Unit 3: Cold War Crises: Berlin & Cuba

Riots in Germany 1953

East Berlin & East Germany about economic conditions, settled with Red Army

Why was West Berlin appealing to East Berliners?

West was glamorous, thriving, and free; East was laborious and strict

What was the Brain Drain?

Young and skilled East Germans leaving to West Berlin

Why did Khrushchev want both Germanies to be their own countries and what did he do to try and make this happen?

Proposed a peace treaty; would allow GDR to block access to Berlin without breaking UN agreements, causing West Berlin to lose it’s lifeline and go communist

Why was the Berlin Ultimatum created and what did it do? (1958)

Feared West Germany acquiring nukes, feared East Germany’s economy failing, pressure from GDR

Who was the leader of the GDR (German Democratic Republic)?

Walter Ulbricht

Who was the leader after the Geneva Conference and Paris Summit?

JFK (John F. Kennedy)

What was Khrushchev’s impression of JFK and why?

Believed JFK was weak and inexperienced, failure at Bay of Pigs invasion added to this

What did Flexible Response do and outline?

Replaced Brinkmanship, avoided war; spending on conventional forces, more atomic weapons, continued CIA operations, gave economic aid to countries against communism, negotiations with USSR

When did Khrushchev and JFK first meet?

Vienna Summit, 1961

What happened after Khrushchev and JFK met?

Khrushchev renewed Berlin Ultimatum

What was JFK’s response to the renewal of the Berlin Ultimatum?

Increased military spending, announced USA wouldn’t abandon West Berlin

What were the steps of the Berlin Wall creation and why did it start?

Refugees fleeing from East to West increased; Border to Berlin closed, barbed wire fence was formed Aug. 1961, inner wall was built

What were the layers of the wall?

10ft inner wall, 10ft, barbed wire fence, road w/tanks and troops, sniper towers, 12ft wall

Why did the wall surround West Berlin?

Only way from the satellite states to the West was through Berlin border

What started the major conflict of the Berlin crisis after the wall went up?

Western official Allen Lightner was stopped from heading to East Berlin; tank convoy was moved to checkpoint Charlie to condemn shutting down travel between cities

Who did JFK reappoint during the Berlin crisis that lead the tank convoy?

Lucius Clay

What were the checkpoints of the Berlin wall?

Alpha, Bravo, Charlie

What was Khrushchev’s response to USA’s tank convoy?

USSR moved tanks to border as well

How did the second Berlin crisis end?

Khrushchev and JFK agreed to move military forces away from city border

Why was Ulbricht satisfied with the deescalating of conflict in Berlin despite not having control over East Germany’s access routes or a peace treaty?

Could establish/strengthen communist control of GDR in East Germany because of the Berlin wall

What did JFK’s speech in West Berlin June 1963 state?

Condemned USSR’s actions during second Berlin Crisis; claimed wall was admission of USSR’s defeat

When did the Berlin Wall come down?

1989

When was the Tellar Agreement signed and what did it outline?

1901 after the Spanish-American War; USA would stay out of Cuba

When was the Platt Agreement signed and what did it outline?

1902; overruled the Tellar Agreement, USA would have influence over Cuban government and territory (cowrite the Cuban Constitution, have military in Cuba)

What was the USA naval base established in Cuba during the 20th century?

Guantanamo Bay

Who did Teddy Roosevelt lead in the Spanish-American war?

The Charge of Rough Riders

Who was the president of Cuba in the 1940s and the 1950s?

General Fulgencio Batista

Which party was Batista a part of?

Democratic Socialist Coalition

Why did Castro not like Batista?

Limited rights of Cuban people and politicians to stay in power

What was Castro before he became a political leader?

Lawyer

Which party was Castro a part of?

Cuban People’s Party

What was Castro’s full name?

Fidel Castro

What did Batista do to stop Castro from winning the 1952 election?

Staged military coup to seize power

Which attack did Castro lead and fail and what did it lead to?

Attack on Moncada Army Barracks, he was imprisoned

What was the speech Castro gave on trial and what was it about?

History Will Absolve Me; injustices in Cuba

Where was Castro exiled to?

Mexico

Who was Castro’s second in command?

Che Guevara

What was the Cuba military called?

Junta

Where was the guerrilla war between Castro and the rebels vs. the Cuban military in 1956?

Sierra Maestra Mountains

What happened in the fight between the rebels and the Cuban miltary?

Won the battle and captured Havana

What did Castro do when he became the new Cuban leader and what was the USA’s response?

Wanted to nationalize Cuba’s resources and remove American influence on Cuba; called Castro communist

What happened when Castro asked for USA economic aid and why?

OAS denied as nationalizing Cuba went against US interests

What does OAS stand for?

Organization of American States

What happened with the Cubans aligned with USA and Batista?

Loyal to US refused Castro as leader and fled to US; didn’t support revolution in 1980s or served Batista were imprisoned, deported, and executed

What was Castro’s response to being denied USA economic assistance?

Turned to USSR who offered financial aid in 1960

What happened after Cuba aligned with USSR?

Created embargo on exports to Cuba, organized invasion against Cuba, helped attempt coup against Castro

Which plan was given to Eisenhower by the CIA?

Train Cuban exiles and aid them in the Bay of Pigs invasion to overthrow Fidel Castro in 1960

Why did the Bay of Pigs invasion fail?

Kennedy didn’t want the US directly involved and didn’t supply enough to the exiles

What were the effects of the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion?

Undermined Kennedy’s position international negotiations, made people believe USA is colonialist, proved USA fear of Latin-American revolutions and independence, and turned other Latin-American governments against USA

What was USSR, UN, and Cuba’s responses to the Bay of Pigs invasion?

Khrushchev criticized USA, UN condemned it, Castro declared Cuba Marxist-Leninist (securing USSR funding and military aid)

How did USA try to sabotage Cuba?

CIA espionage, assassinations attempts on Castro, diplomatic and economic isolation of Cuba, threatened military exercises in Puerto Rico, and targeted Cuban industries trying to turn people against Castro

Why did Khrushchev put IRBMs in Cuba?

Protect Cuban independence, threaten USA (countering USA atomic weapons in Turkey), spread global communism, and strengthen position as leader of USSR

What does IRBM stand for?

Intermediate-Rang Ballistic Missile

What does ICBM stand for?

Intercontinental Ballistic Missile

What does MIRV stand for?

Multiple Independently-targeted Reentry Vehicles

What does ABM stand for?

Anti-Ballistic Missile

What alerted the USA of USSR IRBMs in Cuba? (1962)

U-2 spy plane photos

What were Khrushchev demands in the first telegram sent to Kennedy?

USA would pledge not to invade Cuba, USSR would remove atomic weapons in Cuba

What were Khrushchev demands in the second telegram sent to Kennedy?

USA would remove atomic weapons in Turkey

What happened with the U-2 spy planes in Cuba?

One was shot down; USA citizens and politicians demanded military actions (saw it as a declaration of war)

What did USA do in response to the U-2 spy plane being shot down over Cuba?

Created naval blockade around Cuba to stop USSR missiles being given to Cuba

What was USSR’s response to USA naval blockade?

Demanded removals, stated it violated USSR & Cuba international rights

What state of war did Kennedy put USA into during the Cuban Missile Crisis?

Defcon 2

Who told Kennedy to agree to Khrushchev’s first telegram’s demands but not the second one?

Former USA ambassador to USSR Llewellyn Thompson

Why were the tensions high during the peak of the Cuban Missile Crisis?

USSR atomic weapons in Cuba aimed at USA, USA atomic weapons in Turkey aimed at USSR, strike against Cuba or USSR navy would cause nuclear annihilation

Who met to discuss the removal of atomic weapons in Turkey?

Attorney General Robert Kennedy and Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin

How was the Cuban Missile Crisis resolved?

Khrushchev and Kennedy called to negotiate removal of missiles in Cuba, agreement was kept secret

How did the Cuban Missile Crisis impact Khrushchev’s reputation?

USSR leaders and citizens believed he backed down due to American pressure; Khrushchev’s reputation was ruined

How did the Cuban Missile Crisis impact Kennedy’s reputation?

Kennedy was praised for handling the crisis; Kennedy’s reputation increased for missile removal