An overview of the Cold War How can a war be ‘cold’? What were the Hotspots of the Cold War?

After World War 2 the Cold War began and caused tension throughout the world. The USA and the USSR were the two world Superpowers. The USA was a capitalist society with a democracy. The USSR was a communist country with a dictatorship. Both wanted to be the most powerful nation in the world.

Nuclear tensions The USA had shown its atomic power when it exploded the A-bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War 2. The USSR was also developing atomic weapons/bombs. The USA and the USSR were in competition with each other to have the best, most powerful weapons in the world – this was called the Arms Race.

The Cold War: Roots of the Conflict Soviet Expansion: · The Soviet Union occupied most of Eastern Europe by the end of World War II. -Czechoslovakia (1948) -Poland (1947) -Hungary (1947) -China (1949) -Cuba (1959) -North Korea (1945)

In 1946, Winston Churchill correctly warned that the Soviets were creating an “iron curtain” in Eastern Europe.“iron curtain” Winston Churchill giving the “Iron Curtain” address at Westminster College on March 5, 1946

Peep under the Iron curtain March 6, 1946

· By 1948, every Eastern European country was under communist control. (animation)(animation) American Response: · Truman Doctrine – statement of President Truman that promised military and economic support to nations threatened by communism. (audio)(audio) CONTAINMENT-Stop the spread of Communism

· Secretary of State George Marshall toured Western Europe and witnessed widespread homelessness and famine. Aid for Europe: Children in a London suburb, waiting outside the wreckage of what was their home. September 1940.

Nuremberg, Germany, April 20, 1945 · Marshall, fearing that communist revolts could occur in such an atmosphere, proposed that the U.S. help to rebuild the European economy in what became known as the Marshall Plan.

* The U.S. gave over $13 billion in aid to European countries between 1948 and 1952, helping to improve their economies and lessen the chance of communist revolutions.

Opposing Alliances · In 1949, the U.S. formed an alliance with friendly European countries called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). · The members of NATO would defend each other against any Soviet aggression.

Current NATO Members

· In 1955, the Soviet Union formed its own military alliance called the Warsaw Pact. · The Warsaw Pact was made up of Eastern European countries dominated by Soviet control.

Focus on Berlin After World War II, Germany was divided into four zones, occupied by French, British, American, and Soviet troops. The western side became West Germany and the eastern side became East Germany. East Germany became another communist country.

· In June of 1948, the French, British and American zones were joined into the nation of West Germany after the Soviets refused to end their occupation of Germany. Soviet blockade: West Germany East Germany West Berlin East Berlin

· In response, the Soviets cut off West Berlin from the rest of the world with a blockade. (video – 1:46)(video – 1:46) Eventual site of the Berlin Wall

· President Truman decided to avoid the blockade by flying in food and other supplies to the needy people of West Berlin. A huge airlift: · At times, over 5,000 tons of supplies arrived daily.

Video: Marshall Plan and the Berlin Airlift

· The Soviet zone of Germany, including East Berlin, became known as the nation of East Germany. Germany remains divided: · In May of 1949, Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union ended the blockade. October, 1949

The Berlin Wall 1961

- Americans, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, were accused of stealing nuclear secrets for the Soviets. Testing of an Atomic CannonTesting of an Atomic Cannon (1: ) - The Rosenbergs were executed for their crimes in Example of American fears of Communism:

McCarthy’s reckless claims: McCarthy’s claim was never proven, but he helped to increase a fear of communism in America known as the “Red Scare”. · In 1950, Senator Joseph McCarthy announced that he had a list of 205 State Department employees that were members of the Communist party.

Mao’s Revolution: 1949 Who lost China? – A 2 nd } Power!

The Korean War

The Korean War: A “Police Action” ( ) Syngman Rhee Kim Il-Sung “Domino Theory”

- Mao Zedong becomes the new leader of Communist China The Korean War ended with about the same territory it started with.

The Arms Race: A “Missile Gap?” }The Soviet Union exploded its first A-bomb in }Now there were two nuclear superpowers!

· In 1949, the U.S. learned that the Soviet Union also possessed atomic weapons. Video: Atomic tests Video: Atomic tests (4:35)

Eisenhower becomes president after Truman. His theory on Communism is called Brinkmanship- He will actually go to the brink of war to stop Communism

Sputnik I (1957) Sputnik I (1957) The Russians have beaten America in space—they have the technological edge! The Space Race

The Suez Crisis:

U-2 Spy Incident (1960) Col. Francis Gary Powers’ plane was shot down over Soviet airspace.

COLD WAR PART 2

Paris, 1961 Khrushchev & JFK meet to discuss Berlin and nuclear proliferation. Khrushchev thinks that JFK is young, inexperienced, and can be rolled.

Bay of Pigs Debacle (1961)

The Cuban Missile Crisis 1962

Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

The Vietnam War c

BELARUS. Maiski Nikolai Yanchen, one of 600,000 ‘liquidators’ conscripted to fight the fires and clean up the radioactive ash and contaminated villages. He lost his right leg to cancer. He can no longer work and lives alone in a small village in a contaminated area near the 30km ‘hot zone’.

BELARUS. Minsk Children’s Home No 1. This hospital receives many of the most deformed babies soon after birth. Nurse Alla Komarova hugs 3-year-old Yulya, whose brain is in a membrane in the back of his head.

“Radiation from that blast would later bring early death to many of us on the island at that time. Some of us are still dying of radiation from Bravo.” - Bob Markey, Sr., naval officer, stationed on the island of Kwajalein, 150 miles from Bikini Atoll. Video: H-bomb testing at Bikini AtollVideo: H-bomb testing at Bikini Atoll (1:25) Castle Bravo H-Bomb shot at Bikini Attoll. Largest H-Bomb ever exploded.

Ich bin ein Berliner! (1963) President Kennedy tells Berliners that the West is with them!