February 3, 2014

Unit 4-

Chapter 11- Cold War

Aim:  to discuss the Cold War

Chapter 11: Cold War- America in a Changing World

Aim:  discuss the events that occurred after WWII

1. Harry Truman was President. He originally was FDR’s Vice President. When Roosevelt died suddenly, Truman became President of the US and had the burdens of making decisions that would affect the whole world. His first decision was to welcome delegates from 50 nations (countries) to a conference in San Francisco on April 25, 1945. Those who gathered there drew up the final charter or constitution of the League of Nations.

2. The United Nations was a worldwide organization founded in 1945 to help keep the peace and promote social and economic welfare.

3. The United Nations was divided into:

a. The General Assembly where every nation regardless of size had an equal vote, but had no power to act on important issues.

b. The Security Council was a group of 11 members. It had 5 permanent members who could veto a decision of the council. The United Nations also included the International Court of Justice, the Economic and Social Council, and the Secretariat.

March 5, 2013

Aim: to discuss postwar world decisions

4. Yalta- The 3 leaders of the Allies- Roosevelt (US), Winston Churchill (Great Britain), and Stalin (Soviet Union) met to discuss decisions about the postwar world in Yalta in 1945. Germany was divided into 4 zones. Each of the 3 allied armies would occupy a zone and the French army would occupy the 4th zone. Berlin, the capital of Germany, was also divided into 4 parts. They agreed on free elections in the eastern European countries occupied by troops of the Soviet Union. Stalin promised to enter the war against Japan after the defeat of Germany. The Soviet Union would get control of certain territories in Asia.

5. The Soviet Union did not keep its word about free elections and set up communist governments. This was seen as an effort to expand and spread communism by the other countries. The Soviet Union kept their zone in Germany separate from the others and cut off their zone of occupation in Berlin from the other three. Winston Churchill accused the Soviet Union of lowering an iron curtain across Europe. By 1946, the US and the Soviet Union were engaged in a conflict called the Cold War.

6. The Cold War is a prolonged struggle for power between nations. It is a diplomatic and economic war rather than a military war.

7. Containment – To keep the Soviet Union from expanding the territory under its control and to prevent the spread of communism, the US adopted a policy of containment. This was to confine a political or military force to where it already existed and not allowing it to expand.

8. The Truman Doctrine- the US provided military aid to Greece and Turkey so they could defend themselves against the Soviet Union. It also said that the US would support peoples who were resisting attempts by communists to take over their countries.

9. The Marshall Plan was proposed by the Secretary of State, George C. Marshall in 1947. The US helped the countries of Western Europe recover from the effects of WWII.

10. Berlin Airlift- The US, Great Britain, and France combined their three occupation zones in Germany into one zone. The Soviet Union opposed this and blocked all roads, railroads, and canals connecting Berlin to the Western part of Germany. President Truman organized an airlift by the US to keep food, fuel, and other supplies flowing into the city. Planes landed with supplies every 3 to 4 minutes. The Berlin airlift was successful and the Soviets called off the blockade.

11. The Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) was a democratic government in the US, British, and French occupation zone.

12. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) – The US joined with the countries of Western Europe. They agreed that an attack on any one of them would be considered an attack on all. General Dwight Eisenhower was the alliance’s first commander.

13. German Democratic Republic (East Germany) was a Communist government created by the Soviets.

14. Warsaw Pact was a response to NATO by the Soviets. It linked most of the Communist countries in Europe in a military alliance.

15. After WWII, Japan was never divided. It was occupied by US forces with General Douglas MacArthur in charge. Japan adopted a new constitution making the country a democracy. The country had civil rights and women had the right to vote for the first time. The US signed a treaty with Japan in 1951 and ended the occupation.

February 4,   2014

16. In 1946, the Philippines became independent with an elected president and an elected legislative body.

17. In China, the Nationalists led by Chiang Kai-shek controlled the government. The Communists led by Mao Ze-dong sought to control the government and overthrow the Nationalists. In 1949, the Communists won. Mao Ze- dong proclaimed the People’s Republic of China.

18. Korea- After WWII, Korea was divided. The Soviets would occupy North Korea north of 38 degrees north latitude (38th parallel). American troops would occupy Korea south of that line. The United Nations wanted to have an election to unify the country. The Soviets refused and in North Korea set up a Communist government- The People’s Republic of Korea.

They trained and equipped a North Korean Army and withdrew its troops. The US withdrew its troops from South Korea or the Republic of Korea.

19. In 1950, Communist North Korea invaded South Korea. The United Nations forces, mostly supplied by the United Nations, came to the aid of South Korea. General Douglas Mac Arthur was named commander of all the UN forces in Korea. In North Korea, the army was forced to retreat back across the 38th parallel. When the UN army reached China’s border, China forced the UN army back near the 38th parallel. MacArthur wanted to bomb China and bring the Nationalist’s forces from Formosa to fight the Communists. President Truman and his military advisors disagreed with this because they did not want to widen the war. Mac Arthur insisted on his views and challenged President Truman publicly. Truman had him removed from command. When MacArthur returned to the US, he was given a hero’s welcome. The war settled into a stalemate, which is a situation where neither side could win.

20. Dwight Eisenhower became president in 1952. In 1953, North Korea and South Korea agreed to a cease-fire. The boundary between North and South Korea was set close to where it had been when the war started. Many Americans felt that this was not a satisfactory end to the war, which cost America 54,000 lives.

21. President Eisenhower carried on Truman’s policy of containment in Europe, but he and the Secretary of State John Foster Dulles believed that if one country fell to communism all of the others would fall. This was known as the domino theory.  The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was formed by the US, Great Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Thailand, and the Philippines. It was different from NATO because the members agreed to help each other, but did not promise to go to war for each other. SEATO was dissolved in 1977.

President Eisenhower sought to promote peaceful coexistence with military leaders (coexistence means living together in peace). In 1955, he met with leaders of the Soviet Union and other countries in Geneva in a summit conference. A summit conference is a meeting of the world’s major leaders. The desire to work for peace was called the “spirit of Geneva”.

February 18, 2014

22.  U-2 Incident- An American spy plane the U-2, was shot down flying over the Soviet Union. The pilot was captured and admitted to spying on Soviet military bases. The Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev demanded the US to stop flights and apologize. President Eisenhower agreed to stop flights but refused to apologize. The Premier who was in Paris for another summit meeting in 1960 left Paris and the summit was cancelled.

23. The Middle East was also a concern to the US. It is important because it is a link that connects 3 continents- Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is also important because economically it has vast deposits of oil.

After WWII, thousands of Jews went to Palestine. Palestine had been home to Arabs for generations. In 1947, the United Nations voted to divide Palestine into 2 countries- 1 was Arab and 1 was Jewish. This was opposed by the Arabs. In 1948, the Jews proclaimed the founding of their nation called Israel. Arab countries sent their armies to join the Arab population in Palestine in fighting Israel. Israel was backed by aid from the US. Dr. Ralph Bunche headed a United Nations team that worked out a truce or cease-fire. Dr. Bunche received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in the Middle East.

24. The Suez War- When Colonel Nasser came to power in Egypt, he wanted to stop western influence in his country, and he wanted to destroy Israel. He encouraged raids across the border into Israel, and seized control of the Suez Canal from Great Britain. In order to end the raids on Israel and to gain control of the Canal, Israeli forces attacked Nasser’s armies and swept into the Suez Canal where British and French troops took control of the Canal. The Soviet Union and the US opposed this action. So they agreed to a UN resolution to stop fighting and place a UN peace keeping there.

25. The Eisenhower Doctrine- After the Suez War, President Eisenhower announced a policy of containment to this region. He said that the US would defend countries in the Middle East against armed attacks by Communist countries. The US also offered to help countries in this region. The Eisenhower Doctrine was first used in 1958 in Lebanon when it was threatened with revolution by forces backed by the Soviet Union. The President sent in the US marines and the rebellion ended.

26. President Eisenhower was succeeded by John F. Kennedy. During WWII, JFK served in the navy and was a war hero. He was elected to Congress and served there for 14 years. In 1960, he defeated the republican candidate, Richard Nixon and became President.

27. President Kennedy brought new ideas to American foreign policy. One was the Peace Corps where American volunteers went to underdeveloped countries to help the people there.

Another program was the Alliance for Progress to help countries in the Western hemisphere. All the countries of the Western hemisphere except Cuba joined to help the poor people and to make democratic governments stronger.

February 21, 2014

28. Bay of Pigs- In 1950, Fidel Castro led a revolution that overthrew the dictator that ruled Cuba. Thousands of Cubans were exiled and many settled in the US. Many were determined to return to Cuba and overthrow Castro.

In 1960, Eisenhower approved a plan to train and arm these exiles. Kennedy allowed the plan to go forward but would not allow the use of US troops or planes. The anti- Castro Cubans landed at the Bay of Pigs. After a few days, they were all killed or captured.

29. The Berlin Wall- the Soviets wanted to get the western powers out of Berlin. One reason was that each week about 4,000 people escaped from East Berlin into the West. In 1961, the Soviets put up a barbed wire fence between East and West Berlin. Later this was replaced by a cement wall with patrolled guards so that no one could escape. The Wall was not opened until 1989.

30. In 1962, the US spy planes took pictures of Soviets building missile bases in Cuba. President Kennedy demanded Khrushchev to remove the missiles in Cuba and tear down the missile bases. He also ordered the navy to stop any ships bound for Cuba with weapons. No one knew if the Soviets would challenge the blockade. American planes carrying live nuclear bombs awaited orders. The Soviet ships turned back and removed the missiles and the missile bases from Cuba. The US promised not to invade Cuba.

31. Hot Line- (1963) A special communications system between the US and Moscow was set up so that leaders could talk immediately in a crisis.

The US, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union signed a treaty to ban the testing of nuclear weapons above the ground, under the water, and in outer space.