Post – WWII Foreign Policy 1945 - 1960

What happened after the War?? Cleaning up the Mess What happened after the War??

Where do we begin?? In your opinion what were the biggest foreign policy concerns for the US immediately after WWII?

What happens to Germany after WWII? Potsdam Conference – the 1st time Truman meets w/ Churchill and Stalin (July-August 1945) Agree on joint occupation of Germany West = British, French & USA.This was the industrialized sector East = USSR, poorer more rural sector Joint administration of Berlin which lies in the USSR controlled East

POTSDAM

The Significance of Potsdam “There are moments when the drama of our times seems to focus on a single scene. The meeting at Potsdam is one of these moments” -Truman, by David McCullough

Nuremberg Trials German war crime trials International military trial 12 Nazi leaders were executed, 7 were jailed Many escaped or hid their identities

Robert Jackson (USA) – Lead Prosecutor

Victor's Justice? Some of the potential criticisms of the trial are: The Nuremberg judges came from the same four countries as the prosecutors: the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and France, which together had formed the International Military Tribunal. The defense attorneys, in contrast, were all Germans. The Allied countries had committed some of the very acts that the defendants were accused of committing, such as bombing civilians. The defendants were accused of committing crimes that were not legally defined as crimes at the time they were committed, such as waging aggressive war. Under the rules of the court, defendants were responsible for the acts they committed even if they were just following orders.

A Survivor Speaks “For months, for years we had one wish only: the wish that some of us would escape alive, in order to tell the world what the Nazi convict prisons were like. There was the systematic…..urge to use human beings as slaves and to kill them when they could work no more” - Marie Vaillant

What happens to Japan after WWII? USA occupied Japan from 1945 – 1952 Douglas MacArthur, his staff, and a new Japanese Congress ran the country 1947 – new Japanese Constitution, set up a democracy and abolished the army and navy

Trials in Tokyo 1946 MacArthur sets up Military Tribunal 20 Japanese military leaders 5/1946 – 11/1948 Hideki Tojo and 7 other were executed Set precedent holding people responsible for “war crimes”

MacArthur and Hirohito

Tojo Takes the Stand at Trial

Eleanor lends a hand in creating the “Declaration of Human Rights”

How do we prevent another world conflict? The United Nations 10/24/1945 – It’s official 50 Nations Established the General Assembly & Security Council, 5 permanent members Headquarters – NYC Eleanor Roosevelt was on the US’s first delegates to the UN

The UN Charter WE THE PEOPLES OF THE UNITED NATIONS DETERMINED: to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom

Harry Signs the Charter

UN Headquarters in NYC

THE ICJ – The Hague, Netherlands

Ban Ki-Moon

The Founding of Israel Zionism – movement seeking a Jewish homeland (1900s) After WWII many Jews moved to Palestine in instead of back to Europe Both the Torah and Quran claim this as “holy land” Area was Ottoman controlled for 500 yrs until 1919 Palestine was controlled by the UK since 1919

The UN & Israel The UN ruled that 2 states would be created out of Palestine, one controlled by the Jews and one Arab controlled This was rejected by the Arab states = 1948 Arab-Israeli War 1949 official boundaries established

Arab – Israeli conflict cont. Arab countries that attacked Israel in 1948 were: Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan along with Palestinian forces US Diplomat Ralph Bunche convinced both sides to accept the 1949 armistice A permanent determination on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip is yet to be negotiated

Ban Ki-Moon 1/2009 “I believe a massive and united international effort is required to help Palestinians achieve statehood and Israel and Palestine to live side by side in peace and security. I am more determined than ever to see this achieved.”