From the Cold War to the Collapse of the Soviet Union: 1945 - 1991 Chapters 15-16

Chap 15:1 New World Order 1945 New balance of power (B/P) Bipolar – two superpowers Disintegration of colonial empires due to: Nationalist movements & Inability of war-weary Europe to maintain them US support for self-determination to win influence in non-aligned nations. Superpower competition for influence in 3rd world

The third world Africa, Asia and Latin America Defined by degree of industrialization Contrast with 1st, 2nd & 4th world countries

Non-aligned nations Chose not to align with either superpower Played superpowers against one another to gain advantages from both. Nasser in Egypt Gandhi in India Tito in Yugoslavia In areas of conflict it was difficult to remain neutral bc needed arms

Instability in the third world New history of self-government Ethnic, religious, linguistic rivalries among groups. Colonial powers exploited differences to better control regions. Artificial borders established by colonial powers did not reflect realistic considerations

Interdependence Economic dependence of nations globally has grown exponentially since 1945. Oil Crisis 1973 led to global recession & has caused structural changes in international economics

The united nations (un) Successor to League of Nations (LON) First test-case was Korea Has become increasingly political General Assembly Security Council

Nuclear Non-proliferation Purpose is to reduce arms to promote stability. Progress? Yes Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) signed in 1968 SALT I & II NPT came up for renewal in 1990s. However, many nations refused to sign it bc they want to become nuc powers Those nations question fairness of that policy (e.g. Iran, No Korea) Today there are over 50,000 nukes worldwide

Terrorism Purpose is to promote a cause & gain media attention. Focus is usually on civilian targets. More than 15,000 terrorist attacks since 1960 State-sponsored terror Most sensational have been by Muslim terrorists

Human rights Read Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Based on Declaration of Independence. Verbiage is identical is some parts. Many violations exist worldwide. Does this justify intervention into sovereign countries?

Chap 16: 1&4: Cold war – Détente New approach to foreign policy based on Realpolitik. Departure from brinkmanship. Lessening of tension & willingness to cooperate to reduce international tensions. Affected superpower actions in some areas. Ended with Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

Welfare state Increased services provided by government Today services include: Health insurance Old age pensions Disability insurance Unemployment insurance

Economic shifts in the west In the West shift from manufacturing to service economy. Service econ performs service rather than goods. Google Healthcare Insurance Financial institutions Airlines Microsoft Medical Legal

Why the shift to a service economy? One result of minimum wage and labor reforms are higher wages in the West. Costs of manufacturing cannot compete with low wages in Third World. Result is relocation by major corporations and exportation of jobs overseas.

Khrushchev & de-stalinization Discredit Stalin Released political prisoners

Soviet economic problems Command economy State bureaucracy determines what to produce & how much Highly inefficient Individuals have no incentive to produce higher quality goods since they are guaranteed a job & paid little

Lack of Consumer goods Consumer goods are in short supply Long lines for food Poor quality goods Economy so bad that by 1980s the USSR could no longer be a serious competitor in the arms race

Right to intervene in any Warsaw Pact country. Brezhnev doctrine

Gorbachev revolution Three goals were all in response to the economic predicament facing the USSR: Glasnost Perestroika Democratization

Soviet foreign policy USSR could not compete with Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) Chechnya

Liberation of soviet republics & satellites