Cold WarUS History

Cold War

Period of intense confrontation and rivalry between the U.S. and Russia after World War II.

United Nations

International securityVoting body

Security Council

General Assembly

In April, representatives of 50 countries, including the US, adopted the charter for the United Nations, an organization dedicated to cooperation in solving international problems.

Conflicting Postwar GoalsAmerican Goals• Wanted to develop

strong capitalist economies, which would provide good markets for American products

Soviet Goals

• Wanted to establish Soviet satellite nations, countries subject to Soviet domination and sympathetic to Soviet goals

• Wanted to promote the spread of communism throughout the world

Soviet ActionsStalin refuses satellite to allow free elections in Poland.Soviets establish satellites nations & the iron curtain (imaginary line that runs thru Europe, separating free Western Europe from Russian controlled Eastern Europe).Soviets form Cuniform to promote ultimate worldwide triumph of communism.Soviets support Communist revolutions in Greece & Turkey.

US Actions

Truman criticizes Soviets for not allowing Polish elections.

US establishes the policy of containment.

Truman issues the Truman Doctrine, which is the containment of communism.

US sends aid to Greece & Turkey, & establishes military bases there.

The Marshall Plan• The Marshall Plan was created in 1947 by U.S.

Secretary of State George C. Marshall as a means to achieve these goals. According to the Marshall Plan, participating nations would design recovery programs and would receive financial aid from the United States. A plan to rebuild war torn western Europe.

The Berlin Airlift• In June 1948, Stalin banned all shipments to

West Berlin through East Germany, creating a blockade which threatened to cut off supplies to the city.

• In response, Allied nations began the Berlin airlift, which delivered thousands of tons of food and other supplies to West Berlin via air for 10 months

NATOWhat was NATO?• The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was

formed in April 1949.• In joining NATO, the US, Canada, & ten Western

European nations pledged to support one another against attack, a principle known as collective security.

• In response, the Soviet Union created the Warsaw Pact, a military alliance between the Soviet Union & its satellite nations.

President Truman Signs the NATO Treaty

COMMUNIST ADVANCESThe Soviet Atomic Threat• In September 1949,

Truman announced that the Soviet Union had successfully tested an atomic bomb.

• In response, the US began developing the even more powerful hydrogen bomb, reestablishing itself as the world’s leading nuclear power.

• The newly formed Federal Civil Defense Administration distributed information on how to survive a nuclear attack;

China Falls to the Communists

• At first, the US supported Nationalist leader Jiang Jieshi against Communist Mao Zedong.

• Many Americans viewed Mao Zedong’s creation of a Communist state in China as a failure of Truman’s policies.

The Cold War at Home• Fueled by fears of disloyal

immigrants from Communist countries, the 1952 McCarran-Walter Act reestablished the immigration quota system from 1924. This act discriminated against potential immigrants from Asia and Southern and Central Europe.

• Two famous spy cases reinforced fears that Soviet spies in the United States were sharing American secrets with foreign Communists. These were the cases of Alger Hiss and of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.

The Rosenbergs

Cold War at Home cont.Baby boomers – babies born 10 to

12 year period after WWII.Election of 1948 – Harry Truman

wins using “Fair Deal” (more reforms)

Taft-Hartley Act – to keep unions from abusing their power.

Northern Migration – Thousands of African Americans move north for factory jobs.

Korean War

The “Forgotten War” 54,000 killed Police action – undeclared war Domino theory – belief that if one country falls to

communism the others will fall.

CausesChina falls to the CommunistsSoviet forces accept surrender of Japanese forces in northern Korea.American forces accept surrender of Japanese forces in southern Korea.Korea is divided at the 38th parallel: A Communist regime is created in the north & a pro-American government is set up in the south

North Korea Invades South Korea

EffectsTruman is determined to end Communist expansionA UN command is set up to defend South KoreaThe US provides the majority of troops for the UN forceChina enters the war to support North KoreaThe Korean War is fought to a stalemate at the 38th parallelAmerican are frustrated with the resultUS increases military spending & establishes permanent mobilization.

Korean War Map

Changes Brought by the WarPost-Korean War Changes in America• Warfare — Limited war, limited victory• Integration of the Military — First war in which

white Americans & African Americans served in the same units

• Increased Power of the Military — A military-industrial complex developed as the military established links with the corporate and scientific communities.

• Foreign Policy in Asia — September 1951 peace treaty signed with Japan; relations worsen with Communist China

McCarthyismMcCarthy’s Rise to Power• McCarthy produced a list of

250 names of presumed Communist-supporting government employees. (2nd Red Scare)

• Although McCarthy’s accusations were usually baseless & improvable, few were willing to risk their reputations by speaking out against him.

McCarthy’s Fall• In early 1954,

McCarthyism, the name given to McCarthy’s crusade, reached the army.

• Democrats asked that the hearings between McCarthy & the army be televised, hoping to swing popular opinion against McCarthy.

The Cold War at Home• The House Un-American Activities

Committee (HUAC) began investigating Hollywood personalities who the committee claimed, had Communist leanings. When one group, known as the Hollywood Ten, refused to answer HUAC’s questions, they were cited for contempt of Congress & imprisoned.

• Hollywood studios compiled a blacklist. Blacklisted individuals came from all sections of the industry & included anyone who seemed subversive.

The Arms Race• Throughout the 1950s, the United

States and the Soviet Union competed in an arms race.

• Deterrence, the policy of maintaining a military arsenal so strong that no enemy will attack for fear of retaliation.

• The American policy of brinkmanship involved bringing the United States to the brink of war without actually entering into war.

Arms Race in the Sky• To carry bombs to their targets,

the Soviet Union developed long-range rockets known as intercontinental ballistic missiles, or ICBMs.

• When a Soviet guided missile shot down an American U-2 spy plane, the resulting U-2 incident shattered American confidence and prompted a desire to match—and surpass—Soviet weapons technology.

NASA and the Space Program• The Soviet Union’s launch of the Sputnik satellite in

1957 inspired the US to work toward placing a manned spacecraft in orbit.

• Funding for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was increased. In 1961 & 1962, American astronauts made initial space flights.

• On July 20, 1969, American astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the moon.

The Bay of Pigs InvasionGoals of the Bay of

Pigs Invasion• The US government

was disturbed when Fidel Castro took over Cuba in 1959 & developed ties to the Soviet Union.

• To overthrow Castro, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) trained a group of Cubans to invade Cuba.

Bay of Pigs InvasionOutcome of the

Invasion• Air strikes failed to

destroy Cuba’s air force, and Cuban troops were more than a match for the invaders.

• The US lost credibility for its clumsy invasion tactics as well as its violation of agreements not to interfere in the Western Hemisphere.

The Berlin CrisisCauses of the Berlin

Crisis• The division of Berlin was

planned as a temporary measure. However, the Soviet Union demanded that the division of the city be made permanent, hoping this would reduce the flow of East Germans escaping through Berlin to West Germany.

Effects of the Berlin Crisis

• In response to Soviet demands, Kennedy increased funding to the military & expanded the size of the armed forces.

• To avoid a confrontation, the Soviets built a wall to separate the Communist & non-Communist sections of Berlin in August 1961.

• The Berlin Wall came to be a somber symbol of Cold War tensions.

The Wall….

The Cuban Missile Crisis• On October 16, 1962, photographs taken from an

American spy plane showed construction of Soviet missile bases in Cuba, about 90 miles from the coast of Florida.

• After much consultation with his advisors, President Kennedy decided to authorize a naval “quarantine” around Cuba. He demanded that Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev cease construction of the missile bases.

• On October 25, Soviet ships headed for Cuba suddenly reversed direction, called back by Khrushchev. This action led to tremendous relief since confrontation, and the threat of nuclear war, had been avoided.

• The Cuban Missile Crisis brought the superpowers to the brink of nuclear war.

Results of the Cuban Missile Crisis• In the end, the Soviet Union agreed to

remove its missiles from Cuba. In return, the US agreed to end the quarantine, stay out of Cuba, & remove missiles of its own from Turkey.

• As a result of the crisis, Kennedy & Khrushchev established a “hot line” with which they could communicate quickly in case of further crises.

• In addition, the US & the Soviet Union, together with Great Britain, signed the Limited Test Ban Treaty in 1963. This treaty banned nuclear testing above the ground.

Israel

In 1948, became a homeland for the Jews.