The Cold War

What happened DURING WWII that created major tensions between the Soviets and the US?

- One of the main causes of tension between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R was the extreme distrust of one another. The Soviet Union thought that the U.S. wanted to takeover the world. The U.S. also thought that the Soviet Union wanted to take over the world. - Another cause of tension was the Soviet Union wanted capitalism destroyed. - Another cause of tension was that the Soviet Union was trying to spread communism. The U.S. was against communism and they took leadership of containment policy.

What famous shooting took place at a university in the US during an anti-war protest?

- The intense bombing campaigns and intervention in Cambodia in late April 1970 sparked intense campus protests all across America - At Kent State in Ohio, four students were killed by National Guardsmen who were called out to preserve order on campus after days of anti-Nixon protests

What was Sputnik AND why was it significant?

- The world's first satellite—basketball-sized - Symbol of Soviet technological superiority - Took US by surprise - Inspired new educational emphasis on science - Inspired massive military spending

What is the beef between the US and Iran going back to the 1950s?

- Throughout the 20th century and into the 21st, America and Iran have butted heads over issues as diverse as oil, communism, radical Islam, and nuclear proliferation, often framing their mutual antagonism as a clash between civilization and barbarism. - The UK subsequently suggested to the US State Department and the CIA that the Iranian communist party, Tudeh, was extremely popular (it polled at about 20%) and that it stood a good chance of taking over the whole country. This would have meant a country generally friendly to the US, located directly on the Soviet border, would have gone behind the Iron Curtain. This was viewed as unacceptable.

How were veterans of the Vietnam War treated when they came home?

But the homecoming was very different for most Vietnam veterans. They came back to find the United States torn apart by debate over the Vietnam War. There were no victory parades or welcome-home rallies. Instead, most Vietnam veterans returned to a society that did not seem to care about them, or that seemed to view them with distrust and anger.

How did Cuba factor into the Cold War?

Cuban leader Fidel Castro (1926-2016) established the first communist state in the Western Hemisphere after leading an overthrow of the military dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista in 1959. Castro's Cuba also had a highly antagonistic relationship with the United States-most notably resulting in the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Ultimately, what did the US support for the governments of South Korea and South Vietnam during the Cold War show about American priorities?

Ending communism

When people today warn of the US getting into a "quagmire" with intervention, what do they mean?

Experience of intervening to prevent a certain unwanted outcome BUT getting bogged down in unwinnable conflict - Fighting a war vs. fighting an independence movement

What were Americans afraid of during the Cold War WITHIN America?

Hysteria over the perceived threat posed by Communists in the U.S. became known as the Red Scare. (Communists were often referred to as "Reds" for their allegiance to the red Soviet flag.) The Red Scare led to a range of actions that had a profound and enduring effect on U.S. government and society.

How did the Korean War end? How did the Vietnam War end?

Korean War: After three years of a bloody and frustrating war, the United States, the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and South Korea agree to an armistice, bringing the Korean War to an end. The armistice ended America's first experiment with the Cold War concept of "limited war." A new border between North and South Korea was drawn, which gave South Korea some additional territory and demilitarized the zone between the two nations. Vietnam War: Growing opposition to the war in the United States led to bitter divisions among Americans, both before and after President Richard Nixon ordered the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 1973. In 1975, communist forces seized control of Saigon, ending the Vietnam War, and the country was unified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam the following year.

What was the concept of MAD during the Cold War?

Mutual assured destruction or mutually assured destruction (MAD) is a doctrine of military strategy and national security policy in which a full-scale use of nuclear weapons by two or more opposing sides would cause the complete annihilation of both the attacker and the defender (see pre-emptive nuclear strike and second strike).[1] It is based on the theory of deterrence, which holds that the threat of using strong weapons against the enemy prevents the enemy's use of those same weapons. The strategy is a form of Nash equilibrium in which, once armed, neither side has any incentive to initiate a conflict or to disarm.

Why did the US collectively freak out in 1949?

Soviets successfully detonate their own atomic bomb

Why did the US get involved in Korea?

The Soviets wanted to expand the sphere of communist influence into Korea. The United States countered by encouraging the establishment of democracy. Additionally, the United States stressed the importance of containment, which is a foreign policy used to prevent the spread of communism. This disagreement would eventually lead to the Korean War. The Korean War was the first battle of the Cold War, and first major proxy war fought between the United States and a Soviet communist supported enemy

Why did the US feel compelled to use napalm and Agent Orange as well as destroy villages in Vietnam?

The U.S. invasion of Vietnam was an unjust war--a war of conquest aimed at breaking the will of an oppressed people and imposing foreign domination over them. The U.S. wanted to encircle China and prevent the Maoist revolution there from rippling outward--toppling oppressive governments "like falling dominos" in Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. U.S. imperialism wanted to preserve for itself the freedom to exploit the hundreds of millions of people in this region, by any means necessary. And increasingly as the war went on, it was part of the growing imperialist contention between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

What was the Domino Theory AND how did it affect American foreign policy?

The domino theory, which governed much of U.S. foreign policy beginning in the early 1950s, held that a communist victory in one nation would quickly lead to a chain reaction of communist takeovers in neighboring states. In Southeast Asia, the United States government used the domino theory to justify its support of a non-communist regime in South Vietnam against the communist government of North Vietnam, and ultimately its increasing involvement in the long-running Vietnam War (1954-75).

Which countries were the two "superpowers" who squared off during the Cold War?

US vs. USSR/Soviet Union

Why did the Cold War end?

When a mass demonstration in 1989 sprang up and people on both sides of the Berlin Wall began to demolish the wall, the authorities did not try to stop them. The Fall of the Berlin Wall symbolizes the beginning of the end for the Soviet Union and the Cold War. In 1991, the Russian people revolted against Soviet rule and ushered in a new government and leaders.