Immediate Effects of WWII: The World

The United Nations League of Nations: Take two! After ANOTHER World War, it was clear that we needed to find a way to resolve differences without fighting It was officially formed by 51 founding countries in 1945, the same year WWII ended… almost every country is now a member (Exceptions: Kosovo, Taiwan, and Vatican City) It has 3 main goals: – Promote world peace – Promote human rights (remember Eleanor Roosevelt’s Declaration of Human Rights?) – Promote social and economic development Sometimes the UN will draft a statement about a specific issue, declaring something illegal or wrong… but they don’t usually force a change They have faced criticisms in recent years for not doing enough in certain Peace-keeping missions (like the genocide in Rwanda) in which they were not granted powers like a country’s army would have had

Current UN Peace-keeping missions

Conferences and Peace Treaties Yalta and Potsdam Conferences: 1945 – Allied leaders met to figure out what to do with the Axis powers after they won Paris Peace Treaties: 1947 – Treaties to end the war between the European combatants All countries joined the UN Countries had to promise to be committed to minority rights Axis powers lost land and borders were re-adjusted The Soviet Union received most of the war reparations Treaty of San Francisco: 1951 – Ended war with Japan, which officially ended WWII Japan regained sovereignty (was in charge of itself again) Had to pay reparations Had to give up land they had claimed

Germany: Defeated and Split Germany itself was split into 4 zones of occupation… it could no longer be trusted to be entirely in charge of itself, at least while it was weak and without a decent, dependable leader Each Allied power was given a section of Germany to be in charge of (the Soviet Union, the US, Britain, and France) The capital, Berlin, was inside the Soviet Union’s zone…it was split into 4 zones, too – In the zones controlled by the US, Britain, and France, Germany was supported economically and encouraged to grow. It recovered more quickly from the war. West Germany and West Berlin – In the zones controlled by the Soviet Union, a communist system was put in place East Germany and East Berlin – Eventually, the three democratic zones combined into West Germany and West Berlin, being entirely within Soviet-controlled East Berlin, was an island of capitalism/democracy Many people wanted to go there and escape from their conditions in East Germany In 1961, a wall was built overnight between East and West Berlin to keep people from escaping into West Berlin. This split families in half if they were visiting on one side or another.

US and USSR: Two New Superpowers The US came out of WWII less damaged physically (the land), economically (the money), and with high morale (yay!) The USSR, though it had a high casualty rate and was physically damaged in the war, had many people to replace those lost and received reparation money The US had the newest and strongest weapon, the atomic bomb, and the Soviet Union tested its first atomic bomb 4 years later. This began an arms (weapons) race between the two countries to have the best technology and the greatest supplies of weapons. Though we were allies in WWII, we became enemies in The Cold War, a time of no direct fighting between the US and Soviet Union but very high tension. More on this later!

Marshall Plan ( ) The US spent $13 billion ($100 billion if it was closer to today’s money) trying to help rebuild European economies The goal was to keep countries from turning to Communism as a solution to their financial troubles – Poor, unhappy people want change – Communism promised (in theory) equality, jobs, food, and survival Success! The economies of the countries that received money were better AFTER the plan ended than BEFORE the war

Who got money?

War Crime Trials Nuremberg Trials – Leaders of Nazi Germany were put on trial for their war crimes (the Holocaust, mostly) – Many were found guilty of death or life in prison (some committed suicide or died before the court could kill them) – Some said they were sorry! – Some escaped the country (and punishment) and hid their identity International Military Tribunal for the Far East (aka Tokyo Trials) – War crime trials for Japanese offenders International Criminal Court – After WWII, many wanted a permanent court set up to have trials for people that commit crimes against humanity – It meets in the Hague (Netherlands) and prosecutes those who commit horrible acts like genocide

Israel Created The land that had been the former “Promised Land” of the Israelites happened to be land that was given to Britain as a mandate after WWI (Palestine) The Zionist movement – Goal: return the Jewish people to their homeland – Gained major popularity in the years leading up to WWII as Jewish people began to migrate back to this land – After the Holocaust was made public, more support was given to the idea of a modern homeland for the Jewish people The modern country of Israel was created in 1948 – Problem: Other people already lived there, so 750,000 Arabic people (known today as Palestinians) were kicked out of their homes – Other Problem: The surrounding countries didn’t want (and couldn’t financially support) 750,000 refugees – Other other problem: Jerusalem, a city within Israel, holds the holy sites of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism– and everyone wants access to these sites

– Result: Continuing (though not constant) war between Israel and the Palestinians The US has been a constant supporter of Israel Peace talks and compromises have failed due to extremists on both sides – Israeli extremists can’t settle for a “2-state” solution in which both people groups get a bit of the land because, if this is the land God promised them, giving any away is going against God’s will for his Chosen People – Palestinian extremists occasionally undermine the peace process through terrorist attacks, which Israelis respond to with extreme force Life in Israel: – Neighborhoods can look like Cottonwood (complete with swimming pools!), but they live with the threat of an attack from extremists – Men and women must serve 2 years in the army – If living in a West Bank settlement, they travel on protected roads that Palestinians aren’t allowed to drive on (and can only cross sometimes) Life in Palestine (West Bank and Gaza): – 50% live below the poverty line with most in Gaza living in extreme poverty… this is a very underdeveloped area where food and water shortages are a big problem – Each terrorist attack means the borders between WB/G and Israel will be closed for awhile, which means workers can’t get to jobs – Palestinians living in Israel aren’t allowed to have certain jobs (like electricians) for security reasons and don’t receive the same education (money for school is dependent on military service, which they aren’t allowed to give)