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Unit 8: America as a World
Power
Cold War Conflicts
• The Cold War and the
danger of nuclear war
define international
affairs
• Fear of communism
in the U.S. leads to
accusations against
innocent citizens.
Origins of the Cold War
• The United States
and the Soviet Union
emerge from World
War II as two
“superpowers” with
vastly different
political and economic
systems.
vs
The United Nations
• 1945, United Nations established as new
peacekeeping body
• UN becomes arena where U.S., U.S.S.R.
compete
United States Establishes a
Policy of
Containment
• U.S. policy of containment—measures to prevent spread of communism
• Churchill describes division of Europe as iron curtain
The Truman Doctrine
• 1945–1991 Cold War—conflict between U.S., U.S.S.R.
- neither nation directly confronts the other on battlefield
• Truman Doctrine—support against armed minorities, outsiders
• U.S. replaces British aid to Greece, Turkey; reduce communist threat
• $400 million in support
The Marshall Plan
• 1947, Sec. of State George Marshall proposes aid to European nations in need
• Marshall Plan revives 16 nations; made Communism less appealing
• $17 million was offered to all countries including Soviet Union and satellites
• No Eastern European countries took any aid
Postwar Sectors
Effects of the Cold War The Cold War, but not really the Cold War, but the Cold War, but not really.
I’m not saying, I’m just saying.
Chinese Civil War
Korean War
Vietnam War
Chinese Civil War
• Nationalist Government – Chiang Kai-shek, in South
– U.S. supports Chiang,
– government is inefficient, corrupt
• Communists Government – Mao Zedong, North
– Peasants flock to Red Army;
– by 1945, communists control north China
Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
• 1944–47, U.S. sends military aid to Nationalists to oppose communism
• 1949, Nationalists flee to island of Taiwan
• Communists establish People’s Republic of China in mainland – (Not recognized by US till
1971 under Nixon)
Korean War
A Divided Country
• 38th parallel (38º N latitude) divides Japanese
held Korea
• North of 38th parallel surrenders to U.S.S.R.;
south to U.S.
• North:Republic of Korea (USSR)
• South: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
(U.S.)
Korean War
• June1950, North Korea
invades South, begins
Korean War*
• South Korea calls on UN
to stop invasion; Security
Council approves
• MacArthur put in
command of South
Korean, U.S., other
forces
Korean War Sept. 1950
Oct. 1950
November
1950
Back and Forth for
three months
- High Casualties
- High Financial cost
Korean War
• November 1950
• China sends
troops to help
North Korea
• push south,
capture Seoul
Korean War
• MacArthur calls for war
with China; Truman
rejects request
• Soviet Union, China have
mutual assistance pact
• January 1951 UN, South
Korea retake Seoul,
advance north to 38th
parallel
Korean War • MacArthur continues to push for invasion of
China; Truman fires him - Public outraged
• Congressional committee investigation
concludes Truman right
Settling for Stalemate
• 1951, Soviet Union
suggests cease-fire
• 1953 armistice: Korea
still divided;
demilitarized zone
established
• Lack of success, high
human, financial
costs help elect
Eisenhower
McCarthy Launches His “Witch
Hunt” • Senator Joseph
McCarthy a strong anti-Communist activist
• Ineffective legislator; needs issue to win reelection
• McCarthyism—attacking suspected Communists without evidence
• McCarthy claims Communists in State Department
• Few Republicans speak out; think he has winning strategy for 1952
McCarthy Launches His “Witch
Hunt” McCarthy’s Downfall
• 1954, McCarthy accuses members of U.S. Army
• Televised hearings show him bullying witnesses
• Loses public support; Senate condemns him for improper conduct
Other Anti-Communist Measures
• States, towns forbid speech favoring violent overthrow of government
• Millions forced to take loyalty oaths, are investigated
• People become afraid to speak out on public issues
The Cold War Spreads Around the World
The Eisenhower
Doctrine • Soviet prestige in
Middle East rises
because of support
for Egypt
• Eisenhower
Doctrine—U.S. will
defend Middle East
against communists
The Cold War Takes to the Skies
A New Soviet Leader • Nikita Khrushchev emerges
as new Soviet leader; favors: - peaceful coexistence and
economic, scientific competition
The Space Race • October 1957, Soviets launch
Sputnik, first artificial satellite • Shocked Americans pour
money into own space program
Cold War Extends:
Cuba
• Revolutionary leader
Fidel Castro took power
in 1960
• Castro declared himself a
communist and
welcomed the aid from
the Soviet Union
• Nearly 10% of the Cuban
population leave and
move to Miami, Florida
The Bay of Pigs
• Eisenhower gave permission to secretly train Cuban exiles for an invasion of Cuba
• April 1961, 1,300-1,500 Cuban exiles landed on the Bay of Pigs and attempted to overthrow the gov’t
• Failed miserably, many exiles were killed, others imprisoned
• Paid a ransom of $53 million in food and medical supplies
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Castro welcomed Soviet aid
• Summer 1962, Cuba gets nuclear
weapons from the Soviets
• U.S. warns Cuba saying we will not
tolerate nuclear weapons in Cuba
• U.S. discovers numerous missiles aimed
at U.S. cities, ready to launch
Cuban Missile Crisis
• Kennedy warns that any attack from Cuba would trigger an all-out war with the Soviet Union
• The world faced the possibility of nuclear war
• Finally, Khrushchev agrees to remove the missile if America pledged to not invade Cuba
• U.S. secretly agreed to remove missiles from Turkey
America Supports France in
Vietnam French Rule in Vietnam
• Late 1800s–WW II, France rules most of Indochina
• Ho Chi Minh—leader of Vietnamese independence movement
- helps create Indochinese Communist Party
• 1940, Japanese take control of Vietnam
• Vietminh—organization that aims to rid Vietnam of foreign rule
• Sept. 1945, Ho Chi Minh declares Vietnam an independent nation
America Supports France in
Vietnam France Battles the Vietminh
• French troops move into Vietnam; French fight, regain cities, South
• 1950, U.S. begins economic aid to France to stop communism
The Vietminh Drive Out the French
• Domino theory—countries can fall to communism like row of dominoes
• 1954, Vietminh overrun French at Dien Bien Phu; France surrenders
• Geneva Accords divide Vietnam at 17th parallel; Communists get north
• Election to unify country called for in 1956
The United States Steps In
• Ho has brutal, repressive regime but is popular for land distribution
• S. Vietnam’s anti-Communist president Ngo Dinh Diem refuses election
• U.S. promises military aid for stable, reform government in South
• Diem corrupt, stifles opposition, restricts Buddhism
• Vietcong (Communist opposition group in South) kills officials
• Ho sends arms to Vietcong along Ho Chi Minh Trail
President Johnson Expands the
Conflict The Tonkin Gulf
Resolution
• Alleged attack in Gulf of Tonkin; LBJ asks for power to repel enemy
• 1964 Tonkin Gulf Resolution gives him broad military powers
• 1965 8 Americans killed, LBJ orders sustained bombing of North
• U.S. combat troops sent to S. Vietnam to battle Vietcong
Fighting in the Jungle
An Elusive Enemy
• Vietcong use hit-and-run,
ambush tactics, move
among civilians
• Tunnels help withstand
airstrikes, launch attacks,
connect villages
• Terrain laced with booby
traps, land mines laid by
U.S., Vietcong
Fighting in the Jungle
The Battle for “Hearts and Minds”
• U.S. wants to stop Vietcong from winning support of rural population
• Weapons for exposing tunnels often wound civilians, destroy villages
- napalm: gasoline-based bomb that sets fire to jungle
- Agent Orange: leaf-killing, toxic chemical
• Search-and-destroy missions move civilian suspects, destroy property
• Villagers go to cities, refugee camps; 1967, over 3 million refugees
The Working Class Goes to War
• Selective Service
System, draft, calls men
18–26 to military service
• Thousands look for ways
to avoid the draft
• Many—mostly white,
affluent—get college
deferment
• 80% of U.S. soldiers
come from lower
economic levels
The Roots of Opposition
The New Left
• New Left—youth movement of 1960s, demand sweeping changes
• Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Free Speech Movement (FSM):
- criticize big business, government; want greater individual freedom
Campus Activism
• New Left ideas spread across colleges
• Students protest campus issues, Vietnam war
The Protest Movement Emerges
The Movement Grows
• In 1965, protest marches, rallies draw tens of thousands
• 1966, student deferments require good academic standing
- SDS calls for civil disobedience; counsels students to go abroad
• Small numbers of returning veterans protest; protest songs popular
The Protest Movement Emerges
From Protest to Resistance
• Antiwar demonstrations, protests increase, some become violent
• Some men burn draft cards; some refuse to serve; some flee to Canada
The Protest Movement Emerges
War Divides the Nation
• Doves strongly oppose war, believe U.S. should withdraw
• Hawks favor sending greater forces to win the war
• 1967 majority of Americans support war, consider protesters disloyal
• LBJ continues slow escalation, is criticized by both hawks and doves
• Combat stalemate leads Defense Secretary McNamara to resign
Trouble Continues on the Home
Front
Violence on Campus
• National Guard kills 4 in
confrontation at Kent
State University
• Guardsmen kill 2 during
confrontation at Jackson
State in MS
• 100,000 construction
workers rally in NYC to
support government
The Tet Offensive Turns the War
A Surprise Attack
• 1968 villagers go to cities
to celebrate Tet
(Vietnamese new year)
• Vietcong among crowd
attack over 100 towns,
12 U.S. air bases
• Tet offensive lasts 1
month before U.S., S.
Vietnam regain control
•
The Tet Offensive Turns the War
Tet Changes Public
Opinion
• Before Tet, most
Americans hawks;
after Tet, hawks,
doves both 40%
• Mainstream media
openly criticizes war
President Nixon and
Vietnamization The Pullout Begins
• New president Richard Nixon finds negotiations not progressing
• National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger works on new plan
• Vietnamization—U.S. troops withdraw, S. Vietnam troops take over
“Peace with Honor”
• Nixon calls for “peace with honor” to maintain U.S. dignity
• Orders bombing of N. Vietnam, Vietcong hideouts in Laos, Cambodia
America’s Longest War Ends
The Fall of Saigon
• Congress calls for
end to war; peace
signed January
1973
• Cease-fire breaks
down; South
surrenders after
North invades
1975
Triumph and Crisis in the Middle
East
• Crisis in the Middle
East occurs resulting
in long gasoline lines
and high energy costs
in the U.S.
• Jimmy Carter
achieved one of the
greatest diplomatic
triumphs.
• Camp David Accords:
– Peace agreement b/t
Egypt and Israel
– Israel agreed to
withdraw from Sinai
Peninsula
– Egypt recognized
Israel’s right to exist
Camp David Accords
Iran Revolution
• In 1979 the Shah of Iran, an ally of the U.S. was
in trouble
• His widespread corruption and dictatorial tactic
led to rebellion
• Muslim religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini led a
rebellion resulting in the ousting of the Shah
• He established a religious state based on strict
obedience to the Koran.
• The U.S. allowed the Shah to enter the U.S.
Iran Hostage Crisis
• Because we allow the Shah to come to the
U.S., revolutionaries angry, capture 56
American hostages
• Demand that the shah be sent back to Iran
and hostages would be released.
• Carter refused, hostages were held for
444 days
Iran Contra Scandal
• 1983, terrorist group in Lebanon linked to
Iran take American hostages
• Reagan urged U.S. not to sell arms to Iran
• Sold them anyway, won the release of
hostages
• Money went to Contras in Nicaragua
(communist rebellion group)
