history 100 block 3 key terms

iron curtain

ideological and physical barrier dividing eastern and western europe during the cold war, symbolizing the separation between soviet-controlled states and the western democracies

containment

US cold war strategy aimed at preventing the spread of communism by providing political, economic, and military support to countries resisting soviet influence

national security act of 1947

legislation that reorganized the US defense and intelligence structure; creeated the dept of defense, the national security council, the CIA, and est the USAF as an independent service

berlin airlift

(26 JUN 1948 - 30 SEP 1949)

US and western allied humanitarian operation that sustained west berlin by air after the soviet union imposed a land blockade, delivering food, fuel, and supplies until after the blockade was lifted

marshall plan

officially the european recovery program; US initiative providing $13 billion in aid to rebuild western europe after WWii and curb the spread of communism

mao zedong

chairman of the chinese communist party, revolutionary leader, and political-military theorist who developed the concept of 'people's war' and founded the people's republic of china in 1949

chiang kai-shek

leader of nationalist china during WWII, defeated by the communists in the chinese civil war, and retreated to taiwan, where he continued to lead the republic of china until his death in 1975

people's war

military strategy that relies on popular support, using guerrilla tactics to wear down the enemy in the countryside before transitioning to conventional mobile operations

syngman rhee

1st president of south korea (1948-1960), an anticommunist and pro-american leader who governed as an authoritarian and led the country through the korean war

kim il-sung

founder and 1st supreme leader of north korea (1948-1994), establishing a totalitarian, centrally planned socialist state. he initiated the 1950 invasion of south korea, starting the korean war

pusan perimeter

(4 AUG - 18 SEP 1950)

defensive line around the port of pusan where 14k UN troops held off advancing north korean forces, preventing the complete collapse of south korean and UN defenses

operation CHROMITE

(15-19 SEP 1950)

amphibious landing at incheon by 75k UN troops supported by 261 vessels, resulting in a strategic reversal of the korean war in favor of the UN command

38th parallel

rough demarcation between north korea and south korea. the line was chosen by the US military planners at the potsdam conference (july 1945) as an army boundary. the USSR was to accept the japanese surrender north of the 38th parallel and the US was to accept the japanese surrender south of the boundary

project PAPER CLIP

secret US program that brought over 1600 german scientists, engineers, and technicians from nazi germany to the US to advance american military and technological research

wernher von braun

german engineer who developed nazi rocket technology, including the V-2, and later became a leading figure in US rocket and space programs

sputnik

1st artificial earth satellite launched by the soviet union on 4 OCT 1958, sparking the space race w the US

apollo program

(1961-1972)

NASA spaceflight program initiated to fulfill president kennedy's goal of landing a man on the moon, achieving 6 manned lunar landings between 1969-1972; cornerstone of the cold war's space race

massive retaliation

US cold war strategy under president eisenhower committing to respond to any attack w overwhelming nuclear force

mutually assured destruction

kennedy-era nuclear strategy in which full-scale nuclear attack by either side against a nuclear-armed opponent w second-strike capability would guarantee the total destruction of both attacker and defender

ho chi mihn

revolutionary leader and founding president of the democratic republic of vietnam (north) from 1945-1969; earlier a founding member of the french communist party

dien bien phu

13 MAR - 7 MAY 1954

battle between french colonial forces and the viet mihn near the vietnam-laos border, ending in a decisive french defeat and marking the end of french colonial rule in indochina

ngo dihn diem

1st president of the republic of vietnam (south) from 1955 until his overthrow and assassination in a CIA-backed coup in 1963

gulf of tonkin resolution

10 AUG 1964

congressional resolution authorizing president johnson to use conventional military force in southeast asia following the gulf of tonkin incident

viet mihn

abbreviated name for the league for the independence of vietnam. founded by ho chi mihn in 1941, this political and military organization's aim was to achieve national independence from french and japanese colonial rule. members were primarily nationalist and communist in nature. many went to join the viet cong during the vietnam war

viet cong (VC)

communist-led insurgency in the 1950s and 60s in south vietnam. formed from the remnants of the viet mihn who remained in the south after the post-WWII division of vietnam, the VC aimed to overthrow the democratic south vietnamese govt to unite vietnam under communist rule

pacification

a joint US-south vietnamese strategy to win over the rural countryside population in south vietnam during the vietnam war. the key elements of pacification were to provide security, social development, and economic aid to counter the viet cong insurgency in order to gain support for the south vietnamese govt

strategic hamlet

a 1960s US-backed initiative launched by the south vietnamese govt to isolate the rural population from the viet cong by resettling south vietnamese civilians into fortified villages equipped with defenses and defense forces

air mobile

US army units that employ helicopters to quickly transport troops to forwards areas, bypassing difficult terrain or limited infrastructure

robert mcnamara

US secdef under presidents kennedy and johnson, influential in escalating US involvement in the vietnam war and managing military operations through statistical analysis

william c westmoreland

commander of US military assistance command-vietnam (MAC-V) from 1964 to 1968, pursuing a strategy of attrition against north vietnamese and VC forces. following the tet offensive, with declining public support, he was reassigned as US army COS

ho chi mihn trail

network of roads and trails running from north vietnam to south vietnam through neutral laos, used to transport troops and supplies during the vietnam war

tet offensive

30 JAN-23 SEP 1968

battle between french colonial forces and the viet mihn near the vietnam-laos border, ending in a decisive french defeat and marking the end of french colonial rule in indochina

battle of ia drang valley

NOV 1965

1st major engagement between US and north vietnamese forces during the vietnam war. it serves as a 1st crucial test for the US airmobile units and close air support against a heavily entrenched enemy

operation ROLLING THUNDER

2 MAR 1965-2 NOV 1968

gradually escalated US aerial bombing campaign designed to pressure north vietnam to stop supporting the communist insurgency in south vietnam

easter offensive

30 MAR-22 OCT 1972

large-scale north vietnamese conventional attack on south vietnam following US troop withdrawals. overwhelming american airpower helped repel the offensive, resulting in a communist defeat

operation LINEBACKER I/II

9 MAY-29 DEC 1972

US air campaigns against north vietnam to stop the easter offensive and compel north vietnam to negotiate, marking the largest bombing effort since WWII

forward air controller (FAC)

personnel who direct close air support aircraft to accurately engage targets while avoiding friendly forces. with increased effort to protect civilians in the vietnam war, FACs often flew low and slow and were central to targeting, except in free-fire zones or pre-briefed strikes

vietnamization

failed nixon-era policy aimed at ending US involvement in the vietnam war by building up, equipping and training south vietnamese forces

suez crisis

29 OCT-7 NOV 1956

french, british, and israeli invasion of egypt to remove president nasser and regain the nationalized suez canal. international pressure from the US, UN and USSR forced their withdrawal

six-day war

5-10 JUN 1967

israel launched a preemptive strike against egypt, destroying its air force and invading gaza and the sinai peninsula. jordan and syria joined the conflict, but all sides agreed to a ceasefire within days

yom kippur war

6-25 OCT 1973

egypt and syria launched a surprise attack on israel during the jewish holy day of yom kippur. the US resupplied israel while the soviet union supported the arab states. after halting the initial advances, israel counterattacked until a UN-brokered ceasefire ended the fighting

iranian revolution

7 JAN 1978-11 FEB 1979

popular uprising that overthrew shah mohammad reza pahlavi's US-backed monarchy, replacing it with ayatollah khomeini's islamic republic

hezbollah

lebanese shia islamist political party and militant group, founded after israel's 1982 invasion of lebanon, and supported by iran's islamic revolutionary guard corps

hamas

palestinian islamist political party and militant group, founded in 1987 to resist israeli occupation of gaza and the west bank, supported by iran's islamic revolutionary guard corps

all-volunteer force

US military system adopted in 1973, ending the draft in response to widespread public opposition during the vietnam war

operation EAGLE CLAW

24-25 APR 1980

US mission to rescue 53 hostages from the american embassy in tehran, iran. severe sandstorms prevented 3 of 8 hostages from reaching the forward staging area, desert one. president carter ordered the mission aborted, but during the withdrawal, one remaining helicopter collided with a C-130 in low visibility, destroying both aircraft and killing 8 servicemembers. the failed operation highlighted deficiencies in US special operations capabilities and led to the eventual creation of US special operations command

goldwater-nichols act

1 OCT 1986

reorganized the US military chain of command to flow from the president through the secdef to combatant commanders, reducing interservice rivalry and making the joint chiefs of staff primarily an advisory body

mikhail gorbachev

last leader of the soviet union (1985-1991) introduced reforms such as glasnost ("openness") and perestroika ("restructuring") moved the USSR toward social democracy, and survived a failed august 1991 coup, after which the soviet union dissolved

strategic defense initiative

proposed by president reagan in 1983, "star wars" aimed to develop a missile defense system to protect the US from nuclear attacks. Though technologically unfeasible at the time, it pressured the soviet union into costly military spending

soviet-afghan war

1979-1989

soviet intervention in afghanistan to support the communist democratic republic against US and pakistan-based islamist mujahideen. the war killed 1-3 million afghans and contributed to the collapse of the soviet union