The Cold War

People, Policies & Events

People of the Cold War Era

Harry Truman

• President of U.S. 1945-1953

• Made decision to drop atomic bomb on Japan to end WWII

George Kennan

• U.S State Department official 1940-1950

• American diplomat who spent time in Soviet Union

• Proposed the policy of containment (see vocabulary slides)

George C. Marshall

• U.S. Secretary of State 1945-1949

• U.S. Secretary of Defense 1950-1951

• Developed & implemented the Marshall Plan to aid in European recovery following WWII

Joseph Stalin

• President of Soviet Union 1924-1953

• Communist leader of the Soviet Union

• “man of steel”• Ruled with a tight fist• Turned on the Allies

after WWII

Nikita Khrushchev

• President of Soviet Union 1953-1964

• Believed communism would take over world but do so peacefully

• Policy of coexistence between U.S. & Soviets

• Competition economically & scientifically

Dwight D. Eisenhower

• President of U.S., 1953-1961

Chiang Kai-Shek

• Nationalist Party leader in China, 1928-1949

• Ruled in Southern & Eastern China

• Received aid from U.S.

• Failing economy, weak leadership, poor morale

Mao Zedong

• Communist Party leader of China, 1949-1976

• Ruled in Northern China• Received aid from Soviet

Union• Used communist ideas to

gain supporters (especially the poor)

• Gained complete control of China in 1949

• Est. People’s republic of China

Kim II Sung

• President of North Korea, 1945-1994

• communist

Syngman Rhee

• President of South Korea, 1948-1960

Douglas MacArthur

• U.S. army general (WWII & Korea), 1941-1951

John F. Kennedy

• President of U.S., 1961-1963

• Most famous for Cuban Missile Crisis & Bay of Pigs

• Assassinated November 22, 1963

Lyndon B. Johnson

• President of U.S., 1963-1969

Fidel Castro

• Communist leader of Cuba, 1959-present day

• Allied with Soviet Union

• ** because of failing health, Castro’s brother is currently the “acting” leader of Cuba

Policies of the Cold War Era

Truman Doctrine

• 1947

• Policy that stated the U.S. would help any country fighting against communism

• Focused mainly on Greece & Turkey by supporting both countries financially

• Keep Soviet Union’s influence out of Eastern Europe

President Truman signing the Truman Doctrine

Marshall Plan

• 1948• European Recovery Plan• U.S. program that gave money & aid to

European countries to help them rebuild after WWII.

• Secretary of State George Marshall proposed $13 billion in aid against “hunger, poverty, desperation & chaos.”

• Also to help stop the spread of communism in Europe

Countries that received aid from the Marshall Plan

Baruch Plan

• 1946

• Created an international agency to impose penalties on countries that violated restrictions placed on nuclear weapons & nuclear testing

Atomic Energy Act

• 1946

• Federal Law that created the civilian run Atomic Energy commission to oversee the research of nuclear weapons

• Promote peacetime use of atomic energy

NATO

• 1949• North Atlantic Treaty Organization• Alliance between U.S., Canada, &

several Western European nations• Pledged to defend one another if

attacked

Map of NATO countries

Warsaw Pact

• 1955

• Alliance formed by the Soviet Union & Eastern European nations

• Response to NATO

Member countries of Warsaw Pact (in red)

Alliance for Progress

• 1961

• JFK’s program of economic aid to Latin American countries

• Designed to promote democratic reform & capitalism in this region

Peace Corps

• 1961

• JFK’s program that sent volunteers to work & help make improvements in developing countries

Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

• 1963

• Agreement signed by the U.S. & the Soviet Union that ended the above-ground testing of new nuclear weapons

Cold War Era Vocabulary

Containment

• U.S. policy of trying to restrict the expansion of the Soviet Union & communism

Satellite Nations

• Countries throughout Eastern Europe that were under the control of the Soviet Union

Brinkmanship

• Policy that called for threatening all-out war in order to confront Communist aggression

• U.S. built up air force & nuclear bombs as did the Soviet Union

• Threat of nuclear attack was elevated

Detente

• Period when the cold war tensions lessened

• During President Nixon’s term

• Nixon even visited Communist China

Domino Theory

• Belief that if one nation fell to communism, others would quickly follow

• Leads to U.S. policy of containment

Hot Line

• Connection between the U.S. & the Soviet Union that allowed the leaders to communicate directly with each other should a crisis arise

• Established between JFK & Khrushchev in 1963

• Attempt to avoid nuclear disaster or annihilation

Events of the Cold War Era

U-2 Incident

• 1960

• U.S. pilot Gary Powers shot down & captured by Soviet Union while spying

• Further damaged relations between U.S. & Soviet Union

• Lead to a renewed tension between the 2 countries

Berlin Airlift

• 1948-1949• U.S., Britain, France unite their sectors of

Germany & the city of Berlin (located in Soviet sector)

• No agreement from Stalin to allow access to Berlin from West Germany

• Stalin closed all roads & railways into West Berlin

• 2.1 million residents of West Berlin cut off from supplies

Berlin Airlift

• 1948-1949• U.S. & British flew in food &

supplies to bypass the blockade• Lasted for 327 days• By May of 1949 Soviets realized it

was beaten and lifted the blockade

Berlin Wall

• 1961• Barrier built between communist East &

democratic West Berlin by Soviet Union• 20% of East Berlin population had fled into West

Berlin since 1949• These people advertised the failure of East

Germany’s communist gov’t & failing economy• Wall prevented people from leaving East Berlin• Torn down in 1989

Sputnik

• 1957• First artificial satellite

launched into space by the Soviet Union

• Beginnings of the space race between U.S. & Soviets

Korean War

• 1950-1953• Korea divided into 2 zones at 38th parallel• North: communist; South: democratic• U.S. supported South Korea• 1950 North Korea invaded South Korea• U.S. & UN troops sent in to help S. Korea• China joined forces with N. Korea• War settled into a stalemate in 1951• 1953 President Eisenhower negotiated peace terms,

U.S. troops out• Country is still divided today: North & South

Bay of Pigs

• 1961

• CIA sent to Cuba to overthrow Fidel Castro from power

• U.S. trained Cuban rebels

• Invaded Cuba but were quickly defeated by Cuban forces

• INVASION WAS A COMPLETE FAILURE

• Further crippled U.S. & Cuban relations

Cuban Missile Crisis

• 1962• U.S. spy planes found Soviet Union missiles in Cuba

pointed towards U.S.• JFK ordered blockade of Cuba • Demanded removal of missiles• Both countries ready to attack “both fingers were on the

button”• Threat of nuclear war was eminent for days• Khrushchev agreed to remove missiles if JFK promised

not to attack Cuba• TURNING POINT OF COLD WAR: U.S. & Soviet Union

began to work together to reduce tensions & threats of war

Questions #37-57

Use the information that you just research to help you complete the multiple choice & true false questions.