From Cold War to Detente 1962-1981 - Cuban crisis and international relations.

Unit 2-From Cold War to Detente 1962-1981 o Why was there a crisis over Cuba? Cuba was part of America's 'own backyard' therefore it was up to them to protect it. The Cuban Constitution gave the USA rights of intervention and required Cuba to provide land for naval bases - hence the US base at Guantanamo Bay. USA had huge influence over the state, with Fulgencio Batista being the pro-American military dictator in Cuba. Fidel Castro organised a guerrilla campaign against the regime of Batista and Castro gained supporters. January 1959 Batista's rule collapsed and Castro rode on into the capital city and took over. Castro aimed to maintain his own authority, Cuba's independence and avoid alienating the powerful internal and external allies. Therefore the crisis over Cuba was that they wanted to be an independent state (communist) and the USA saw this as a threat to democracy as Cuba was so close to America. The Soviet first deputy visited Castro in Cuba and 1960 and arranged $100 million in credits with Castro, therefore creating an economic and political tie between Cuba and the Soviet Union. o How did the US respond to events in Cuba? America immediately imposed economic sanctions on Cuba and reduced their imports of Cuban sugar by 95%. This downward spiral in US-Cuban relations continued when Castro seized $1 billion of US assets on Cuba in Oct 1960. Bay of Pigs invasion

  • Word count: 1148
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Detente

Detente means relaxing or easing. Détente was a permanent relaxation in international affairs during the Cold War rather than just a temporary relaxation. The horrors of Vietnam shocked people and there was a growing fear of a nuclear holocaust especially with the growth in those countries that had nuclear weapons. Also both USA and USSR had huge stockpiles of weapons. This is why Détente occurred. It is very important. From 1969 to 1972 the first of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks occurred. This was created to place limits and restrains on powerful weapons. There was a freeze on using them but not making them which did not improve the situation. Their development of the ICBM's rose and overtook the U.S and the Soviet Union had many more SLBM's than the U.S, it was a possible threat. There were no restrictions on MIRV's, this is why the U.S was concentrating on creating these vehicles. This gave them a lead in the number of warheads. Strategic bombs and bombers weren't limited and the U.S. again took this as an advantage and took a lead over Soviet Union in range bombers. Anti Ball Missiles was limited around Moscow and the U.S didn't have a thin ABM defence they used them at 2 ICBM sites to protect themselves. During the Mid 70s the Helsinki Agreements occurred. It was seen as a step towards reducing Cold War tensions and hopefully for the Soviet Union the rules on

  • Word count: 549
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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Cold War Short Essays - Questions and Answers.

Transfer-Encoding: chunked Section 4 – How did the Cold War develop? Describe one decision made by the Allies about the war against Germany at the Tehran Conference in 1943 (2 marks) The allies agreed that in the aftermath of the war, the USSR could have a soviet sphere of influence amongst the other countries in Eastern Europe. Describe one reason why there was tension between the superpowers at the Tehran Conference in 1943 (2 marks) There was tension between USSR and USA and GBR because Stalin wanted to weaken Germany by forcing them to pay large sums of reparations - this would mean that they would be too weak to attempt another war. However, Churchill and Roosevelt wanted to rebuild Germany because they wanted to stop history from repeating itself, as it did with World War I. Describe one reason why the Allies met at Yalta in February 1945 (2 marks) The allies met to discuss what would happen to Germany know that they had full control over them. They wanted to equally share out the land and resources and thus they decided to divide Berlin into four sections, and Germany into four sections as well – one for each country. Describe one reason why the Marshall Plan was drawn up in 1947 (2 marks) The Marshall Plan was drawn up because the USA wanted to contain the spread of communism. The USA was committed to an economic recovery of the west and believed that

  • Word count: 12921
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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Essay Plan. To what extent was the Afghanistan war important for the end of the Cold War?

Essay Plan End of the Cold War. To what extent was the Afghanistan war important for the end of the Cold War? Thesis: Afghanistan brought about several economic problems for the Soviet Union, which destabilized it and contributed to the end of rivalries however the main reason for the end of the Cold War were the actions taken by Gorbachev, Reagan’s response and the further internal consequences in the USSR. Paragraph #1: The war in Afghanistan represented the trigger cause for a series of political and economical reforms in the Soviet Union, which were only possible through Gorbachev, the first Russian leader to admit the failure of such war. . 1982: the Mujahedeen controlled 75% of Afghanistan despite fighting the might of the world’s second most powerful military power. 1980: America ended SALT I. 2. Media and press started to transform, first shots of glasnost, war veterans (Afghansti) formed new civil organizations weakening the political hegemony of the communist party. 3. The war discredited the Red Army; it changed the perception of leaders about the efficiency of using the military to hold the empire together and to intervene in foreign countries. 4. Maintaining such a vast force in Afghanistan (over 85,000 soldiers) was crippling Russia’s already weak economy, it have non-Russian a common a cause to demand independence “non Russian fighting a Russian

  • Word count: 732
  • Level: International Baccalaureate
  • Subject: History
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Why did the USA pursue a policy of detente in the early 1970's?

Why did the USA pursue a policy of detente in the early 1970's? "History has so far shown there is only two roads to international stability, equilibrium and domination." This quote from American Sectary of State Henry Kissenger describes the situation America faced in the late 1960's. 1 By the late 1960's, America was facing a humiliating defeat in Vietnam and many leading American politicians realised that a new type of diplomacy with the Soviet Union and China was necessary to prevent the Cold War escalating into a very hot and almost certainly nuclear war. Henry Kissenger, a respected American scholar and politician looked to peaceful 19th century Europe after the demise of Napoleon Bonaparte to argue that a balance of power was required to maintain world peace. Just as the great powers of 19th century Europe; Great Britain, Prussia, Austria-Hungary and Russia had maintained relatively good relations and peace, then America would have to act similarly in it's relations with the other great powers of the mid to late 20th century. Kissenger realised that to do so America would have to act diplomatically and sometimes ignore it's past fundamental beliefs and foreign policies "Statesmen cannot always live by their principles". 2 Kissenger convinced American President Richard Nixon that an American policy of detente was required, aside from other reasons; America was no

  • Word count: 2140
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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The Origins of the Cold War.

The Origins of the Cold War are widely regarded to lie most directly within the immediate post-Second World War relations between the superpowers of the United States and the Soviet Union in the years 1945 - 1947, leading to the developed Cold War that endured until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Both the superpowers contrasted in their views, and their political regimes were totally different. Some historians look back to Lenin's seizure of power in Russia (the Bolshevik Revolution of late 1917) as forming the more extended origins of the Cold War; others, such as Walter LaFeber, go back to the 1890s, when the U.S. and Tsarist Russia became political and economic rivals in Manchuria. From 1933 to 1940 the United States and the Soviet Union had a sort of detente, but relations were not friendly. After the USSR and Germany became belligerents in 1941, Roosevelt made a personal commitment to help the Soviets (Congress never voted any sort of alliance). The wartime cooperation was never friendly, and it became increasingly strained by February 1945 at the Yalta Conference, as it became increasingly clear that Stalin intended to spread communism to Russia's neighbouring countries (of which he succeded and of which lead to the birth of Cominform) and then, to spread communism throughout Western Europe. [edit] Escalation and Crisis Two opposing geopolitical blocs had

  • Word count: 2881
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: History
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Cold War

Name : Saw Hsar Lwe Program : OUHK - Cetana (Myanmar) Course : SS201 Student No : 10399429 Assignment : TMA 05 Date : 15th, 9, 2010 When it comes to observing political history, the Cold War and post-Cold War seem to be worthwhile to give a try. Cold War is not a war. It is an ideological conflict between Communist and non-Communist countries. It means that one side uses every means, to defame or to weaken the other side but without directly fighting a war. Thus, in terms of this essay, I will firstly approach the passing of the Cold War, and move on to nine models that seem to be constructive in explaining the functioning of the post-Cold War. Finally, by dint of my own model I will give attempt to draw the picture of the post-Cold War era. The cold war started after World War II (1939-45) when the Allies (United States, Britain, France, and the Soviet Union) disagreed over how to govern occupied Germany. Soon after the Second World War both the United States and the Soviet Union became "super powers." The term "super powers" referred to the U.S. and the Soviet which both possessed military might and economic resources superior or equal to the combined strength of any group of countries of the rest of the world (Suter, 2003). Thus, they were called super powers. Countries such as Britain, France, China, Japan, and Germany were not regarded as super powers. The

  • Word count: 2871
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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cold war

Despite what many might think, cold war is well known across hundreds of nations all over the world. cold war has been around for several centuries and has a very important meaning in the lives of many. It would be safe to assume that cold war is going to be around for a long time and have an enormous impact on the lives of many people. Social & Cultural Factors cold war has a large role in American Culture. Many people can often be seen taking part in activities associated with cold war. This is partly because people of most ages can be involved and families are brought together by this. Generally a person who displays their dislike for cold war may be considered an outcast. Economic Factors It is not common practice to associate economics with cold war. Generally, cold war would be thought to have no effect on our economic situation, but there are in fact some effects. The sales industry associated with cold war is actually a 2.3 billion dollar a year industry and growing each year. The industry employs nearly 150,000 people in the United States alone. It would be safe to say that cold war play an important role in American economics and shouldn't be taken for granted. Environmental Factors After a three month long research project, I've been able to conclude that cold war doesn't negatively effect the environment at all. A cold war did not seem to result in waste

  • Word count: 1220
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Sociology
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COLD WAR

There is widespread agreement that the end of the Cold War was a triumph for the United States and the West; but even several years later, there is little consensus about its meaning and implications for the future. As a result, it is not surprising that we call the period in which we now find ourselves the "post-Cold War" world, defining it as much by reference to what it is not and by what is behind us, as by what it is and by what lies ahead of us. A few features of the post-Cold War environment already are clear. First and most obvious, our victory in the Cold War -- not only the fact that we won it but how we won it -- transformed what might be called our "security environment." This occurred in the fundamental sense that the very real threats to our national security interests and core values we faced for a generation have disappeared for the foreseeable future. Notwithstanding all the issues and problems we confront in the post-Cold War world, none compares to the dangers -- including the specter of nuclear annihilation -- we faced during the Cold War. The simple but remarkable fact is that, for the first time in my adult life, the United States no longer faces a direct military threat to its vital interests. Second, and perhaps less obvious, the end of the Cold War offers new possibilities. It opens the way for the diffusion of market economies and democracies

  • Word count: 1852
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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Cold war

International History. Option W - 1919-63 Part 2 1945-1963 (Key Issues 7-9) Key Issue 7- Why did the USA and the USSR become rivals in the period 1945-49 The breakup of the wartime alliances . A. What united GB, USA and the Soviet Union between 1941-5 In 1941 Hitler launched an attack on Russia, this breached the terms of the Nazi-Soviet pact. The USA GB and Russia had disliked the Germans for a long time because of their political ideas but this united them together against the Germans. 2. What disagreements were there between the USA and the Soviet Union during this period? The USA and Soviet Union had many differences during this period despite being allies. The main differences between the two countries were their political ideas. The Soviet Union was communist and a one party state, whereas the USA was a democratic country. In America there were numerous parties, all of whom were allowed to be a part of national elections which decided who would take control of their country. They also had social, economic and cultural differences. In the Soviet Union all industry was owned by communists and living standards were poor. Whereas in the USA living standards were higher and industry was privately owned 3. What was agreed at the Yalta conference of February 1945? The Yalta conference took place in February 1945, Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt met and wanted to come

  • Word count: 1287
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: History
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