End of the Cold War

Terms and People Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) – proposed program that would use land and space-based lasers to destroy missiles aimed at the United States. Contras – anticommunist counterrevolutionaries in Nicaragua who were backed by the Reagan administration Mikhail Gorbachev – the President of the Soviet Union beginning in 1985 who ushered in a new era of social and economic reforms

Terms and People (continued) glasnost – Russian term meaning “a new openness”; a policy in the Soviet Union in the 1980s calling for open discussion of national problems perestroika − a policy in the Soviet Union in the 1980s calling for restructuring of the stagnant Soviet economy Iran-Contra affair − a political scandal under President Reagan involving the use of money from secret arms sales to Iran to illegally support the Contras in Nicaragua; violated the policy of refusing to negotiate with terrorists. 3

What were Reagan’s foreign policies, and how did they contribute to the fall of communism in Europe? President Reagan believed that the United States should seek to roll back Soviet rule in Eastern Europe and that peace would come through strength. His foreign policies initially created tensions between the superpowers, but ultimately contributed to the end of the Cold War.

President Reagan believed that communism could be weakened by building up the American military, through a massive arms buildup. Reagan did not think that the Soviet Union could afford to spend as much on defense. The military build-up included the Strategic Defense Initiative. Defense spending rose dramatically.

The Reagan administration also aimed to weaken the Soviet Union by supporting anticommunist groups around the world. Afghanistan – U.S.–backed guerillas fought Soviet forces. El Salvador - The U.S. backed the right-wing government against leftist rebels. Grenada - U.S. troops invaded to prevent the nation from becoming a communist outpost. Nicaragua - The U.S. backed Contras to prevent the new government from providing the Soviets with a “safe house” in America’s backyard. Some of these actions were legally questionable.

Mikhail Gorbachev became the president of the Soviet Union in 1985. His twin policies of glasnost and perestroika moved the Soviet Union away from socialism and marked the beginning of a new era in U.S.–Soviet relations. Some scholars also credit Reagan’s arms buildup with hastening the collapse of the Soviet Union. 7

In 1989, several Eastern European nations ousted their communist regimes. Poland Hungary Czechoslovakia Germany Bulgaria Romania The fall of the Berlin Wall in Germany symbolized the end of communism in Europe. Signed the START I treaty – reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the world.

The Soviet Union broke apart in 1991. Newly elected President George H.W. Bush signed agreements with Gorbachev and his successor, President Boris Yeltsin. They pledged friendship, cooperation, and reduction in the buildup of nuclear weapons. The Cold War, which had lasted more than 45 years, was finally over. 9

But the United States continued to confront trouble in the Middle East. The United States clashed with Libya throughout the 1980s. In 1983, 241 American marines were killed in Lebanon.

But Congress banned sending funds to the Contras in 1983. The Iran-Contra affair damaged Reagan’s reputation during his second term. The U.S used the money from gun sales to secretly fund the Contras in Nicaragua. In return, Iran pressured Lebanese terror groups to release some American hostages. In 1985, the United States sold weapons to Iran. But Congress banned sending funds to the Contras in 1983. Several leading Reagan officials were convicted in this scandal, but Reagan remained popular after he left office.