L3: Cold War Escalates: From MAD to NUTS

AgendaObjective:1. To understand how

and why the Cold War escalated to near crisis in the 1960s.

2. To understand the role of the MAD and NUTS foreign policy strategies in this process.

Schedule: 3. Lecture and

Discussion

Homework:1. Prepare for

Closing Discussion on Tues 6/11

Summarizing the Cold War Thus Far…• We have looked at the Cold War from

1945 to 1953.• Between 1945 and 1953 the Cold War

can be considered a time of containment.

The Cold War: 1953-1962• Today, we want to study the next

phase of the Cold War and that is a phase of crisis and escalation.–What do you think this period will look

like?

The Cold War Escalates• The Cold War escalates between

1953 and 1962 because of heightened competition over the development of atomic weapons (Arms Race).

Nuclear Weapons: 1945• In 1945, at the end of World War

Two, and at the beginning of the Cold War, who had nuclear weapons?

U.S., U.S.S.R., and the Bombing of Japan

• When the United States dropped the atomic bomb on the Japanese, what do you think the reaction was in the Soviet Union?

• What do you think part of the motivation behind the United States’ decision to bomb Japan was then?

The Arms Race• The Race is On…

– 1945• America has a nuclear weapon• America builds in stock of weapons to over 100 bombs

– 1949• Soviets develop a nuclear weapon

– 1952• America develops the more powerful atomic hydrogen bomb

– 1953• Soviets develop a hydrogen bomb

The Arms Race• By 1987, the United

States and the Soviet Union had around 50,000 nuclear weapons between them.

• Their explosive power was equal to 15 billion tons of TNT.

• Both sides had enough nuclear bombs to kill the entire human race several times over.

The Arms Race: Why?• Why? – Given that it isn’t possible to kill people

more than once, why did both sides seek to make as many super-destructive weapons as possible?• To answer this question, you will read a short

excerpt from Brooman. Identify all the financial, political, and military reasons behind the arms race.

Mutually Assured Destruction

• The ultimate outgrowth of the Arms Race was to shift US foreign policy.

• Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)– Balance of Terror– Absence of War (but not peace per se) assured because each side knows that if they go to war, it will lead to their complete annihilation – Irony: The creation of more and more deadly weapons actually leads to the avoidance of war

Two Case Studies of MAD• The Berlin Wall (1961)• The Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

The Berlin Wall: Background

• After the creation of West and East Germany the two countries developed very differently.– West Germany

• West Germany experienced tremendous economic growth and prosperity

– East Germany• East Germany experienced

economic stagnation• There were shortages of

basic foodstuffs• The currency was weak

The Berlin Wall: Background

• As West Germany’s economy continued to improve, and East Germany’s economy continued to deteriorate, many East Germans wanted to move to West Germany.

• Migration Rates:– 1950: 187,000– 1951: 165,000– 1952: 182,000– 1953: 331,000

• By 1960, the combination of World War II and the massive emigration to West Germany left East Germany with only 61% of its population of working age. The loss was greatest among the well-educated.

The Berlin Wall: Construction

• To stop the flow of emigration, Khrushchev ordered the construction of a wall built entirely around West Berlin, completing cutting the city off from East Germany.

• The official rationale given by the Soviet Union for why the wall was built was that it was constructed to protect the population of East Berlin from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the people from developing a communist state.

The Berlin Wall: Construction

• The wall outlined the entirety of West Berlin.• Lied within East Germany.• Made of concrete.• Had several checkpoints where people with the proper

paperwork could enter and exit West Berlin• Lined with guard towers who were ordered to shoot

anyone who tried to cross the wall.• In 1962 a second parallel fence was built.

– The space between the two fences became a No Man’s Land.

– It was easy for guards to see and shoot defectors.• In addition to the wall, chain fences, walls, minefields,

and other obstacles were installed along the length of the border between East and West Germany.

• The iron curtain had become real!

The Berlin Wall: Immediate Effects• With the closing of the border, the

vast majority of East Germans could no longer travel or emigrate to West.

• Around 5,000 people attempted to escape over the wall during the 28 years it surrounded West Berlin.

• The death toll for defectors was between 100 and 200.

Cuban Missile Crisis• October 1962 (lasted 13 days)• Soviets and US come as close as they ever will to fighting a nuclear war against each other.• The Short of It…

– Americans found out that the Soviets built launch-pads for nuclear missiles on Cuba and are sending boats with missiles to Cuba.– US responds by blockading Cuba.– Soviets continue approach to Cuba ignoring blockade– US threatens invasion of Cuba– Soviets shoot down a US spy plane– Secret communications between Kruschev and Kennedy

resolve the crisis • Soviets remove missiles from Cuba, U.S. removes missiles from

Italy and Turkey (but the US public is not told the last part)• Moscow-Washington Hotline Established

MAD, Berlin Wall, and Cuban Missile Crisis

• How did the Berlin Wall and/or the Cuban Missile Crisis exemplify the concept of MAD?

• Why do you think these solutions were settled on, rather than war?

MAD goes NUTS• Ironically, the effect of the

Cuban Missile Crisis was not to end the arms race, but rather to accelerate it.

• Both sides began to develop anti-missile technologies designed to intercept missiles before they reached their targets.

• This was called the Nuclear Utilization Targeting Strategy (NUTS)

Making Meaning out of the Cold War

• How would you categorize the Cold War from 1953 to 1962?

• How are the terms MAD and NUTS representative of this period, both in a literal and figurative sense?