End of Cold War Flashcards

Détente

A policy aimed at easing Cold War tensions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, particularly under Presidents Nixon and Ford in the 1970s.

Realpolitik

A pragmatic approach to politics focused on practical goals rather than ideological principles; emphasized by Nixon and Kissinger in foreign policy.

Glasnost

Meaning “openness,” it was a policy introduced by Gorbachev allowing more freedom of speech and transparency in Soviet government and media.

Perestroika

Meaning “restructuring,” it was Gorbachev’s plan to reform the Soviet economy and political system, shifting towards limited market-like reforms.

SALT I/SALT II

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks between the U.S. and USSR to curb the nuclear arms race. SALT I (1972) limited the number of nuclear weapons; SALT II (1979) was signed but not ratified due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

INF Treaty

Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (1987); agreement between Reagan and Gorbachev to eliminate certain types of nuclear weapons.

SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative)

Reagan’s proposed missile defense system intended to protect the U.S. from nuclear attacks, often nicknamed “Star Wars.”

Brezhnev Doctrine

Policy that the USSR had the right to intervene in any socialist country threatened by counter-revolution, used to justify actions like the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968.

Reagan Doctrine

U.S. policy of supporting anti-communist insurgencies and governments to roll back Soviet influence worldwide, especially in the 1980s.

Moral Superiority

The idea promoted by Reagan that the U.S. had a moral obligation to confront and defeat communism as an evil ideology.

Solidarity Movement

A Polish labor union and democratic movement that opposed communist rule; led by Lech Wałęsa and contributed to the fall of communism in Poland.

Ping Pong Diplomacy

Exchange of table tennis players between the U.S. and China in the early 1970s that helped thaw relations and paved the way for Nixon’s visit to China.

President Nixon (foreign policy)

Promoted détente, opened diplomatic relations with China, and pursued SALT I with the USSR.

President Ford (foreign policy)

Continued détente, signed the Helsinki Accords to improve relations between the Eastern and Western blocs.

President Carter (foreign policy)

Emphasized human rights, signed SALT II, but relations soured after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

President Reagan (foreign policy)

Took a hardline stance against the USSR early in his presidency, escalated arms spending, promoted the Reagan Doctrine, and later negotiated arms reduction with Gorbachev.

Charlie Wilson

U.S. congressman who played a major role in funding the CIA’s support of the Afghan Mujahideen against the Soviet Union during the 1980s.

Brezhnev

Soviet leader who upheld the Brezhnev Doctrine, maintained a hardline communist stance, and presided during the era of stagnation.

Gorbachev

Last leader of the Soviet Union; introduced glasnost and perestroika, sought to reduce Cold War tensions, and ultimately saw the USSR collapse.

Mujahideen

Afghan resistance fighters who opposed the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (1979–1989); supported by the U.S. and other Western nations.

Contras vs. Sandinistas

The U.S. supported the Contras (anti-communist rebels) in Nicaragua against the ruling Sandinista government, which was leftist and Soviet-aligned.

Nixon’s trip to China (1972)

A groundbreaking visit that opened diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China and altered the balance of the Cold War.

Revolutions of 1989

A series of mostly peaceful uprisings across Eastern Europe that led to the fall of communist governments in countries like Poland, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia.

Tiananmen Square protest (1989)

Pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing that were violently suppressed by the Chinese government, highlighting limits to reform in communist regimes.

Invasion of Afghanistan (1979)

The USSR’s military intervention to support a struggling communist government; led to U.S. boycott of the 1980 Olympics and worsened U.S.-Soviet relations.

Collapse of the Soviet Union (1991)

Marked the formal end of the Cold War; the USSR broke into independent republics, and communism collapsed in Russia and much of Eastern Europe.

Iran-Contra Affair (mid-1980s)

Secret U.S. operation where proceeds from arms sales to Iran were illegally used to fund the Contras in Nicaragua, bypassing Congress.

Destruction of the Berlin Wall (1989)

Symbolized the end of communist control in East Germany and a key moment in the collapse of the Iron Curtain.