a popular strategy.

How did US and Soviet relations with Cuba change in 1959? How did this lead to the Bay of Pigs incident?

Before 1959, Cuba (an island close to the USA), cooperated with the USA under the leadership of the dictator General Batista.

In the year 1959, Fidel Castro led a socialist revolution that overthrew US-supported General Batista. This ended the co-operation between Cuba and America.

In response, and looking for a strong partner against the Americans, Cuba began to trade with the USSR. Initially, the USSR had no idea who Castro was, however, links strengthened and the Soviets began to sell oil & fuel to Cuba. Brezhnev would go on to visit Cuba in 1974 as the relationship grew stronger.

Cuba began to ask the Soviet Union for (military) defense support. At the same time, the USA was trying to bring Cuba back into America’s sphere of influence.

The USA would not recognise the government under Fidel Castro (the revolutionary who took power in 1959), and the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) unsuccessfully tried to assassinate him.

Kennedy and the CIA decided that extreme action needed to be taken against Cuba.

At the Bay of Pigs on the 17th April 1961, America invaded Cuba. The CIA told Kennedy that the invasion would look like a Cuban revolt.

The USA assembled a group of Cuban exiles called 'Brigade 2506'. The CIA funded them, gave them US plans and launched an invasion from Guatemala.

The 1,400 US-backed paramilitaries (or soldiers) were met by an army of 20,000 Cubans. The exiles surrendered.

Fidel Castro had been informed about the impending invasion before it was launched. This allowed him to prepare his armies.

The American planes used in the raid made it clear that it was a US invasion.

1,202 members of Brigade 2506 were captured. Castro offered to release the men in exchange for $28 million worth of tractors, before an agreement was struck in 1962 to deliver $53 million worth of food and medicine to Cuba, in exchange for the prisoners. Kennedy attended their 'welcome back' ceremony in Florida.

The Bay of Pigs invasion destroyed the possibility of good Cuban-American relations.

Fidel Castro cemented his socialist rule in Cuba.

The USA lost face. They had funded a failed invasion and pretended they weren't involved.

Robert Greene, an author on Power, argues that over-reactions to small events, such as Kennedy's Bay of Pigs invasion, can escalate your enemy into a stronger position than if you were to take no action at all. Taking a huge action can make something into a big deal and make a small enemy seem larger and more threatening.

What was the Cuban Missile Crisis?

In April 1961, the USA had designed the invasion of Cuba, led by Brigade 2506.

In October 1962, the USA discovered Soviet Union missile sites on Cuba.

Cuba had allowed the Soviet Union to station (put) missiles there to act as a deterrent to stop the USA attacking Cuba again.

The US media and public were panicked when they heard about the missile sites on Cuba. On Monday 22nd October at 7pm President Kennedy addressed the American TV networks (ABC, CBS and NBC) to inform them about the situation in Cuba.

Kennedy's personal Cabinet and advisors were divided into 2 groups - doves and hawks.

The ‘hawks’, like Dean Acheson, wanted aggressive action against Cuba. The 'doves', led by US Defense Secretary Robert McNamara (who would later be President at Ford Motors) thought that nuclear war would lead to Mutually Assured Destruction and that no risks should be taken.

Kennedy could have 1) invaded Cuba and destroyed the missile sites, 2) done nothing and allowed the missile sites to be built, or 3) find a creative solution in the middle ground.

On the 20th October 1962, President Kennedy decided on a 'quarantine zone'. He thought an invasion of Cuba risked nuclear war. Instead the blockade would try to stop any Soviet ships from reaching Cuba.

The USSR initially said that they would not respect the 'quarantine zone'. They said that any action towards their ships would provoke military action.

If the Soviet and American ships had engaged in any battles or conflict, it could have provoked a nuclear war.

On the 27th of October 1962, Khrushchev and Kennedy compromised. The Soviet Union would not place any missiles on Cuba, if the USA removed its warheads (likely ICBMs) from its army bases in Europe (mainly in Italy and Turkey). This would mean that neither superpower had missiles within range of the opposition's territory.

The USA took missiles out of Europe without telling the public (allowing Kennedy and the American hawks to save face).

On the 28th of October, Khrushchev went on television, agreeing not to send missiles to Cuba. Soviet ships never crossed the blockade and war was avoided.

What were the consequences of the Cuban Missile Crisis?

After the Cuban Missile Crisis, there was a move towards a détente (a relaxing of relationships between East and West).

The Cuban Missile Crisis showed that there was no appetite for a war between the USA and USSR. This strengthened the doves' position politically in the USA.

A 'hotline' connecting the US President and Leader of the Soviet Union was created so that they could communicate immediately during a crisis.

Even after 1962, the Soviets accumulated more and more nuclear weapons. By the year 1965, the USA and USSR had the same number of nuclear missiles.

The USSR looked weaker than the USA. The USSR had changed its course in response to the blockade, and it was not public knowledge that American missiles had been removed in Europe.

Khrushchev was removed as the leader of the Soviet Union 2 years later.

Relations between Cuba and the Soviet Union remained very strong.

Brezhnev would go on to visit Cuba in 1974 as the relationship blossomed.

In August 1963, the Limited Test Ban Treaty was signed by the USA and USSR. Nuclear weapons could no longer be tested above ground.

The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 agreed not to use nuclear weapons in outer space. This seems like a patch to the 1963 Limited Test Ban Treaty. If nations could not test above the surface of the Earth, there was an incentive to test in space.

In 1968, both countries signed the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty. This stopped the USA and USSR from sharing their nuclear missiles with other nations. People believe that Israel had secured nuclear weapons in 1967.

What was SALT 1? How was it significant?

After the Cuban Missile Crisis, there was a move towards détente (a more relaxed relationship between West and East). SALT 1 happened in 1972.

SALT 1 was a nuclear weapons limitations treaty. It placed a cap on what different kinds of missiles that the USA and USSR could have.

No new ICBMs could be made (although replacements for old and outdated Intercontinental ballistic missiles were allowed).

No new nuclear launch sites were allowed.

No new nuclear submarines were allowed unless they were replacing outdated and defunct submarines.

SALT I agreed that the USA and USSR could each have a maximum of 2 Anti-Ballistic Missile 'deployment areas'.

Having lots of ABM deployment areas could effectively stop ballistic missiles from reaching your country.

The agreement that each side could only have 2 ABM deployment areas meant that both nations would remain vulnerable to each other's nuclear missiles. This meant that MAD would remain mutual.

SALT 1 was a positive sign of collaboration between the two superpowers.

It capped the number of ICBMs, which was positive as it marked a pause in the nuclear missile arms race.

Neither side was allowed to build up a lead in the number of nuclear missiles or in their ability to shoot down rival missiles using Anti-Ballistic Missile deployments.

Richard Nixon, the US President and Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leader, would go on to visit each other's countries.

SALT I was successful enough that it led to SALT 2 in 1979.

What was agreed at the Helsinki Accords (1975)? How significant was it?

The agreements signed at the Helsinki Conference were signed by 35 countries, including France, Britain, the USA, Canada, and the United Nations.

The agreements of the Helsinki Conference were split into several different “baskets” (parts of the treaty):

Basket 1: the current borders of European countries were inviolable (couldn’t be broken or violated).

Basket 2: to promote trade and technological links across the Iron Curtain. The USA and USSR agreed to trade with each other. The theory was that economic dependence between countries made war less likely.

Basket 3: to respect human rights such as the freedom of speech in Europe, as well as the free movement of people.

The United Nations would be used as a peace resolution mediator instead of using military action.

Student exchange trips were arranged as a sign of co-operation, but also to share knowledge across the world. British students would travel to China under this agreement.

Countries should do their best to respect all of the UN's recommended human rights.

Basket 1, agreeing that borders were inviolable, meant that West Germany and East Germany would be permanently split forever.

The USA had just ended its involvement in the proxy war against Communists in Vietnam in April 1975 after 20 years.

The USSR and the USA would buy each other's goods. The USA would sell wheat to the USSR.

Although everything at the Helsinki Conference sounds nice, it was not an official treaty. There were questions about how seriously countries would take it.

The USSR would apply the Brezhnev Doctrine for another 15 years in Eastern Europe.

The USA still interfered in Latin American politics. In the 1970s, it supported Pinochet as the replacement to Allende as Chilean President. A 1991 Chilean National Commission found that Chile was 'caught up in superpower struggle, the so-called Cold War'. 27,255 people were tortured during Pinochet's military regime.

What was SALT 2? Why was it not as significant as SALT 1?

Brezhnev and President Carter signed SALT 2 in 1979. SALT 2 agreed that the USA and USSR would both stop developing new missile programs.

Each country was only allowed to own 1,320 long-range and ballistic missiles.

The Afghanistan war destroyed SALT 2.

For something to be incorporated (enshrined) into American Law, it has to be approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The USSR invaded Afghanistan just after the Vienna Conference. Although SALT 2 was signed by Brezhnev and Jimmy Carter, it was never ratified by the Senate and never became American law because of the invasion.

SALT 2 did not achieve much and didn't become American Law.

The Afghanistan War overshadowed anything agreed in SALT 2.

The Vladivostock Summit of 1974, where the ground was laid for SALT 2, was probably more important in US-USSR relations.

Why and how did the Soviet Union invade Afghanistan? How did the US respond?

Afghanistan sat on the Soviet Union's south border.

Nur Muhammad Taraki was the President of Afghanistan from 1978-1979.

In 1978, pro-Soviet soldiers led by Nur Mohammed Taraki overthrew the Afghani government and set up a communist state. The reforms were met with a violent reaction from local warlords. A civil war began.

Taraki signed a '20 Years of Friendship' treaty with the Soviet Union.

Then in October 1979, Taraki was killed as Afghan leaders battled for power. Hafizullah Amin became Afghan President, some think with Soviet blessing.

According to the historian Braithwaite (2011), Amin was warned that the Soviets would try to topple him. As he died in the royal palace under Soviet attack in December 1979, he reportedly said "I guessed it. It's all true".

In December 1979, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan. The assault on the royal palace killed Amin.

The Soviets chose Babrak Karmal as the new President of Afghanistan.

Brezhnev chose to intervene with Soviet troops as he was worried that Afghanistan would become a US ally or an Islamist state (Ayatollah Khomeini had just taken over in Iran, which bordered Afghanistan).

The Soviet troops killed Amin and then ended up fighting the Mujahideen, a group of Afghan rebels, for the next 10 years.

In November 1979, the US Embassy in Iran was attacked during the Iranian Revolution. The Iranian shah fled to the USA. Iran borders Afghanistan and Jimmy Carter was scared that Soviet influence could spread from Afghanistan to Iran.

This could block off the USA's access to oil. Oil is vital to any manufacturing economy.

In January 1980, Carter, the US President, broke off all relations with the Soviet Union.

The trade agreements made at Helsinki between the US and USSR were stopped.

The USA supported economic sanctions against the USSR.

Carter committed to using force in Iran and Afghanistan if needed.

In response to the invasion of Afghanistan, the USA formed new partnerships with Pakistan (next to Afghanistan) and Saudi Arabia (next to Iran).

The US gave the Afghan rebels, the Mujahideen, money and weapons. One of the Mujahideen to receive US support was Osama bin Laden, who was fighting against the Soviets in Afghanistan.

Arms were secretly funneled to the Mujahideen (Afghan warlords) through Pakistan.

What problems were caused by the Afghan War?

The USSR invaded Afghanistan just after the Vienna Conference. Although SALT 2 was signed by Brezhnev and Jimmy Carter, it was never ratified by the Senate and never became American law because of the invasion.

After the invasion, the USA restarted its nuclear program and the USSR restarted its nuclear program. The SS20 and Pershing missiles were developed in the USSR and the USA respectively.

Moscow hosted the 1980 Olympic games. The USA refused to attend (boycotted).

Los Angeles hosted the 1984 Olympics. The USSR refused to attend (boycotted).

The USA was now funding the Mujahideen and its allies via Pakistan. Osama bin Laden was someone receiving American money to fight. He would orchestrate 9/11 20 years later.

The US population's distrust of the Soviet Union grew again. This helped Ronald Reagan, the actor, to win the Presidency in 1980. He was harsh towards communism and socialism.

The CIA estimate that the Afghan War cost the USSR 18bn Russian rubles between 1979 and 1986. The cost was a problem for the USSR which was struggling economically.

Who were Reagan and Gorbachev? What did they agree on in the 1980s? What were Gorbachev’s reforms?

Ronald Reagan was a hard-line anti-communist. Reagan became the US President on the 20th of January 1981.

The USA funded the Mujahidin against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan and invested in Pershing missiles under Reagan. He also commissioned the Star Wars nuclear defence system.

Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union in 1985.

The Soviet Union's economy was struggling. Wages were higher in capitalist countries. Money was being poured down the drain in the war in Afghanistan. Soviet satellite states were staying in the Warsaw Pact and in communism because of the threat of military repression, rather than because they wanted to.

The two leaders first met in 1985 at the Geneva Summit. Margaret Thatcher was good friends with the US leader Ronald Reagan. Any negotiations or improvements in relations would have the support of the British Prime Minister.

They got on well and became friends.

The 1980s was the height of the anti-nuclear protest movement in many countries in Western Europe.

“Perestroika” means ‘restructuring’. It was the term used by Gorbachev to refer to his reforms.

People living in the Soviet Union were unhappy with their low living standards. Money was spent on nuclear weapons and the war in Afghanistan, instead of on the people.

Gorbachev wanted to end the Afghan War.

“Glasnost” means ‘openness’. Gorbachev wanted to allow greater freedom of conscience. This included freedom of speech and other things.

At an October 1986 meeting, both leaders agreed to reduce their stockpile of nuclear weapons, however Reagan wanted to keep his 'Star Wars' anti-missile defence system plans alive.

INF = Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces.

INF weapons were nuclear missiles with a range of up to 5,500km.

The Washington INF Treaty of 1987 removed all long-range nuclear INFs.

What was the Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI)? Why was it important?

SDI or 'Star Wars' involved using mirrors, laser beams, satellites and other machinery orbiting the Earth in space. The aim was to be able to shoot down Soviet ICBMs from anywhere in the world. This seemed to violate the Outer Space Treaty signed in 1967.

The SDI was extremely important because it gave the USA the advantage in the arms race.

The Soviet economy was 80% smaller than the American economy. It could not find the money to invest in a 'Star Wars' rival.

In the 1980s, the US economy was 5x wealthier and 5x more productive than the Soviet economy. It seemed that capitalism (with its competition and innovation) was a superior solution for people's living standards relative to communism (with central command where all innovations were ordered by 1 central government).