Cold War: Berlin Blockade, Airlift, Wall, and Arms Race

Why Berlin?

• Heart of Nazi power: Berlin was the symbolic capital of Germany.

• End of War Race: USA, US, and USSR raced to Berlin.

• Geographical Location: USA and USSR were keen for central European military bases.

• Power and Prestige: Both USA and USSR wanted influence in Berlin.

Problems with Berlin

• Location: Berlin was deep inside the Soviet sector.

• Division: It was divided between the four Allied powers (USSR, USA, Britain, France).

• Joint Control: Germany was run by a Joint Allied Control Commission, and Berlin was run by a joint Allied Kommandatura.

Who Controlled Germany?

• West Germany

Why was there a crisis in Berlin?

• Growing Tensions: Tensions grew between the USSR and the USA, Britain, and France.

• Stalin's Aims: Stalin wanted to keep Germany weak to prevent any future invasion.

• Blocking Western Allies: Stalin wanted to force the Western Allies (Britain and France) out of West Berlin.

• Berlin Blockade: In June 1948, Stalin blocked all routes in and out of Berlin: road, rail, and canal routes were all cut. All surface transport links were severed.

The Berlin Airlift

• Response: The choice to fly supplies in was taken.

• Significance: This meant the Western Allies wouldn't give in to Stalin but also wouldn't provoke a war.

• Pressure on Stalin: It placed pressure back on Stalin because he couldn't just shoot down planes.

How were the Berliners kept alive?

• Supply Flights: For eleven months, food and other supplies were flown into Berlin by British, French, and U.S. planes.

• Living Conditions: Inhabitants of West Berlin in 1948 lived on dried potatoes, powdered eggs, and cans of meat, with just 4 hours of electricity per day.

• Scale of Airlift: 275,000 flights carried in 1.5 million tons of supplies. At its peak, one plane landed every few minutes.

• Cost: The airlift cost over 100 million, together with the lives of 79 service men who died in accidents.

Was the airlift a success?

• End of Blockade: In May 1949, Stalin called off the blockade.

• The Berlin Wall: Stalin had the wall built between the nations; it highlighted the divisions between East and West and made the divisions more permanent. They lasted until the 1990s.

Result of Airlift

• Cold War Escalation: The Cold War worsened; war had almost broken out.

• Division of Germany: Germany would now be split up into West and East Germany.

• Arms Race: Both sides focused on building conventional and nuclear weapons.

• NATO and Warsaw Pact: Defensive alliances would be set up.

After the Blockade

• Federal Republic of Germany (FRG): In May 1949, the Western Allies set up the new Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) – West Germany.

• German Democratic Republic (GDR): In October 1949, the USSR responded by creating the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

Problems after Berlin Airlift

• East Germany: Berlin was a massive problem for East Germany because it was an escape route to the West. Between 1945 and 1961, 1/6 of the East German population had fled to the West. These were young, well-qualified people, exactly those East Germany didn't want to lose.

• Desire to remove the West out of Berlin: The new USSR leader Khrushchev, like Stalin, wanted the West out of Berlin.

• Espionage: Both Sides accused the other of spying (which was entirely accurate).

• Soviet Concerns: The Soviets continued to see Western influence in Berlin as dangerous and troublesome.

• Paris Summit Collapse: Khrushchev hoped that the issue would be resolved at the Paris Summit of 1960, but this collapsed due to the U-2 spy plane incident. Tensions thus again rapidly grew between East and West Germany.

The Wall

• Containing East Berliners: In August 1961, Berliners woke up to find their city divided in half. The construction of the Berlin Wall had begun.

• Border Control: East German guards patrolled the wall and shot anyone trying to escape over it.

Cold War Arms Race (1949-1989)

• Definition: Competition between the United States and USSR, which competed in the development of their weapons.

People Involved and Their Roles

• John F. Kennedy: US President (1961-1963)

• Richard Nixon: US President (1969-1974)

• Nikita Khrushchev: USSR President (1953-1964)

• Klaus Emil Julius Fuchs: Contributor to the development of nuclear weapons.

Countries Involved

• Directly: United States and Soviet Union

• Indirectly: Turkey and Cuba

Timeline of Events

• 1945: First A-Bomb

• 1949: First USSR A-Bomb

• 1952: US tests H-Bomb

• Jan. 1954: Massive retaliation

• Aug. 21, 1957: First USSR ICBM (Inter Continental Ballistic Missile)

• July 9, 1959: US develops ICBM technology.

• May 1960: U-2 incident

• October 1961: Soviets detonate Tsar Bomba

• Oct. 16 1962: Cuban Missile Crisis

• March 23, 1983: Strategic Defense Initiative

Social Effects

• US Focus: US focused on science and math.

• Academic Competition: Academic competition between US and USSR.

• Constant Alert: Worry and unease

• Military Strength: Strengthened their military.

• Civil Defense: Public schools held civil defense classes "duck and cover" drills.

• Food Stockpiles

• Underground Facilities

• Bomb/Fallout Shelters

• Emergency Broadcast System

USSR

• Public training

• Food Stockpiles

• Fallout Shelters

Operation Postmaster

• Covert Mission: A covert mission by the British Special Operation Executive (SOE).

• Churchill's Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare: Creation of Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.

Introduction

• Date: Jan. 14-15, 1942

• Location: Fernando Po (part of Equatorial Guinea)

• Aim: To capture Italian and German ships from a neutral Spanish Harbor

• Importance: A strategic mission to disrupt Nazi supply lines and logistics.

• Special mission assigned directly from British PM Winston Churchill.

Background

• Nazi Ships: Nazi ships were using neutral harbors to avoid Allied attacks.

• SOE Aim: The SOE aimed to interrupt these activities without breaching international law.

Planning

• Operatives: Operatives led by Major Gus March Phillips.

• Plan: Steal Italian and German vessels without engaging Spanish authorities.

The Operation

• Date: Jan. 14, 1942

• Tactics: SOE operatives infiltrated the harbor, seized the ships (Duchessa and a German Tug).

• Outcome: The ships were towed to Lagos, Nigeria.

• Minimal Resistance: The plan was to have no shots fired, minimal resistance, but it did not go fully to plan.

Success and Impact

• SOE Success: A major SOE success with international political implications.

• Political Embarrassment: Embarrassed Nazi powers and strained Spanish-Axis relations.

• Morale Boost: Boosted morale for Allied operations in Africa.

• First Use: First use of spies in both on land and at sea operations.

Legacy

• Celebrated Mission: Operation Postmaster remains a celebrated SOE mission.

• Set Precedent: Set a precedent for future covert naval operations.