Outline study: International Relations, 1945-2003

-Big three attending: Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill

-Churchill aims: ensure British Empire survival

-Roosevelt: Establish UN and curb British Empire

-Stalin: security after war and buffer-zone in Eastern Europe

-Germany and Berlin to be split into 4

Germany to pay reparations

-UN established

-USSR declare war on Japan by August

-New borders for Poland

-EE under soviet influence but with democratic elections

-many changes since Yalta

-soviet troops in central Europe

-Truman replaces Roosevelt hes very anti communist)

-Attlee replaces Churchill (lost election)

-US and British attitudes harden against USSR because of their actions in EE.

-Berlin and Germany split into 4

-Austria also slip into 4 zones

-provide goods across the zones

-general disagreement for future of Europe

-6 August 1945: ‘Little Boy’ dropped on Hiroshima (c.250,000 killed) (2 mile radius from bomb destroyed)

-9 August 1945: ‘Fat Man’ dropped on Nagasaki (people directly underneath were vaporized)

-14 August 1945: Japan surrendered

-the bombs were developed in SECRET-USSR not included and Stalin was furious; made speech accusing US of trying to start a new empire

-Soviet bomb developed in 1949: nuclear arms race began = Cold War begins

-USA: economic superpower

-USSR: military superpower

-both were suspicious of each other:USSR feared atomic bomb, USA feared Red Army

-USA believed Stalin wanted to build an empire and move westward over Europe, but Stalin saw it as SECURING the USSR against invasion

soviet actions:-The Red Army remained in countries after the war

-elections were held BUT all countries chose communism… suspicious

-Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania controlled

-how?: - their own people took key gov. positions

-suggesting radical changes for economic recovery

-secret police

-rigged elections

- press/media

-perceptions raised tensions

-George Kennan in his ‘Long Telegram’- he was a diplomat in Moscow and he claimed that the Soviets would have to expand and spread communism in order to survive; Thought that the US would have to act to contain this spread

-Truman accepted this: new US policy formed- CONTAINMENT, which lasted through the Cold War

-this incorrect interpretation increased fear, tension and hostility between the two superpowers

-Controlled by Britain after the second World War

-civil war between Communism and Greek gov.

-Britain couldn’t stay; CONTAINMENT tested for the first time: it worked!!

-‘Iron Curtain’: Churchill touring Us making speeches, condemned Soviet takeover of EE, called for the alliance to stop it (put pressure on Truman to stay in Europe).

-Stalin acted angrily to this: his only concern was security.

-Truman could test containment in Greece (civil war): he didn’t want communism to spread into Middle East and Africa.

-12 March 1947: Truman speech to Congress

-Congress agreed and gave Greece $400 million: ended threat of communism; Containment worked! :D

-’Marshall Plan’: Truman and George Marshall believed communism spread to poor countries, so economic recovery could stop the spread.

-Marshall proposed a massive investment of $13.3 BILLION for Europe

-Offered to all countries, but had to: 1. open their markets to trade with the US and 2. Allow US to inspect their economic records

-WESTERN BUFFER-ZONE : DOLLAR CONTAINMENT

-Congress were doubtful at first but after the fall of Czechoslovakia in 1948 they agreed on the 31st of March 1948.

-(impact) USSR made their own version (Comecon and Cominform) which strengthened their control over EE

-Stalin wanted to starve the West so that they would all move East, and he also was paranoid of espionage so he put up a blockade

-the West nearly broke it but that would be bad (could start a full on War) so they decided to do an airlift

-’Impact’: tensions increased further

-NATO established in 1949: 12 members

-West Germany (GDR) and East Germany (DDR): Germany now PERMANENTLY DIVIDED

-May 1955: WARSAW PACT

-Khrushchev: de-stalisation; ‘secret speech’

-The Geneva Summit: 1955 World leaders met to discuss trade, arms race and disarmament;

no stockpile of weapons and motoring activity from the air= high point in relations :D

-causes: Poland and Czechoslovakia revolt and reforms

-poverty: all their good go to USSR

-oppression: censorship

-Western promises: UN/US help

-events: Khrushchev couldn’t allow them to leave the Warsaw Pact: so he sent the Red Army and killed 30,000. 250,000 fled to the West

-results: Nagy arrested and executed

-NATO did nothing; No Action, Talk Only

-impact: ‘thaw’ in relations that had been developing in 1955 ended

- USSR show leaving the Warsaw Pact is NOT an option (gap in iron curtain)

- East Berliners wanted to go to West Berlin because they were young and educated: no opportunities for them in the East; Jobs in the West

- Push: East was poor and oppressed. Pull: West Berlin was a living advertisement for capitalism. By 1962 c. 2 million had moved from the East to the West

-Espionage was occurring (number stations) : Khrushchev wanted to stop this

-Force the West out (same as Stalin with the blockade)

-1960 Paris Summit supposed to happen to discuss Berlin but didn’t (U2 spy plane): tensions increased

-west response: Vienna summit 1961: JFK ordered a massive increase in the armed services: $6.4 billion

-13th August 1961; The Berlin Wall is built (separated families, people lost jobs, if caught crossing=shot)

-impact: made communism look bad, Soviet victory as it stopped people from crossing, US complained but didn’t take action (secret victory for them)

-causes of the Prague Spring: wanted to raise living standards and less censorship of press, Dubcek saw he need for limited democratic reform; introduced changes.

-Soviet response: Brezhnev not convinced; worried other countries, may follow and USSR collapse.

-1968-Brezhnev Doctrine: ‘if any communist state appeared to be abandoning communism, the Soviet Union had a duty to intervene.’

-August 20th 1968: 400,000 troops from the Warsaw pact invaded

-Radio instructed to carry out ‘passive resistance’ but there were some violent protests=a few deaths

-Results: Dubcek forced to resign

-country was returned to its old ways -

-East West relations damaged further but NOT seriously (wouldn’t go to War over this)

-Showed the West was powerless to stop the USSR from doing as it pleased behind iron curtain.