A+Guide+To+The+Cold+War

**The Cold War** (1945 - 1991) By: Zea Page & Lisa Kim



===**What is it? ** === The time of growing tension between the Communist world (USSR) and the Western world (US) after World War 2 which was defined by economic competition, proxy wars, political conflict, and military tension.

===**What caused it? ** === ===**Key Terms/Events: ** ===
 * Truman disliked Stalin.
 * The USSR feared American atomic bombs and the US refused to share their nuclear secrets.
 * Conflict over the split of Berlin (USSR got mad at US for the Berlin Airlifts).
 * Conflict over WW2 actions (USSR got mad because US & England delaying opening a second front)
 * USSR's expansion into Eastern Europe.
 * Competition to be the top world power.
 * Mutual distrust caused by fundamental differences between the US and the USSR.
 * US || USSR ||
 * Capitalist || Communist ||
 * Democratic || Autocratic/Dictatorship ||
 * Richest world power || Poor economic base ||
 * Personal freedom || Society controlled by the NKVD (secret police) ||
 * Freedom of the media || Total censorship ||
 * Free elections || No elections or fixed ||
 * 'Survival of the fittest' || Everybody helps everybody ||
 * 1945 - Hiroshima & Nagasaki Bombing: Ended WWII, US got ahead in the arms race, USSR feared US atomic bombs & wanted their nuclear secrets.
 * 1947 - Marshall Plan: US gave aid to western European nations to rebuild after WWII, but USSR refused the aid for Eastern Europe; showed how US was trying to gain support in Europe for capitalism.
 * 1947 - Truman Doctrine: Containment policy against communism.
 * 1948 - Berlin Airlift: USSR said not to help out East Berlin, but US ignored that and airlifted supplies into the city, causing tension between the two nations.
 * 1949 - NATO: Military alliance between capitalist nations against the communists.
 * 1950 - Korean War: USSR got North Korea to start it & then the US helped South Korea push the Northerners out. Showed that the USSR and US both were trying to gain more support for their side.
 * 1955 - Warsaw Pact: Created in response to NATO by communist nations. It was a military alliance against the capitalists.
 * 1955 - Vietnam War: Communists (North Vietnam) vs. capitalists (South Vietnam & US).
 * 1956 - Suez Crisis: France, Britain, and Israel fought against Egypt in order to gain control over the Suez Canal, but failed because the USSR and US pressured them to withdraw (shows USSR and US worked together sometimes).
 * 1957 - Sputnik launched: Start of the space race. Competition between USSR and US for technological space advancements. Led to more tension between the USSR and US.
 * 1957 - Eisenhower Doctrine: Eisenhower wanted countries (especially in the middle east) to be assisted by the US military forces if they were being threatened by communist nations. Massive retaliation.
 * 1959 - Cuba Revolution: Cuba became communist.
 * 1961 - Berlin Wall is built: Showed that the USSR was completely against US policies and wanted to keep communists, communist.
 * 1961 - Bay of Pigs: Attempt led by US CIA to overthrow Fidel Castro because he was a communist dictator. It failed.
 * 1962 - Cuban Missile Crisis: Confrontation between US against USSR & Cuba because USSR was supplying Cuba with missiles. Ended with USSR promising to not give more missiles to Cuba if the US would not attack Cuba.
 * 1967 - Six-Day War in Middle East: War fought between Israel (supported by US) against Egypt, Syria, and Jordan (supported by USSR).
 * 1973 - Yom Kippur War: War fought between Israel against Egypt and Syria. Almost led to a confrontation between the US & USSR because both initiated massive resupply efforts to their allies.
 * 1977 - SALT II: US & USSR agree to reduce the number of weapons they had. Sign of improving relationship.
 * 1980s - Reagan Doctrine: US foreign policy to oppose the influence of the USSR at the end of the Cold War.
 * 1983 - Strategic Defense Initiative/Star Wars: A plan proposed by Regan to protect the US, using ground and space-based systems, from nuclear ballistic missiles.
 * 1987 - INF Treaty: Agreement signed by US & USSR to eliminate certain missiles. Sign of improving relationship.

Space Race: Competition between US & USSR for technological space advancements. US won by putting a man on the moon. Red Scare: American fear of communism at the beginning of the Cold War. Domino Theory: The idea that if one country fell to communism then others would fall as well. McCarthyism: Fear of spreading communism throughout the US.

===**Role of the US Presidents ** ===


 * Harry S. Truman**: 1945 - 1953
 * Use of atomic bombs on Japan, ending WWII
 * Truman Doctrine
 * Marshall Plan
 * Korean War
 * NATO
 * McCarthyism
 * Berlin Airlift
 * Dwight D. Eisenhower**: 1953 - 1961
 * Eisenhower Doctrine
 * CIA-led coups in Cuba, Guatemala, and Iran
 * John F. Kennedy**: 1961 - 1963
 * Bay of Pigs
 * Cuban Missile Crisis
 * Lyndon B. Johnson**: 1963 - 1969
 * Vietnam War
 * Richard Nixon**: 1969 - 1974
 * Vietnamization
 * Cambodian bombings
 * Pentagon Papers
 * Visited China & USSR
 * Gerald Ford**: 1974 - 1977
 * End of Vietnam War
 * James (Jimmy) Carter**: 1977 - 1981
 * SALT II
 * Ronald Reagan**: 1981 - 1989
 * INF Treaty with USSR
 * Star Wars/SDI
 * Iran-Contra Affair
 * Bombing in Libya
 * Started the end of the Cold War
 * George H. W. Bush**: 1989 - 1993
 * End of Cold War
 * Fall of Berlin Wall
 * End of Soviet Union

===**Works Cited ** === The American Pageant 14th Edition (AP) http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/suez.htm http://mrwoodkis.phoenix.wikispaces.net/Presidential+Review http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War