Cold War Events
Tehran in Persia
People there: Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill
Year: 1943
Historical context: Russia had won Stalingrad + Kursk
Purpose: to make the war ended quickly,
To regain the second front of the war – this was not seen viable by tshe west.
In the meantime, 10’s of millions of Soviets had been displaced by war.
•	Stalin demands an invasion of SW Europe
•	Roosevelt wants it to be ready,
•	Stalin thinks Roosevelt would be happy for the Soviets to continue dying, such as the Russian civil war
Discussion of borders – Stalin demanded Poland, which was the reason that the allies had declared war
What was agreed:
That free election would be held in Poland and a theoretical division of Germany.
Issues:
the agreement was vague
The Yalta conference:
People there: Stalin, Roosevelt, Churchill – last meeting of the 3 of them
Year: February 1945
Historical context: near the end of the war
 Purpose:
•	 trying to carve up post-war Europe:
•	USA and Roosevelt have become quite trusting of Stalin,
Agreements:
•	Germany split in 4, USA, UK, France, USSR
•	Berlin is split in 4 as above
•	Austria is split up
•	The United Nations are set up, this will have actual troops
•	Security Council - Big 3(UK, USA, USSR) France, China
•	Free Polish government, Lublin and London poles


Potsdam conference
People there: Truman, Stalin, Attlee
Year: July 1945
Historical context:
•	The USA has an atomic bomb
•	Truman become quite aggressive in negotiations
•	Germany has surrendered
o	No longer marriage of convenience
•	Stalin is imposing communist rule in Poland, and not holding free elections
Purpose: to continue to shape modern Europe
•	Agreement
•	German land area
•	German-polish border
•	Nazi party should be stamped out
Areas of conflict:
•	USSR wanted to run the Ruhr
o	The USA rejected this strongly
•	USSR wanted to share Japan
o	Truman blocked this
•	Stalin said the USA and the UK could not have control of Eastern Europe
Significance of Potsdam
Very significant leadership change
Division of Europe

Growing tensions
Soviet actions:
The Soviet takeover of Eastern Europe:
Soviets take over much of eastern Europe, as to make a blockade from Germany to the USSR
How this increased tensions:
•	This made it clear that the Soviet Union was not following Yalta and would not agree on it.
o	This means that for the UK and USA the war was not worth fighting, as they had gone to war for Poland
o
•	The communist information bureau: (cominform)
o	USSR believed that the Truman doctrine was trying to remove equality from countries, so the communists believed that they should give the advice to keep society equal.
How this increased tensions:
•	They said actively that they were trying to get the doctrine to fail
Comecon (Soviet Union + Eastern Bloc)
This was designed to give international aid to countries, it encouraged countries to come specialised,
How this increased tensions:
•	They were trying to make all eastern Europe part of their empire, and essentially work in a communist system.
USA + UK actions:
The IRON curtain:
This was a speech by Winston Churchill, saying that much of eastern Europe had been separated
Increase in tension:
•	This shows that the USSR is hiding eastern Europe from the USA
•	Eastern and western Europe separated, the east has no freedom
•	This alerts the people in the USA, that there is a new threat, European policies are now looked at.
•	After WWI, the USA goes into isolation. This alerts the USA people that the USSR was an enemy, and the war was still over and encouraged people to look at the danger of communism
Truman Doctrine
Truman said he would give financial support in Greece and Turkey to stop communism taking over. Through this, they had rejected isolationism and wanted to help freedom of speech.
How does this increase tension?
This means that the USA clearly declared that they were anti-Communist
Marshall plan
Made USA money available in European countries if they were applicable, this was large amounts of money, the USSR could technically apply
Increase in tension
Poland and Czechoslovakia could not apply for money, even though they wanted to, this was because Stalin stopped them because they believed it was Marshal trying to give money, so people are better paid, and don’t want communism.



George Kennan and the ‘long telegram’ February 1946
Definition
Kenan was based in the US embassy in Moscow,  and sent the long telegram to Washington. It made a large impact on them and produced 100’s of copies for officials to read.
He said that the USSR wanted to destroy the USA way of life. They could see that the USSR would not be happy with international security unless Poland is in USSR control.
The first Berlin blockade and airlift
The new currency created by the allies was much stronger than the one created by the USSR, and Stalin feared a United West.
He saw a united western Europe as a threat, as they could become independent.
Possible USSR wins
1)	Trying to get control Berlin
a.	This cut off Berlin, so allies Give in, stops the freedom the fulfil the Truman Doctrine
b.	If the west gives up, this shows the weakness of the west from the Truman doctrine
2)	Give up on the United west, shows the weakness of the west, give input on the allied control council
Possible Allied wins
1)	Keep W. Berlin supplied, no negotiation, don’t give up their part of the city
2)	Fly in supplies, air corridor to Tempelhof
a.	Soviets cannot stop it, no air blockade, no direct confrontation
b.	This would be very hard, as fuel and food, much more expensive to transfer by air
c.	May not physically be able to move enough
3)	Going through in armed convoys
Consequences
1)	The full division of Germany into the FRG (west), and GDR (east)
a.	West more powerful than the east
2)	Creation of NATO
3)	Allied control council was now in control of Germany, now this is not used, there is still a hole in the iron curtain
Korean war
this was a Soviet proxy war  N. Koreans and China
 against us troops   UN troops
prelude
there was a conflict in Korea due to it offering a strategic position between China + USSR and Japan. In 1945, after Japan was defeated by the allies, there was a revolution, which meant that people would be at risk of supporting extremist parties, such as communism, this also made a temporary line, so Korea was split up, and there was no agreement.
The USA took sides with the Republic of Korea(south), due to it being on their side, and as the north was near Russia, it was the logical side to take.
Korea was split down the 38th parallel.
The communists wanted to extend south, from the north. This was a threat for the USA, that it could be a domino effect that if soiree falls, then it could extend to Japan, then it is in the Pacific. This also countered the Truman doctrine, with the idea of containment.
China was also involved as it had a communist revolution.
Consequences
 This shows that the USA is not interested in going into a full war, just a limited war.
Japan is rehabilitated, and West Germany is now strong nations, after WWII they had been destroyed.
This was an unsatisfied draw, there was still a divide year later, and still now
Nuclear arms race
1945- cold war begins with US nuclear monopoly.
•	Trinity test
o	Deployment in Hiroshima and Nagasaki
o	Monopoly on nukes, but not conventional weapons
o	This means that the balance is equal
	If it was not, then there would be a full-blown war
	There is no way there can be a first strike, as neither side has an advantage
	IF desired, then the war could end
•	The USA feels secure, but still a bit fearful
29th August 1949 – Soviets detonate their first atomic bomb
•	This was far ahead of where the USA expected them to be.
o	This shows the advantages of dictatorships, as they can spend money on what they want.
o	Spies were used, in the programs
o	Klaus Fuches- spied on USA Programm
•	This was a blow to the USA morale and prestige, they assumed that they were 5 years ahead of the USSR, but they were not
1st November 1952– USA detonates the first hydrogen bomb, 1000 times more powerful than Hiroshima - 15 M tons
•	This contains an atomic bomb to detonate the other bomb
1955 – Soviet H-bomb detonation
•	The fear of Soviets is larger, the gap between the advancements is now only around 2.5 years
•	The USA uses the Boeing Superfortress aster new bomber, this is the B52, that is still operating now
Planes
1953 – the bison bomber is made for the USSR
May 1955 – soviets show of Tu-95 “Bear” jet bomber can hit the USA. International bomber.

2 fears in the USA
•	First strike
o	Suddenly under attack, like pearl harbour
•	Fear about the bomber gap – think USSR has more bombers than the USA
o	There was a huge pressure on Eisenhower to expand the fleet of bombers so that they cannot be wiped out by a first strike
o	From the USA perspective, if USSR think they have more than the USA< they could go for a first strike, only America could go for it, and Wipeout 10’s of millions of UUSR fighters
July 1956 – USA sends the ‘U2’ on its first spying mission over the USSR
•	This was at 70,000 ft way above any AA gun. This helps establish the truth about the bomber gap, it was massive! In the USA favour
1957 – USSR launches their first ICBM
•	They are nuclear capable warheads which can fire to the USA. Now there is the fear of the missile gap
o	They were not very effective or reliable
o	Knew this from the CIA
o	This was very hard to convince the public
October 1957 – USSR launches Sputnik
•	This was the first man-made orbiter of earth.
•	The USA fears an orbital nuclear attack on mainland America
•	This boosted communist morale, as it showed the superiority of the communist way
November 1957 – Sputnik 2 carries ‚ ‘Laika ‘dog into orbit, first living thing in space from earth. Obviously, a communist dog.
Eisenhower presidency
•	This was dominated by the fears of the American missile gap
•	Richard Nixon was against this
•	Kennedy attacks the missile gap for ‘allowing’ it
•	JFK wins the 1960 election
•	As with the bomber gap, the missile gap is in USA favour
•	57 vs 10 missiles
•	Additionally, the USA missile was considerably better than the USSR missiles
•	The USA has the technological edge
MAD
•	MAD, or mutually assured destruction was that there could not be the first strike, because neither side would be able to take down the other sides full missile system
•	The fears were a USSR attack
o	They would not stand a chance
America is a democracy, they do not want to be seen to attack the USSR unprovoked, so there is less of a threat
Khrushchev would see the USA as blatantly anti-communist, as they aided the anti-communist force in the civil war.
Space race continued
12 April 1961: Yuri Gagarin is the first person in space
•	He becomes a worldwide celebrity, this again shows the USSR success, and that they are arguably superior
12th September 1962: JFK moon speech
•	This was we choose to go to the moon speech
•	Hardest thing ever
•	Accepted the Soviet challenge
March 1965: first spacewalk
•	Voskhod 2 – Soviet again
Feb 1966: the first landing on the moon (US)
•	This was the first time something did a controlled landing on the moon
March 1966: first orbital docking
•	Gemini 8 – first orbital docking, but the mission was aborted
o	Manned
July 1969: apollo 11
•	Saturn 5 apollo 11 Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins. They become the first crew to the moon. Fulfils JFK’s promise

The death of Stalin
•	Stalin died on the 3rd March 1953.
o	 This creates turmoil in the Soviet Union and the world.
o	There is the hope of the end of the cold war, but also the fear of what will come next
•	There was the emergence of Nikita Khrushchev
o	he had been a senior figure in the USSR, he came from a peasant background
o	 he helped with the siege of Stalingrad, he was also a reasonable man, and not a rouge animal like Stalin
•	February 1956: ‘the secret speech’
o	The hope heightens, he speaks to the delegates of communism, and criticise Stalin,
o	the old principle was that Stalin was always right, he criticised Stalin for his brutality.
•	Destalinization
o	He wanted to get rid of the strong Stalin people,
o	To meet the needs of the people, he wanted to have peaceful co-existence
o	This led to the Khrushchev thaw
o	There was a hope of weakening grip in Europe, but this was not the case
The Hungarian uprising
why did Khrushchev crush this?
o	Khrushchev feared that the western powers would put pressure on Eastern Europe
o	This would mean that it would be harder to control other countries
	It would be harder to keep their buffer
o	This could be an excuse for other countries to leave
o	The fall of the soviet bloc and then the union could fail
The crucial issue is the Warsaw pact
•	Poland
o	Poland tried to remove a Stalinist leader, and succeeded, but they do not leave the Warsaw Pac, to he is fine with this.
o	He would not accept the removal of a country from the Warsaw pact.
•	Austria
o	Austria also becomes neutral.
	About 2/ 3 of Austria was already NATO, so by giving letting his 1/3 become neutral, all of Austria became neutral
	This was a net win for him
o	Hungary did not have allied presence, so there was nothing to lose
•	Yugoslavia
o	They were and independent communist state, so they were fundamentally different
Hungary had learnt the wrong lessons
What impact did this have on super power relations
•	This helped super power relations
o	this has shown that the USA aren’t interested in getting into rolling back communism.
o	Additionally, it shows that the USA do not want to risk nuclear war over another country
•	This was worsened USSR view
o	This makes people feel that the USA are not interested in eastern Europe
o	Ends Khrushchev thaw, end of better relations

The U2 crisis
Background
•	U2 – an American spy plane designed so it can fly 70,000 ft up in the air, 	gives USA an espionage advantage. Could fly above defences
•	This was what found that there was no missile gap or bomber gap
•	Extremely accurate photographs
•	Major tool in US (CIA) espionage
•	Capable of 320 mph
1st May 1960
•	Eisenhower authorised a flyover of the USSR to photograph missile facilities. He also wants to know what he’s going into in the Paris conference.
•	He thinks he’s safe
•	Piloted by Garry powers
•	Khrushchev scrambles everything to shoot down said plane
•	Powers caught and arrested, trialled of espionage, now USSR have a bargaining chip
impact
•	Khrushchev starts looking for revenge
•	Eisenhower unsuccessful
o	U2 lost
o	USSR know their secrets
o	He tries to say it was a lost weather plane, fools no one
Paris conference
This was to sort out berlin
•	Hopes to decrease tension
•	Hopes to improve relations between the 2 and end the arms race

Khrushchev goals
•	Gain recognition of East Germany as an independent state
o	Wants to stem the flow of refugees from the east to the west
Eisenhower goals
•	Resist recognition of the east
•	Find a permanent solution to berlin, continue his legacy
•	End the arms race
The second berlin crisis - the Berlin wall 13 August 1961
Causes
•	Educated people were leaving the USSR through Berlin, he wanted to stem the flow, the ‘Brain drain’
•	This is because capitalism is better for the clever
•	Berlin is spy central, it’s a hole in the iron curtain
•	Germany represented a weakness for the USSR
o	They were on top of the cold war
	They were winning the space race
	They shot down a U2
	Cuba had become communist
o	But there was 1 weakness
	This was Berlin
•	This was a test of strength for the USSR
Consequences
•	positive
o	This decreased tension in berlin, this was because it was clear that the people will not invade berlin
o	By the wall been built, this shows that the USSR would not invade Berlin
•	Negative
o	This made the people in Berlin, which could lead to conflict
o	General Clay sends a convoy along the road and it is fine
o	There is a standoff, at checkpoint Charlie
o	There could still be conflict
Cuban missile crisis 1959 – 1961
Why did it start
•	The regime of Batisto is corrupt. Ordinary people have no power, they are all poor, and few are willing to help him
•	Cuba was anti-communist, so there was a friendly relationship between the USA and Cuba, America used Cuba as a party island, and the USA companies were strong in there.
•	Cubans feel exploited by the Americans
How does the revolution lead to Cuba becoming communist?
1.	Castro is an unknown quantity, he could be communist or capitalist, USA refuse to accept new government, refuse loans etc.
a.	USA does not know if they will be unreliable
2.	Castro start buying unrefined oil from the USSR
3.	US oil firms refuse to refine the oil, because it looks like the USSR are allies with them, this is not good
4.	Castro nationalises the companies from America so that he can refine his oil
a.	Takes all the US property, theft in USA views
5.	Eisenhower cuts trade with Cuba
6.	Castro makes it explicit that they are communist
7.	*1960 Kennedy goes into power*
8.	Bay of pigs, allows the invasion of Cuba, but does not want to be seen to help,
a.	Basically impossible
b.	Strengthens castors grip on Cuba
9.	Cuba is now terrified of US direct war. He asks USSR forces to help, leads to the Cuban crisis
Why was there a crisis in Cuba in 1962?
•	America is now an enemy, a deterioration in relations means that after the bay of pigs,
•	 Castro was convinced that there would be another invasion, so USSR forces would be the best option.
•	If Cuba gets involved, they can fight back, and get better forces, and a chance of Cuba winning a war is increased
Why did Khrushchev support the request?
•	The Americans have nuclear bases in Turkey and Europe.
o	This means there are nuclear weapons that can hit Stalingrad and Leningrad.
o	This makes the balance more even, so it is justifiable
•	This is also an opportunity to have a potential-jump pad to Latin America. They see this as an opportunity to take over Latin America
o	This would show communist success
•	As a soviet ally, Khrushchev thought it was justifiable to put forces in Cuba as it was an ally.
•	Khrushchev wanted to force the allies out of west berlin, which showed the weakness of the USSR. The U2 incident showed the massive bomber gap.
•	Mow (china leader) liked Stalin
o	He saw Khrushchev as weak, they moved away from each other
o	He needs a sign of strength
	This was an easy way to show superiority
•	This would show the world that the USSR were strong, although they had lost china
Why did Kennedy refuse missiles?
•	Kennedy felt that he needed to help and get them out
•	Kennedy CANNOT show weakens, which would undermine morale and rep. This would also impact as the USSR could continue aggression against them.
•	These forces could clearly destroy most USA cities, Except Seattle and Alaska,
•	They are clear and dangerous
Key danger moments
•	Monday 22nd November
o	There are the people demand for air strikes, but Kennedy does not want to use air strikes, as they do not want total war
•	Tuesday 23rd November
o	Quarantine of Cuba, DEFCON 3
o	There was a fear that they could launch missiles at that point
o	Fear of first strike
•	Thursday 25th November
o	Ambassador Dalai Stevenson confronts the Soviet Union DEFCON 2 - the highest ever
o	This shows that the Russians were willing to back down
o	They may not want to risk was

Why was the Cuban missile crisis so dangerous?
•	Proximity of missiles to USA
o	Increased nuclear threat
o	This meant that either side could get the first strike
o	Could be used as a bargaining chip
•	Difficulty of communication between super powers
o	They could have been dealing with Khrushchev or a red army hard liner, who may have used forces
•	Both sides had pressure
o	They both had pressure from hard liners who wanted to use force
o	Kurtis Lemay believed that any negotiations, would fail
o	No point trying to negotiate, as this would give the USSR an advantage
•	Immanent threat with the USA with little time for solution
o	The USA has ready missiles in their back yard
o	Quickly capable of wiping out much of USA cities
•	One side would have to back down (the quarantine line)
o	If one side backed down, then it would mean that they would lose face, they were not as powerful, and they were not confident,
o	even if backing down meant saving the world, it would still be a loss
•	Both sides were at a hair-trigger
o	If an incident happened to either side, then this could be a declaration of war, even if it was an accident, there could also be a mistaken war
•	There was no easy solution
o	If the use attacked Cuba, then there could be a full war, as the situation in west berlin. This is like if the USSR shot a U2 down
Impact on relations
Short term:
Massive tension, relations get worse
But:
The deal decreases tension, as the threat of war is averted
Longer-term:
Positive:
•	A hot line is established between the kremlin and the white house
o	This fixes one of the main problems which was the lack of communication
•	Both sides have gone to the brink of war
o	This has a profound effect on both sides, which makes them not want to have a full war.
o	This desire ultimately leads to detente
•	Khrushchev removed from power
o	He was erratic