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Containment and a Divided Global Order

Origins of the Cold War

Post War Power Vacuum

  • England and France are weak

  • USSR and US are strong

Yalta - USSR promises to help fight Japan and hold fair elections in E. Europe

UN - Replaces League of Nations, UN Security Council (US, USSR, England, France, China)

Potsdam - Truman replaces FDR, sets up communist rule of E. Europe

  • Churchill says an iron curtain has fallen in Europe

  • Germany → East and West

The Containment Strategy

Containment - counter USSR by containing the spread of communism

  • George Kennan writes the Long Telegram, described the containment strategy

US over England

  • England’s power and control decreases

  • Specifically in Asia (ie. India)

Truman Doctrine - US will fight communism using military and economic aid

Marshall Plan - US is scared of another Great Depression and rise of totalitarianism, so they send $13 billion to Europe

  • Makes the US look good and gives them trading partners

Berlin Blockade - US flies supplies to West Berlin because Stalin stopped all travel to West Berlin

  • Symbol of resistance of communism

  • NATO is backed by the US

  • Warsaw Pact is backed by USSR

  • Yugoslavia is communist, but not part of the USSR block

Nuclear Weapons

USSR Nukes

  • First atomic bomb detonated in September of 1949

  • Truman establishes the National Security Council (NSC)

NSC-68 was released by the National Security Council and advocated for militarization

  • US builds hydrogen bomb

Containment in Asia

US makes a constitution in Japan

  • Still has the emperor

  • US military will protect Japan

Civil War in China

  • Mao (communist) vs Jiang Jieshi (capitalist)

  • Mao wins, China is a communist nation

  • China allies with the USSR for protection from the US

Korean War (aka the Forgotten War)

  • North Korea invades South Korea

  • General MacArthur lead the UN and S. Korea to invade N. Korea

  • China is drawn into the war

  • Border ends up near the 38th parallel

Munich Analogy

  • Resist the USSR as much as possible because of appeasement of the Nazis in 1938

C

Containment and a Divided Global Order

Origins of the Cold War

Post War Power Vacuum

  • England and France are weak

  • USSR and US are strong

Yalta - USSR promises to help fight Japan and hold fair elections in E. Europe

UN - Replaces League of Nations, UN Security Council (US, USSR, England, France, China)

Potsdam - Truman replaces FDR, sets up communist rule of E. Europe

  • Churchill says an iron curtain has fallen in Europe

  • Germany → East and West

The Containment Strategy

Containment - counter USSR by containing the spread of communism

  • George Kennan writes the Long Telegram, described the containment strategy

US over England

  • England’s power and control decreases

  • Specifically in Asia (ie. India)

Truman Doctrine - US will fight communism using military and economic aid

Marshall Plan - US is scared of another Great Depression and rise of totalitarianism, so they send $13 billion to Europe

  • Makes the US look good and gives them trading partners

Berlin Blockade - US flies supplies to West Berlin because Stalin stopped all travel to West Berlin

  • Symbol of resistance of communism

  • NATO is backed by the US

  • Warsaw Pact is backed by USSR

  • Yugoslavia is communist, but not part of the USSR block

Nuclear Weapons

USSR Nukes

  • First atomic bomb detonated in September of 1949

  • Truman establishes the National Security Council (NSC)

NSC-68 was released by the National Security Council and advocated for militarization

  • US builds hydrogen bomb

Containment in Asia

US makes a constitution in Japan

  • Still has the emperor

  • US military will protect Japan

Civil War in China

  • Mao (communist) vs Jiang Jieshi (capitalist)

  • Mao wins, China is a communist nation

  • China allies with the USSR for protection from the US

Korean War (aka the Forgotten War)

  • North Korea invades South Korea

  • General MacArthur lead the UN and S. Korea to invade N. Korea

  • China is drawn into the war

  • Border ends up near the 38th parallel

Munich Analogy

  • Resist the USSR as much as possible because of appeasement of the Nazis in 1938

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