In 1950, North Korea (using Soviet weapons) attacked South Korea South Korea asked the United Nations for help; the UN sent troops to Korea to contain communism UN forces push North Korea back, but China enters the war After WWII, Korea was divided along the 38° with a communist gov’t in North Korea & a democracy in South Korea

1953 – Ceasefire; 38° parallel restored as the boundary between North & South Korea

U.S.-Soviet relations changed in 1953 when Stalin died Nikita Khrushchev took over and began to aggressively challenge U.S. influence in the world In 1955, Khrushchev formed a communist alliance to rival NATO, called the Warsaw Pact In 1956, the Soviet Union threatened expansion into the Middle East President Eisenhower responded with the Eisenhower Doctrine, pledging the USA to protect the Middle East from Communism

In 1957, the USSR launched Sputnik, the first satellite into space Sputnik shocked Americans who feared the U.S. had fallen behind in science & technology In 1957, the USSR launched Sputnik, the first satellite into space As a result of Sputnik, the Cold War escalated into a space race to show American & Soviet dominance

The U.S. government passed the National Defense Education Act to promote math, science, and technology education and to fund university research

The U2 Incident 1960 – U2 spy plane shot down over Soviet Union CIA pilot – Gary Powers – was captured, tried and convicted of espionage, and sent to a Russian prison Eisenhower is unsuccessful at getting Powers released Powers eventually exchanged for a Russian spy in 1962

In his farewell speech, Eisenhower warned against the “military industrial complex”—overspending & over-prioritizing military over basic American needs

John Kennedy becomes President in 1961 In JFK’s first year in office, Soviet leader Khrushchev threatened to cut off access to West Berlin JFK vowed to never give up access to West Berlin I am directing the Secretary of Defense to undertake a reorganization and modernization o the Army's divisional structure, to increase its non-nuclear firepower, to improve its tactical mobility in any environment, to insure its flexibility to meet any direct or indirect threat, to facilitate its coordination with our major allies, and to provide more modern mechanized divisions in Europe and bring their equipment up to date, and [to provide] new airborne brigades in both the Pacific and Europe. President John F. Kennedy

Rather than blockade the city, Communist leaders built the Berlin Wall

Walls and other barriers 10–15 feet high surrounded West Berlin Walls and other barriers 10–15 feet high surrounded West Berlin. The length of the barriers around the city totaled about 110 miles The “death strip” stretched like a barren moat around West Berlin, with patrols, floodlights, electric fences, and vehicle traps between the inner and outer walls

Cuba had become a Communist nation led by Fidel Castro in 1959

In 1961, JFK authorized the Bay of Pigs invasion…but it failed The CIA trained Cuban exiles to invade the island & overthrow of Castro In 1961, JFK authorized the Bay of Pigs invasion…but it failed

JFK warned that he would not allow nuclear missiles in Cuba In 1962, U.S. spy planes revealed nuclear missile camps in Cuba (Cuban Missile Crisis) If assembled, Soviet ICBMs in Cuba would give the USSR first strike capability on U.S. targets JFK warned that he would not allow nuclear missiles in Cuba

Advisors presented JFK with several options Naval blockade to keep out the in-route Soviet missiles Diplomacy: trade ICBMs in Cuba for ours in Turkey? Immediate air strike on existing missile sites Full military invasion of Cuba; Take out Castro Kennedy chose the naval blocakade

Kennedy announced a quarantine (blockade) to keep more missiles out & demanded that the Soviets remove the missiles already in Cuba Soviet ships, escorted by nuclear-equipped submarines, soon approached the quarantine line & the world waited for World War III

The standoff ended when a deal was reached JFK promised that the U.S. would not invade Cuba & secretly agreed to remove ICBMs from Turkey Soviet ships turned around at the last minute & Khrushchev removed its missiles from Cuba The crisis ended as a victory for JFK, but it revealed how close the two sides came to nuclear war