President Ronald Reagan:
The End of the Cold War,
Communism in China, &
The Iran-Contra Affair
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E. America Enters World War
II (1945-Present)
g. Analyze the origins of the
Cold War, foreign policy
developments, and major
events of the administrations
from Truman to present
2.Changes at Home
a. Analyze major domestic issues and responses
of the administrations from Truman to present
e. Identify the major contemporary social,
environmental, and political issues (e.g.,
immigration, global warming, terrorism), the
groups involved, and the controversies
engendered by those issues
f. Assess increasing global interdependence, the
potential for conflict, and the U.S. role in world
events in the present and future
Reagan, Economics, and Defense Funding
-Reagan cut funding to many social programs that provided
economic assistance to the middle class and poor. He
believed cutting taxes, especially on the rich, would help the
economy to become stronger.
-Yet, the Cold War was still a focus for the USA. Reagan
pumped huge amounts of money into defense spending to
ensure the USA remained more powerful than the Soviet
Union of Russia, in terms of military might.
-He ordered the building of the Strategic Defense Initiative. He
claimed it could stop nuclear missiles from hitting the USA,
even suggesting it would use lasers to do so. It was
nicknamed “Star Wars.” Democrats argued it was too
expensive, unrealistic, and would simply increase hostility with
the USSR.
COLD WAR
RECAP
During WW II,
the Democracies
of the world had
originally
teamed up with
the Communist
USSR to defeat
Nazi Germany.
When World War II was finished, the USA, Britain, and France grew
concerned. They wanted the nations of the world to accept Democracy.
Yet, it was clear that Stalin wanted Eastern Europe
to be dominated by Communism.
After World War II,
Poland, East
Germany,
Czechoslovakia,
Hungary, Romania,
and Bulgaria
became Satellite
Nations that were
controlled by the
USSR.
A major concern during the Cold War was that both the USA and the
USSR had nuclear weapons. Therefore, if direct fighting
between the two nations did break out, the consequences
would be devastating for the entire world.
Back in the 1940s, President Truman’s goal of “Containment”
was simply to keep Communism from spreading
any further into the world. This policy failed.
Vietnam
Communism expanded to China,
North Korea, Cuba, and Vietnam from
the 1940s to the 1960s.
In the 1960s, the Communist dictator of the USSR, Nikita Khrushchev, supported
the Communist takeover of Cuba and wanted to put nuclear missiles on the
island. This way, the USSR would have close missiles to attack the USA,
if nuclear war broke out. President John F. Kennedy found this action
unacceptable. He demanded that the USSR not put any nuclear weapons
in Cuba. In the end, the USA agreed to allow Cuba to remain
Communist and the USSR agreed to not place missiles on the island.
The incident was called the Cuban Missile Crisis.
After World War II, the Democracies
of the world, including the USA,
were concerned about Communism
spreading in Asia. Eventually,
China fell to Communism as did
North Korea. Then, Communism
spread down to Vietnam. The USA
got involved to try and keep South
Vietnam from falling to
Communism. The war became
very unpopular in the USA as it
lasted from the 1950s to the 1970s.
President Lyndon Johnson and
President Richard Nixon had to
deal with various military
campaigns in Vietnam. The USA’s
involvement ended while Ford was
President. South Vietnam fell to
Communism.
By 1980, the Soviet Union (USSR) was still a
nation and Communist struggles were occurring
in various parts of the world. Reagan argued he
had to heavily fund defense spending to remain
more powerful than the Communist USSR.
Many Democrats critiqued Reagan because he cut social programs that
gave aid to citizens but used vast amounts of money to increase defense
spending, which many argued made the tension between the USSR and
the USA escalate. Likewise, they asserted the so called “Star Wars”
endeavor wouldn’t even work and was unrealistic.
The Rise of Mikhail Gorbachev in the USSR
-Since World War II ended, the USA had tension with various
leaders of the Soviet Union. Joseph Stalin was a ruthless dictator
who killed and persecuted many people. Under his leadership, the
USSR built nuclear weapons and entered into an arms race with
the USA.
-Nikita Khrushchev, the General Secretary of the Communist Party
after Stalin, experienced less tension with the USA. Yet, during his
time in office, the USA and the USSR experienced the Cuban
Missile Crisis and came close to all out nuclear war.
-Mikhail Gorbachev was different. As General Secretary of the
Communist Party, he stressed that the USSR needed to pursue
changes, such as allowing the freedom of speech and press,
letting free enterprise be established, and taking steps to
establish a Democracy in the USSR. His goal in pursuing these
plans was called glasnost, which meant transparency.
Since after WW II, when Joseph Stalin dominated Easter Europe with Communism, the
USA and the USSR had a tense relationship. Nikita Khrushchev reduced those
tensions as he ruled the USSR in the 1960s. Yet, Khrushchev also experienced the
Cuban Missile Crisis against JKF, which hurt the relationship of the two nations. In the
1980s, many viewed Mikhail Gorbachev as the first leader of the USSR that could
radically reduce tension with the USA and work with America to pursue peace.
Reagan’s Direct Opinion of the USSR
-President Ronald Reagan was extremely clear that he felt the
USSR, in the 1980s, was a threat to the world.
-In a speech given in 1983, to the National Association of
Evangelicals, Reagan said of the USSR, “They preach the
supremacy of the state, declare its omnipotence over
individual man and predict its eventual domination of all
peoples on the Earth…I urge you to beware the
temptation…to ignore the facts of history and the aggressive
impulses of an evil empire…”
-Many were concerned that Reagan was increasing the
tension of the Cold War. Others felt Reagan was aggressively
trying to bring about the fall of the USSR. Despite his bold
opinion of the USSR, Reagan felt Gorbachev could be an
agent of change for the Soviet Union.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
-Reagan’s massive commitment to defense spending was
damaging the USSR’s economy as they tried to keep up.
Gorbachev wanted to reduce military tension so the
USSR could stop trying to keep up with defense
spending.
-This led to Reagan and Gorbachev to sign the
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty).
-This banned nuclear and conventional ground-
launched ballistic and cruise missiles with intermediate
ranges, defined as between (300-3,400 miles). It also
allowed inspection of nuclear capabilities between the
USA and the USSR.
Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan signed the
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty) in 1987.
The Tearing Down of the Berlin Wall
-The increased cooperation between the USA and the Soviet
Union led to discussions about past actions of the USSR.
-In Eastern Germany, the Western Portion of the city of
Berlin was a Democracy. Yet, the Eastern portion of the city
was Communist. The USSR literally built a wall around the
Western portion, cutting it off from Eastern Europe.
-Families were literally broken up and many in the East tried
to get across the wall to escape the Communism of East
Germany. In 1987, Ronald Reagan gave a famous speech
demanding that the wall be torn down. Eventually, the pro-
Soviet military presence evacuated the area. In 1989, the
wall was torn down by citizens of West and East Germany.
Even though Berlin was in the Eastern Communist area, half the city
remained in control of West Germany and was a Democracy. This
agreement was reached after WW II.
The Berlin Airlift was an attempt to help the Western Half of
Berlin stay Democratic. The USA would do fly overs and drop
off supplies to help the area remain a Democracy.
Khrushchev built a literal wall around the Western Half of
Berlin. Communist Eastern Europeans were forbidden from
coming into the Western Half of the City.
Eastern Germans building the Berlin Wall
By the 1980s, the Berlin Wall had multiple sections and
guards watching from towers. If anyone tried to cross it,
they could be shot and killed.
“We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go
together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of
world peace. There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable,
that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace. General
Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet
Union and eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr.
Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”
-Ronald Reagan, 1987
In 1987, Ronald Reagan demanded the Berlin Wall be torn down.
The wall was eventually torn down in 1989.
The Breaking Apart of the USSR
-Gorbachev’s desire to implement some forms of
Democracy, the desire to reduce military funding in the
USSR to cease trying to keep up with Reagan’s defense
spending, and the decline of the USSR’s economy led to
the Soviet Union breaking apart.
-The Soviet Union consisted of Russia and the Russian
control of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova,
Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
-Yet, by 1991, these nations had broken away from the core
nation, Russia. Russia became a Democracy and the other
areas were allowed to form their own national governments.
This was the end of the Soviet Union alliance.
.From the 1950s to 1991, Russia controlled various areas in the world. This alliance
of various areas with Russia formed the Soviet Union.
After 1991, Russia became an independent nation and gave up control of the former
Soviet Union areas. These areas became individual nations.
Communism Remains in China
-China also reduced its Communist practices
somewhat in the 1980s. For instance, China allowed
more freedom and put less control on businesses.
-Yet, many Chinese citizens wanted more extreme
reforms. In 1989, in Beijing's Tiananmen Square,
college students led marches against the
government.
-China’s leader, Li Peng, ordered the military to end
the protests. The nations of the world watched on
CNN as the military attacked the students. After the
event, it was clear China was going to remain
Communist, despite their small changes.
Tiananmen Square Protests Against
Communism in 1989.
The Students of the Tiananmen Square Protests made a
Statue of Liberty to symbolize their demand for Freedom. Li
Peng, pictured above, the Premier of China, sent in
the military to force the protests to cease.
A lone protestor stood in front of a line of tanks, when Li
Peng sent in the military. His identity is unknown as is his
fate after this incident. Yet, this picture became an iconic
image that showed the brutality of the military invasion.
The Iran-Contra Affair
The Iran-Contra Affair
-Iranian terrorists took American hostages in the country of
Lebanon in 1985. The nation of Iran wanted weapons as a
ransom to help with their war in Iraq. In a controversial move,
Reagan sold weapons to Iran in agreement for the hostages to
be let go.
-The USA used the funds from Iran to help fund the Contras of
Nicaragua, who were fighting against Communist like takeovers
from occurring in Nicaragua. The Boland Amendment said
America could not fund revolutionary groups in Central America.
The Contras used brutal tactics and many American
government leaders did not support them.
-In 1992, President Bush had to pardon several members of
Reagan’s staff for illegally selling weapons and giving the
money to guerilla fighters in Central America.
THE
END
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