What is a Cold War?

cold war (noun): hostility and sharp conflict as in diplomacy and economics between states, without actual warfarethe Cold War: the period (1945-91) of cold war between the Soviet Union and its Communist allies and the U.S. and its non-Communist allies

What is the Cold War?The Cold War is the relationship that developed between the USA and the USSR after World War Two. The Cold War was to dominate international affairs for decades and many major crises occurred - *Cuban Missile Crisis *Vietnam*Berlin WallFor many the growth in weapons of mass destruction was the most worrying issue.

The Cold WarNeither side ever fought the other - the consequences would be too appalling - but they did ‘fight’ for their beliefs using client states who fought for their beliefs on their behalf.

Causes of the Cold WarAmerican fear of communist attackTruman’s dislike of StalinRussia’s fear of the American's atomic bomb Russia’s dislike of capitalismRussia’s actions in the Soviet zone of GermanyAmerica’s refusal to share nuclear secretsRussia’s expansion west into Eastern Europe + broken election promisesRussia’s fear of American attackRussia’s need for a secure western borderRussia’s aim of spreading world communism

Political Disagreement = Cold War

For example: South Vietnam was anti-communist and was supplied by America during the war while North Vietnamm was pro-Communist and fought the south (and the Americans) using weapons from communist Russia or communist China.

Political Disagreement = Cold War

In Afghanistan, the Americans supplied the rebel Afghans after the Soviet Union invaded in 1979 while they never physically involved themselves thus avoiding a direct clash with the Soviet Union.

Governmental DifferencesAmerica Soviet Union

*Free elections *No elections or fixed*Democratic *Autocratic / Dictatorship*Capitalist *Communist*‘Survival of the fittest’ *Everybody helps

everybody*Richest world power *Poor economic base*Personal freedom *Society controlled by

the NKVD (secret police)*Freedom of the media *Total censorship

The Korean WarUpon Japanese surrender on August 15, 1945, Soviet military forces swept through Manchuria and North Korea taking over Japanese control over these provinces. The United States reacted in alarm when she realized the potential danger of having the strategic Korean peninsula controlled by communist forces.

The Korean WarPresident Truman proposed a joint occupation of Korea by the two powers where the Soviets would occupied the territory north of the 38 parallel, while the U.S. would control the area south of the line.intention of both sides to establish a stable and unified Korea in order to withdraw their military forces from the area.

The Korean WarNeither the Soviet Union or the U.S. wanted the peninsula to fall into the other's hand.Soviets and the U.S. desired to withdraw their military and resources out of Korea, but they also wanted to leave behind a nation that was favorable to each's ideology.Soviets desired a Communist Korea whereas the U.S. wanted a democratic nation.

The Korean WarDuring the period of civil turmoil, 1945- 1946, the Soviets helped establish Kim Il Sung as the leading political figure in North Korea.With U.S. support and the use of strong arm tactics, Syngman Rhee eventually positioned himself has the dominant political leader in South Korea by 1947.

Korean War

The U.S. concluded that the chasm that existed between the U.S. and the Soviet Union in establishing a unified Korea was insurmountable and so they pressured the United Nations to allow for a general election in Korea.the Soviets refused to allow the election to be held in North KoreaThe elections of 1948 and the division of Korea that ensued set the stage for a civil warKorean War took place from June 25, 1950-July 1953.

Cuban Missile CrisisCommunist Cuba located less than 50 miles from Florida.U.S. demands that Russia remove their missiles from Cuba.Russia demands that the U.S. remove it’s missiles from Turkey.USSR was to remove its missiles from Cuba and USA was to end Cuba`s quarantine and to give out a promise not to invade Cuba.Cuban Missile Crisis was over but it had taken the world to the brink of nuclear war.

October 11, 1986 – Russia and the United States Meet

Ronald Reagan (USA) and Mikael Gorbachev (USSR) resolve to remove all intermediate nuclear missiles from Europe.Gorbachev told his colleagues:

[W]e will be pulled into an arms race that is beyond our capabilities, and we will lose it because we are at the limit of our capabilities. … If the new round [of an arms race] begins, the pressures on our economy will be unbelievable.