Unit 18The Cold War

China/Korea/Vietnam

Ch. 30 (3)

Ch. 33

Ch. 35 (3-5)

Concept Questions

1. How did WWII contribute to the Cold War?

2. What were the causes and main events of the Cold War?

3. Why did so many nations perceive communism as a threat?

4. How did the Arms Race impact technology?

5. What led to the rise of communism in China?

6. What factors brought an end to the Cold War?

33.1 – Superpowers Face Off

• Yalta – Allies met to discuss future of Germany • divided Germany

• United Nations • Eastern Europe – Soviet Union kept countries as a buffer

between them and the west• “iron curtain” – Churchill’s description of the divided

communist/non-communist world = COLD WAR• Competition between East & West to spread their influence

throughout the world

U.S. vs. Soviets• Containment• Block communist influence

• Truman Doctrine• U.S. gives monetary aid to those countries

who reject communism

• Marshall Plan – economic aid• Provide supplies, building materials, etc…

to any European country that needed it

• Berlin Airlift• City of Berlin (inside Soviet section) divided in half• Soviets block any supplies from getting in• Supplies flown in and dropped for almost 11 months• Forced the Soviets to lift the blockade of West Berlin

Secretary of State George Marshall

Cold War• Hostility between the superpowers• NATO – Alliance of Western powers• Warsaw Pact – Alliance of Eastern powers• Nuclear threat• Soviets get the Atomic bomb in 1949• U.S. develops the Hydrogen bomb (thousands of times

more powerful)• Brinkmanship – both sides stockpiling nuclear weapons

• Space Race• ICBM’s• Sputnik• Increases in science and math• U-2 incident – evidence of spy fights

30.3 - China• After WWII, Communists beat the Nationalists for control• U.S. aided Nationalists (Taiwan)

• Communism• Mao Zedong• Helped by Lenin (Soviet Union)• Totalitarian state• Business and all aspects of life controlled by the government• Replaced religion• Students taught loyalty to the leader over their own parents

• Mass Murders• Killed, imprisoned, tortured opponents

• Different from Soviet Communism • Soviets focused on city workers• Chinese focused on peasants

Revolution• Mao Zedong• Seized land from large landholders, placed all peasant farmers on

collective farms• Made women equal, gave state-sponsored child care• Increased production of industrial products• “Great Leap Forward” – huge communes, very impersonal, peasants had

no incentive to work hard since state profited. Crop failures created a famine that 20 million. Plan abandoned in 1961.

• New economic policies began to take place. Mao disapproved, encouraged young people to join the Red Guards and lead a revolution

• Cultural Revolution – establish a society of equality between peasants and workers• Working with your hands valued, intellectual pursuits dangerous• Colleges and school shut down• Many intellectuals jailed, executed or died in prison• Restored radical Communist values

35.5• The West• Zhou Enlai began forming ties with the west, opened relations

with U.S. (table tennis)

• Four Modernizations• Progress in agriculture, industry, defense, and

science/technology• Opened Chinese citizens to ideas of democracy and modern

lifestyles

• Tiananmen Square• 100,000 students protested for democracy• Martial law declared• Hundred killed, thousands wounded by soldiers to put down

the protests• Thousands arrested, Deng Xioping retains power

• China left trying to balance an open economic policy with a closed political policy

• Many citizens still demanding democracy• Hong Kong• British colony• Thriving business center• Transferred back to China in 1997

Prospects for democracy are increasing as technology and trade connect and influence people around the world.

Cold War around the World

• First World – U.S. and it’s allies• Second World – Soviet Union and its allies• Third World – developing nations, newly independent,

not aligned • Most were poor with a lack of technology and education

and had ethnic conflicts• Needed to choose an economic system

• Both sides attempted to influence the Third World by aid, covert activities, etc.

• Nonaligned nations often wanted to remain independent

Latin America

• Cuba• Revolution brought Fidel Castro to power• Brought many reforms but with harsh control• Took over U.S. owned businesses, U.S. embargoed all

trade• Turned to Soviets for aid• U.S. planned Bay of Pigs invasion – disaster

• Cuban Missile Crisis• Soviets began building missile sites in Cuba• U.S. and Soviets on brink of war

Korea

• Divided after WWII – 38th parallel (Soviet North, U.S. South)• Communist north invaded the south – CONTAINMENT?• U.N. sends in troops led by American, Douglas MacArthur.• Pusan to Inchon – (map)• U.N. troops advance almost to China, new war vs. the Chinese• MacArthur wants to use nuclear war, President Truman disagrees• MacArthur fired, fighting stops back at 38th parallel• North remains Communist under Kim Il Sung who was

succeeded by his son – Kim Jong Il (just died 2011)• South Korea supported by the U.S.

Vietnam

• French colony conquered by the Japanese in WWII.• After the war, nationalists started the Vietminh (Independence)

League led by Ho Chi Minh• Nationalists and Communists unite to fight the French• Battle of Dien Bien Phu• U.S. concerned about “domino theory”• Vietnam divided – North Communist led by Ho Chi Minh, South

supported by U.S. led by Ngo Dinh Diem

Vietnam

• Diem was unpopular and many South Vietnamese became guerilla fighters against him – Vietcong

• U.S. increases involvement sending equipment to South• Attack on U.S. boats in Gulf of Tonkin – U.S. sends in troops• U.S. has world’s best equipped/advanced army but faced with

guerilla warfare and an a popular enemy• Vietcong supported by Chinese, Soviets and North Vietnam• U.S. turn to air strikes making them more unpopular with peasants• War becoming unpopular in U.S. – lots of protesting• President Nixon begins “vietnamization”• U.S. troops withdraw completely in 1973, by 1975 South in overrun• Many fled

Vietnam War: 1965-1973

Cambodia

• Also bombed by U.S. during Vietnam war in order to get hidden Vietcong camps

• Left unstable• Communists set up brutal government – Khmer Rouge led by

Pol Pot• Khmer Rouge wanted a rural society – slaughtered 2 million

people, 25% of population• Invaded by Vietnam, finally free in 1993• Pol Pot tried for war crimes in 1997

Middle East

• Iran• Western minded Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi vs. nationalist Prime Minister

Muhummad Mossaddeq• U.S. supported the Shah• Western ideas challenged by Islamic religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini – began

rule in 1979• Becomes a traditional Muslim state ruled by Islamic law

• Iran Hostage Crisis - hatred of the U.S. escalated to a hostage crisis over the allowing of the Shah into the U.S. for medical care, hostages held 444 days• Iran & Iraq have territorial war, U.S. secretly sold weapons to Iran in return for the

release of hostages

• Afghanistan• Invaded by Soviets – got mired down and finally withdrew after a 10 year occupation• U.S. protested with a grain embargo of the Soviet Union and a boycott of the 1980

Olympics held in Moscow.

Soviets

• Nikita Khrushchev takes over after Stalin’s death• Allows competition, starts “destalinization”• Criticize Stalin’s abuse of power

• Protests from satellite nations still common• Loss of prestige after Cuban Missile Crisis has

him replaced by Leonid Brezhnev• Brezhnev brings back much censorship and

tight govt. controls

Soviets & U.S.

• Move towards détente and realpolitik• Attempt to reduce cold war tensions

• SALT talks – limited nuclear missile numbers• Invasion of Afghanistan threatens new

tentative peace• President Reagan introduces SDI (Star

Wars) as missile defense – never worked

• Mikhail Gorbachev – Soviet Union• Glasnost – encouraged citizens in free thought• Perestroika – economic restructuring• Democratiztion – gradual loosening of political system• No longer wanted an “arms race”, stressed diplomacy over force • Command economy not able to compete with a free market• Bankrupting Soviets

• Poland• Solidarity - Union led by Lech Walesa • Finally legalized and allowed free elections, Walesa new

President• Hungary• Radical communists take over and disband the party

• East Germany• Many East Germans using tourism to escape to West

Germany• East Germany closes borders completely – sparked many

protests• New leader opened Berlin Wall (1989) in attempt to save

communism• Germany officially reunited in 1990• Many economic problems faced unified Germany

• Czechoslovakia• Protests for change met with brutal police forces• Eventually protesters win out and a new parliament elected

• Romania• Reforms in other countries bring about protests that are

brutally put down• Elections finally held in 1990

Collapse of Soviet Union

• Slow pace of reforms and a crackdown in Lithuania had hardliners attempt to force Gorbachev out (August coup)

• 15 satellite nations declared independence• Boris Yeltsin is new president• Attempts “shock therapy” – led to economic

struggles, political unrest and a war in Chechnya• Replaced by Vladimir Putin

Yugoslavia

•Mixed ethnic groups fighting over control• Serbs in Bosnia led by Slobodan

Milosevic used ethnic cleansing to rid Bosnia of Muslims.