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Canada and The Cold War 1945-1968
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USSR in 1945 6,000,000 Soldiers 50,000 Tanks 20,000 Air Craft Occupied Central and Eastern Europe Occupied Manchuria and North Korea in Asia Established communist governments in occupied countries
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Canada and the Marshall Plan UK and USA wanted Europe to recover after WWII USSR wanted Europe to remain in despair to make communism appealing Canada loaned the UK large sums of money from 1945 -1948 to help in their recovery 1948, Secretary of State George Marshall came up with a plan to help Europe recover Canada and the US jointly contributed 13.5 billion dollars (mostly from the US) in supplies and loans from 1948 -1953 The recovery in Europe was beyond the expectations of those who created the plan Stability and prosperity returned to Western Europe within a decade
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United Nations Formed in San Francisco in April 1945 Aimed at preventing new wars and establishing good relations amongst nations Headquartered in NYC Members with security council veto were USA, UK, France, USSR and China
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Igor Gouzenko Russian diplomat working in Ottawa Decided to defect to Canada in 1945 Warned the RCMP of Soviet spy activity in Canada Canada gave him a new identity and police protection for the rest of his life
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King and the Gouzenko Affair PM Mackenzie King was shocked by Gouzenko’s claims about the USSR’s international spy rings Immediately warned President Truman and UK PM Attlee Canadian Government arrested suspected spies and King ordered a royal commission World’s first Cold War Scandal happens in Canada
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Louis St. Laurent As Canada’s Minister of External Affairs, he was instrumental in Canada’s initial involvement in NATO Replaced King as PM in 1948 Believed in stopping the spread of communism world wide and was supportive of US Foreign Policy of containment Ordered Canada’s military involvement in Korea as part of the UN Force
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Canada in Korea Canadian Government sent troops, three navy destroyers and air craft Over 22,000 Canadian fought in Korea between June 1950 and July 1953 309 were killed, 1,203 were wounded and 32 became POWs Canadians took on a peacekeeping role after the armistice was signed
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Battle of Kapyong American and Australian troops retreated from the front line after a Chinese attack in late April, 1951 This left the Canadians on Hill 677 outnumbered, surrounded and without their supply route From April 24 – 25, 1951, Canadian soldiers of the Princess Patricias dug trenches and held off 7,000 advancing Chinese soldiers and held the front line Supplies, medicine, and ammunition had to be air dropped to the Canadians until the Chinese retreated 10 Canadians were killed and 23 were wounded Only Canadian soldiers in history to be awarded a US Presidential Unit Citation for valour
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Anti-Communism in Canada US Senator Joseph McCarthy started anti- communist investigations led to a “Red Scare” hysteria in the United States Canada responded by having the RCMP carry out illegal and secret inquiries known communists were deported or not allowed entry into Canada the US Government shut down McCarthy the McCarthy Hearings destroyed thousands of people lives
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Suez Crisis In 1956, Egypt seized the Suez Canal from France and Britain France, Britain and Israel joined forces and attacked Egypt to take back control of the Canal The Soviet Union sided with Egypt and demaded an withdrawl of the invading armies The fighting increased Looked as if this crisis would ignite a Third World War
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The Start of UN Peacekeeping Canada’s Acting Minister of External Affairs, Lester Pearson, came up with a plan to end the conflict He went to the UN and suggested creating a peacekeeping force to run the Suez Canal until a settlement could be reached The UN agreed and the battle forces withdrew from the canal Lester Pearson was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in ending the Suez Crisis
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NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization Formed in 1949 by Canada, USA and 10 European nations Purpose was to defend Europe and the North Atlantic from Soviet aggression In response, USSR formed the Warsaw Pact with Soviet satellite countries of Eastern Europe in 1955
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NORAD North American Aerospace Defence Command 1957 treaty between Canada and USA Aim is to protect North America from a Soviet air or nuclear attack Links Canadian and US fighters, missiles and radar units under a single command centre located deep inside a mountain in Colorado In direct contact with American President and Canadian Prime Minister
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Battle over Bomarc Missiles PM Diefenbaker backed away from an agreement to place the US made Bomarc Nuclear Missiles in Canada This enraged President John Kennedy Diefenbaker and Kennedy did not like each other The Conservatives were defeated in February 1963 by Lester Pearson’s Liberals PM Pearson quietly placed the missiles in Canada and improved relations with President Kennedy
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DEW: Distant Early Warning Canada is geographically between the USSR and the USA 1957: Canada and the US build a line of long range warning stations Stations monitor northern airspace for potential attacks If there was a threat, NORAD would be warned immediately The cost was$250,000,000 and was paid for by the US
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Avro Arrow This was a Canadian made jet built by the A.V. Roe Company Fasted and most innovative jet of it’s time A.V Roe expected international sales would be around 600 jets Price went from 2 million to 12.5 million Canada felt the cost to build was too high PM Diefenbaker said Canada would buy US made jets instead and cancelled the project in February 1959 Led to the loss of 14,000 jobs Canadians were upset at Diefenbaker’s decision
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Vietnam War Communist North Vietnam invaded capitalist South Vietnam The United States entered the war to stop Vietnam from becoming a united communist nation The US were involved militarily in Vietnam from the early 1960s until they withdrew in 1975 The comminists took control of Vietnam The war divided the people of the United States 1.3 million Vietnamese and 58,000 Americans were killed as a result of the conflict
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Canada and Vietnam In 1965, PM Lester Pearson criticized US involvement in Vietnam in a speech he gave at an American university US President Lyndon Johnson met Pearson the next day at the White House In the Oval Office, Johnson lifted Pearson off the floor by his coat collar and told him, “You came into my house and pissed on my rug!”. The Canadian Government also let US Draft Dodgers and conscientious objectors into Canada during the Vietnam War This also angered the US Government who felt that these people should be tried as criminals in the United States
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1968 - 1991: The Cold War Thaws
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