Origins of the Cold War
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Transcript of Origins of the Cold War
Origins of the Cold War
1945 to 1950
A. WWII alliance dissolves due to differences1. Great Britain power falls (third place)2. France rebuilding from the war
B. WWII leaves two “Super Powers”1. Soviet Union = Communist2. United States = Democracy
I.) Conflicts Begin
VS
Definition of Cold War:political tension and military rivalry
between nations that stops short of full-scale war
Outcome:struggle between Communism and Democracycalled the Cold War (USSR=East, USA =
West)
The Ideological Struggle(Beliefs)
Soviet & Eastern Bloc
Nations[“Iron
Curtain”]
US & the Western
Democracies
GOAL spread world-wide Communism
GOAL “Containment” of Communism & the eventual collapse of the Communist world.
The Bipolarization of Europe
A. Soviet Union wanted to protect itself from
any future attacks Result: Stalin creates the Iron
Curtain (communist nations along western border of the
Soviet Union)
II.) The Iron Curtain Emerges
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvax5VUvjWQ&feature=related&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active“Term Iron Curtain Coined By Winston Churchill”
A. Civil War breaks out in Greece1. Communists vs. Conservatives
B. March 2, 1947 President Truman issues the Truman Doctrine (communism a threat and
must support free peoples resisting threat)
Outcome: Congress provides money & assistance to Greece to stop rebellion
III.) Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine in March 1947 promised that the USA “would support free peoples who are resisting subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures”.
Promised to provide economic and
military aid to oppose the spread of communism◦ Sent millions of dollars in aid to Greece and
TurkeyIt signalled the end of “isolationst” policies.
Tehran – Invade already Potsdam – Unconditional Surrender Yalta – The Big Three make the BIG
decisions◦ Split up Germany into four sectors◦ USSR in UN◦ “I promise to support democracy” Stalin◦ Soviets will help with Japan
What were the agreements made during the war that helped lead to the Cold War?
A. Western leaders fear poverty & destruction
of WWII might lead to communismB. Marshall Plan (Economic Assistance
plan by U.S. that provided money to nations in Europe to rebuild & foster cooperation)
Outcome: Western Europe recovers(The Soviet Union (USSR) prevented Eastern European
countries from receiving American money.)
IV.) Marshall Plan
C. Policy of Containment: prevent the further spread of communism
A. In 1947 Soviets create Cominform (unify all
European communist parties)B. Communism spreads: 1. 1948: Czechoslovakia 2. 1948: Yugoslavia
V.) Cold War in Europe
Iron Curtain – A term used by Winston
Churchill to describe the separating of Those
communistlands of East Europe from
the West.
The Russians took very high casualties to capture Berlin in May 1945. They spent the early occupation trying to take over all zones of the city but were stopped by German democrats such as Willy Brandt and Konrad Adenauer. Reluctantly the Russians had to admit the Americans, French and British to their respective zones.
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A. June 1948: Soviets blockade Berlin Result: Berlin Airlift: U.S. and Britain
provide food and supplies by air drops to West Berlin
Outcome: Soviets lift blockade May 1949
VI.) Division of Germany
B. May 1949: Federal Republic of Germany created (West Germany)
C. October 1949: German Democratic Republic created (East Germany)
A. Need for alliances begin:
1. 1949= Mao Zedong defeats Chiang Kai-shek
in Chinese Civil WarOutcome: China is now Communist!!
VII.) Cold War Alliances
} 2. The Soviet Union explodes its first A-bomb in 1949.
} Outcome: Now there are two nations with nuclear weapons!
The USA had shown its atomic power when it exploded the A-bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War 2.
The USSR was also developing atomic weapons/bombs.
The USA and the USSR were in competition with each other to have the best, most powerful weapons in the world – this was called the Arms Race.
Nuclear tensions
http://www.archive.org/details/DuckandC1951
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The nuclear bomb gave America a lead which was expected to last at least 5 years. The rapid Russian development of nuclear technology, helped by the work of the “atom spies” was a shock.
Significantly, Russia hurriedly declared war against Japan at the beginning of August 1945 and rushed to advance into Asia to stake out a position for the post-war settlement. This helped make both the Korean and Vietnamese conflicts more likely.
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NATO: 12 Western nations sign a political and military alliance
1. if one nation is attacked then all members will respond
Warsaw Pact: Eastern Bloc nations form a mutual defense alliance