Worlds Of History

Chapter 26: The Cold War & The Third World

China, Vietnam, Cuba, and Afghanistan (1945-1989)

• Who made up the Third World?Page: 982 “…leaders of some of these new states declared themselves “noncommitted” to communism or capitalism - they were members of a “Third World” caught between the first two.”• Who were the first two?

Document 1:

The Global Cold War-Odd Arne Westad

• “The United States and the Soviet Union were driven to intervene in the Third World by the ideologies inherent in their politics.” pg. 983

• Why?• What were these ideologies?

Document 1:

The Global Cold War-Odd Arne Westad

• How were Cold War interventions in the Third World reminiscent of new imperialism during the late colonial era?

Pg. 984

Document 1:

The Global Cold War-Odd Arne Westad

• Page 985 describes the Cold War as a contest between two superpowers.

• Pretend you are associated with the Third World.

• What side would you identify with? What justifies your reasoning?

Document 1:

The Global Cold War-Odd Arne Westad

• Page 987• “There were two main reasons for the

perpetuation of war…conviction among local elites that their aims were necessary and moral…change was not just possible but necessary…almost any price was reasonable for defeating hunger, disease, ignorance, and injustice.”

• Do you agree? Why or why not?

Document 2:

X [George Kennan]The Sources of Soviet Conduct

Pages 990-991• Why did Kennan write with the

pseudonym of X?• What was his proposed policy?• What did Kennan mean by offering

up a tactic of “containment” and how was that plan executed?

• What did Kennan mean when he wrote, “American policies are by no means limited to holding the line and hoping for the best.”

Document 3:

The Vietnamese Declaration of Independence

Ho Chi Minh

Page 993• Why does the document begin by quoting the

U.S. and French declarations?• Why was Ho Chi Minh looking for recognition from the US and other

Western countries?

• What is ironic about Ho Chi Minh being the author of this document?

Document 3:

The Vietnamese Declaration of Independence

Ho Chi Minh

• How does this document serve as a lesson in the use of Enlightenment ideals, and 19th century nationalism?

• How does this lead up to the first Indo-China War?

• The Vietnam War? (Second Indo-China War?)

Document 4:

Report on CIA Operations in Vietnam (1954-1955)Edward Lansdale

• Why did Lansdale use quotations around “cold war” on page 997?

• Why do you think the Americans wanted to keep France as far as possible from the mission process?

• Do you think that the psychological warfare campaign was playing dirty or a good strategy?

• Page 1001 - The Chinese communists believed that "people are the water and the army is the fish" What does that mean???????????????

Document 5:Nikita Khrushchev: “We Will Bury You”

What is meant by “history is on our side?” Page 1004

Do you believe this document relates to Marx’s Communist Manifesto?

Document 5:Nikita Khrushchev: “We Will Bury You”

• Your own working class will bury you," is a reference to the Marxist saying, "The proletariat is the undertaker of Capitalism", based on the concluding statement in Chapter 1 of the Communist Manifesto: "What the bourgeoisie therefore produces, above all, are its own grave-diggers. Its fall and the victory of the proletariat are equally inevitable".

Document 6:Soviet Telegram on Cuba

• To what extreme did Kennedy intend to use “all necessary means” to “defend” the continent? Page 1008

• Why was the U.S. unsuccessful in Cuba?

Document 7:Imperialism & All Reactionaries Are Paper Tigers

Mao Tse Tung

• What is a paper tiger?Page 1012• Do you agree that it is the

“task of the people of the whole world to put an end to the aggression and oppression perpetrated by imperialism, chiefly U.S. imperialism”

Page 1013• Do you believe capitalism

will be overthrown?Page 1014

Document 8:Telephone Transcript: Soviet Premier and Afghan

Prime Minister

• What is the situation they are discussing? Who is the enemy? p.1016

• Do you think the Afghan PM sounds desperate? Do you agree with the Soviet’s response?

• What can you make of the claim to use Afghan clothing as a disguise? How does this relate to recent efforts to ban the wearing of the burka? p.1017

The End of the Cold War…

• With the give and take of the world’s superpowers lingering ahead, it is difficult to ignore the footsteps of the past.

• Has the United States learned anything from the Soviet Union’s occupation in Afghanistan?

• “The future is always beginning now” - Mark Strand