1950-1990

The Cold War: Brinkmanship to Collapse

US Uses A-Bomb in 1945•Soviets test A-bomb in 1949•Each side wants more than the other.•Brinkmanship-Two Countries going to the edge of War •M.A.D-Mutual Assured Destruction

Nuclear Arms Race

•A dual purpose•ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missle)

• Sputnik (1957)•Yuri Gargarin (1961)-Soviet Hero

•Soviet victories embarrassed the U.S.

SPACE RACE

Revolution in Cuba• Batista was leader of Cuba and backed

by the U.S.

• Fidel Castro started a revolution in 1956, in Jan. of 1959 Batista fled Cuba and Castro took over.

Bay of Pigs• U.S.A. President Kennedy wanted to

overthrow Castro’s govt.

• The CIA trained Cuban exiles (nationalists) to invade Cuba.

• Apr. 17th, 1961 1,300 exiles (with US weapons) landed at the Bahia de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs).

• They were captured by Castro’s Army.

Cuban Missile Crisis• Cuba was afraid of a 2nd invasion so

Castro agreed to let Khrushchev (the Soviets Premier) place Soviet missiles aimed at the U.S. in Cuba.

• A spy plane took pictures of the missile silos being built.

• Kennedy began to prepare for War if the ICBMs were not removed.

U.S. Soviet Stand-offKennedy decided to surround Cuba to stop the Soviets from send the missiles by placing a Quarantine.

The Russian ships were coming, the U.S. Navy was not going to let them through…..

WWIII was about to happen.

This is called brinkmanship = the willingness to the edge of war.

End of the Cuban Missile CrisisThankfully, war was avoided. (the Soviets agreed to send their ships back to the U.S.S.R.)

The Soviets agreed to not put missiles in Cuba.

The U.S. took missiles out of Turkey and promised not to invade Cuba.

But tensions remained between USSR & USA

The Cold War Thaws

Growing cooperation between the U.S. and USSR•The ‘hot line’•Increased trade•Tourism and cultural exchanges

The Cold War Thaws

Emergence of Detente•Nixon (U.S.) and Brezhnev (USSR)•Period of decreased tension•Reversal from brinkmanship•High point: Nixon’s visits to China and the USSR•Results: •SALT I treaty limited number of nuclear missiles•Helsinki Accords: promise of cooperation

The Cold War Heats Back UpReagan abandons détente•Star Wars (SDI) becomes a symbol of American anti-Communism• Increased military spending antagonizes USSR

New Leadership1985: Gorbachev in power• Reformer•No connection to Stalin/old ideas

Social reform through openness: Glasnost• Increased freedom

Economic reform through restructuring: Perestroika• communism more efficient/productive

Political reform through democratization• Parliamentary elections

Foreign Policy• End arms race (can’t afford)

Spirit of Reform Spreads

Poland•1989: government agrees to free elections

Hungary•1980s: economic reforms•1989: new constitution•Communist party disbanded

Spirit of Reform Spreads

CzechoslovakiaOppressive government arrests dissidents in 1989Leads to popular protest and government crackdown

Huge protests in Prague force government to resign

RomaniaMost oppressive, last to reform12/25/89: Ceausescu overthrown and executed

Spirit of Reform Spreads

East Germany•1989: leave through Hungary’s open borders•11/9/89: the Wall is opened•Communists voted out

One Germany•10/3/90: Germany is •reunited

Collapse of the USSR

Lack of economic progress under Gorbachev• June 1991: USSR holds free elections• Boris Yeltsin elected President• Gorbachev critic, popular mayor of Moscow

Coup attempt•Hard-liners afraid of reform capture Gorbachev, order army to attack Parliament• Failure, Communist Party collapses• Republics declare independence•Gorbachev resigns, Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) formed

Collapse of YugoslaviaEthnic conflict creates problems• 6 ethnic groups, religious differences, mixed populations

Milosevic makes Serbia dominant• Croatia, Slovenia declare independence• Bloody civil war, but succeed

• Bosnia: most ethnically mixed• Independence leads to war and ethnic cleansing of Muslims

Problems continue