The impact of early crises:

a) Berlin Blockade and airlift (1948-1949)

b) Communist Revolution in China 1949

c) Korean War 1950-53

Cold War Begins: Berlin Airlift (1948-1949)• Stalin wants Berlin all to himself

• Hopes to starve West Berlin and gain control of city• US led airlift supplies Berlin and embarrasses USSR

• 1 plane lands every 30 seconds!!!!!• After a year Stalin stops the blockade

Iron Curtain Drops-Symbolic and physical separation of Western and Eastern Europe

Truman Doctrine

• Greece is on the verge of collapse to communism and Truman is forced to make a momentous decision

• Truman Doctrine • Policy of Containment is introduced:

• Communism is evil, and it must not be allowed to spread

• Marshall Plan: billions of dollars given to European nations to help them rebuild and survive• Help keep communism isolated

Marshall Plan Aid

in Europe

US Guarantees Peace By Readying for War

• Pentagon is built

• National Security Council is created to advise the President

•NSC-68: allowed for the President to quadruple military spending

• Peacetime draft is created

• US gets entangled in a foreign alliance

• NATO (1949): a defensive alliance to protect from Soviet aggression

•An attack on one is an attack on all

•Warsaw Pact is the Soviet response to NATO

National Security Act of 1947 creates the Department of Defense

Cold War in Asia

• Japan

• Gen. MacArthur rebuilds Japan into a peaceful and thriving democracy

• China Falls (1949)

• China becomes Communist (25% of the world)

• Soviets detonate an atomic bomb in 1949

• US responds by developing the H-Bomb•Arms Race begins

Asia and the Soviets

Containment Put to the Test: Korea

• Korean War: 1950-1953• Korea separated in two after WWII• With USSR backing North Korea invaded South

Korea• US led coalition came to South Korea’s aid• Containment Policy: do not allow communism

to spread• Back and Forth war

• China eventually enters the war• War never officially ended• Koreas are still technically at war

Massive Retaliation• President Eisenhower 1952-1960

• Not a fan of containment• Promised to liberate captive people

• Massive Retaliation• Mess with us or our allies and we will use our nukes…• Use of nuclear weapons as a first strike option

• John Foster Dulles (Sec of State):

• We need allies and collective security. Our purpose is to make these relations more effective, less costly. This can be done by placing more reliance on deterrent power and less dependence on local defensive power... Local defense will always be important. But there is no local defense which alone will contain the mighty landpower of the Communist world. Local defenses must be reinforced by the further deterrent of massive retaliatory power. A potential aggressor must know that he cannot always prescribe battle conditions that suit him.

• Brinksmanship: go to the brink of war to show strength

• Nuclear war is not something to get into over minor conflicts• Hungarian Revolt of 1956

• Americans did nothing to assist the revolt

Mutual Assured Destruction• Each side knew that if they used

nuclear weapons against the other side, the other side would have enough weapons left to destroy you

• Using nuclear weapons would be suicide

• JFK shifted away from massive retaliation because it was impractical• Flexible Response: respond to each crisis

accordingly based on importance to the US

• Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)• Soviet nuclear missiles on Cuba• JFK threatened war if they were not removed

• In the end a compromise is made• Closest the world has ever been to

nuclear war

III. JFK and Flexible Response

The Cuban Missile Crisis

In August 1962, the Cuban and Soviet governments secretly began to build bases in Cuba for a number of medium-range and intermediate-range ballistic nuclear missiles (MRBMs and IRBMs) with the ability to strike most of the continental United States.

AIMS- Worried about

USA Bay of Pigs- Wants protection

– Soviet Union- USSR = fellow

Communist country

- CIA tried to kill Castro

- Needs Soviet money as economy is in ruins

Worried about SU becoming friends with Cuba – only 80 miles away fromUS – SU could put missiles on Cuba thatcould destroy the US within minutesWants Castro dead – Capitalist to takehis placeJFK must be seen as strong after the Bayof Pigs otherwise never be elected back in

Wants to put missiles on Cuba- US can destroy SU

from missiles in Turkey – SU want the same capacity

Kh believes he can bully JFK – JFK is weakafter the Bay of Pigs and a young PresidentKh is also under pressure from other SU leaders – Kh must put missiles on Cuba for his own political survival

1. Do nothing and allow the missiles to be put on Cuba

2. Airstrike on the Cuban missile sites to ensure that they could not fire any nuclear

weapons

3. Invade Cuba and t ake the country over to ensure that it can never be used for such a

site

4. Blockade Cuba with US warships to block any Soviet ships from entering Cuba with the

nuclear weapons

5. Start a nuclear attack on Cuba and if necessary the Soviet Union

The Cuban Missile Crisis – October 1962Kennedy’s Options Positive Negative

Do nothing and allow the missiles to be put on Cuba

Avoids war Still got missiles in Turkey

USA would be in danger of attackJFK look weak – SU would have won

Airstrike on the Cuban missile sites to ensure that they could not fire any nuclear weapons

No missiles on CubaJFK look like strong leader

Loss of lifeStart a war – SU could attack in Europe (Berlin) – start a nuclear warCuba could rebuild sites

Invade Cuba and take the country over to ensure that it can never be used for such a site

No missiles in CubaYou get rid of threat for good – kill CastroShow JFK strength

Could start a World War – you are being aggressive Could be large number of US casualties – might fail

Blockade Cuba with US warships to block any Soviet ships from entering Cuba with the nuclear weapons

Stop any missiles from getting to CubaNot starting a war – making the SU make the next move If it works JFK look strong

Relying on no missiles on Cuba already Still leave the problem in Cuba – Castro still there Relying on SU to turn back

Start a nuclear attack on Cuba and if necessary the Soviet Union

Destroy the known world – SU and Cuba would be destroyed

Rest of world unhappyMorally wrong

Kennedy – Decision time!

BlockadeAvoids direct confrontation and war – that would be nuclear

Puts the ball in Khrushchev’s court

If war – Soviets could strike in Europe – start WW3

1. Turn Soviet ships back

2. Tell ships to continue on their present course – call America’s bluff

3. Try and make a deal with JFK – missiles in Cuba for missiles in Turkey

4. Invade Berlin to create a distraction

5. Support ships with submarines in the area – do not turn back

The Cuban Missile Crisis – October 1962

Khrushchev’s Options

Positive Negative

Turn Soviet ships back

Avoid WarSeen as a peacemaker

Seen as weakCastro still in danger US still have missiles in Turkey

Tell ships to continue on their present course –

call America’s bluff

Seen as strongJFK would have to start war

Could be warIf stopped still no missiles on Cuba

Try and make a deal with JFK –

missiles in Cuba for missiles in

Turkey

No warSeen as a peacemaker It would make SU safer – SU will lose nothing

Still not got missiles in CubaCastro still in dangerRelying on JFK to do a deal

Invade Berlin to create a

distraction

Seen as strongMight get missiles into Cuba

Nuclear war

Support ships with submarines in the area – do not turn back

Seen as strongJFK start war

Could lead to war If stopped no missiles in Cuba

Khrushchev – decision time!

MAKE A DEALSends a telegram offering a summit

– no strings attached – probably sent by Khrushchev

Second telegram – with demands for missiles to be taken off Turkey

and no invasion of Cuba in the future – probably sent by hardliners

Soviet Union can NOT just back down without any concessions!

BUT can not start a nuclear war it knows it can NOT win

Bobby Kennedy meets Dobrynin SU representative and assures him that

missiles will be taken off Turkey

Agreed that Missiles should return to the SU and that missile bases on Cuba

should be dismantled

US agrees NOT to invade Cuba

The ships turn around and the world pulls back from nuclear war

US takes obsolete missiles out of Turkey – kept secret

The End of the Crisis

A Hotline was set up between Moscow and Washington – directly between the Presidents – to stop

any further misunderstandings

In 1963 a Test Ban Treaty was signed – no more nuclear weapons could be

tested in the atmosphere

The OutcomeKhrushchev JFK Fidel Castro

Who has won the Cuban Missile Crisis?

I believe that we can win victory for freedom both at home and abroad. I believe that we can be strong

enough and determined enough to win those victories.  I believe that appeasement and weakness can only bring war.  I’ve asked and will continue to

ask: Why Not Victory–why not victory for sound, constitutional principles and government–why not

victory over the evils of communism?LBJ has to answer the question

“what are you doing about

communism?”

IV. The Vietnam War

How did two little boats lead to one big war?

4th August two American gunboats the Maddox and the Turner Joy were attacked by the North Vietnamese in the Gulf of Tonkin

It was “like a grandma’s nightshirt – it covered

everything”

What powers did the President gain from the

resolution?

The Gulf of Tonkin resolution

Why is this going to have an impact on the war?

Congress passed the resolution on 7th August 1964 by 88 votes to 2 votes

After the Gulf of Tonkin, American aircraft bombed North Vietnam for the first time

Why did the Superpowers pursue a

policy of détente? *refers to a period of ‘apparent’ easing or thaw in tensions between the two superpowers

V. Détente*

Ping Pong Diplomacythe exchange of table tennis (ping-

pong) players between the U.S. and People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the early 1970s.

marked a thaw in Sino-American relations that paved the way to a visit to Beijing by President Richard Nixon.

Organise the factors into a “Diamond

nine”

Most significant

Least significant

Why did the Superpowers pursue a

policy of détente?

Looking at somebody else’s ‘diamond nine’

Compare your choices and discuss your reasons.

Rearrange your cards, if you have changed your

mind

If you have moved the cards prepare to

explain why

SUMMING UPHistorical legacy of distrustIdeological differencesDivergent postwar needs and concernsPersonality conflictsPostwar conditionsVarious policies pursued

containment, brinkmanship, roll-back, M.A.D.

IMPACT of Cold WarCreated wars on a global scale.Proliferation of nuclear weapons.Led to the overthrow of many

governments.Cost between 5-8 trillion dollars.Brought USA and USSR into wars they

couldn’t win. Berlin, Korea, Cuba, Vietnam

Triggered worst recession in 40 years as the 2 countries spent themselves into huge debt.

The End of the Cold War

Reading

Mastering Modern World HistoryPa rt I Chapter 7 The Cold War pp. 122-140Chapter 8 The spread of communism outside Europe pp. 142-168