Wrapping up the Cold WarNotes Sheet goes on 182 with a foldy flap

Bonner

The Berlin Wall• The Berlin Wall was built in

1961 and divided East (Communist) and West (Democratic) Berlin

• It was a great symbol of the Cold War

• The wall prevented people from fleeing to either side of Berlin – Many people had been trying to go to West Berlin.

• Kennedy Clip

Berlin Wall

• The Wall had an average height of 12 feet and 96 miles of barbed wire

• In 1989, the wall was finally starting to be destroyed and represented the re-unification of Germany

• This was the great symbolic ending of the Cold War

• Reagan Clip

The Space Race• Beginning in the Late 1950s the Cold War turned to

a massive competition of technology• This was kicked off with the USSR’s launching of

Sputnik in 1957 – It was a satellite and the first man made object in space

• In response, President Eisenhower created NASA in 1958 – federal agency dedicated to space exploration

Space Race Fear

• The launch of Sputnik created a great amount of fear in the US

• People were worried that if they had the capabilities of this, they could launch a nuclear attack on the US

• Worries of atomic bomb attack, spies, and satellites

The Space Race• Both countries continued to make advances in

response to each other for a decade• In May, 1961 President John F. Kennedy declared

that the US would be the first to put a man on the moon

• In 1969 the US put aman on the moon and was a symbolic victoryfor the U.S.Kennedy Clip

Proxy Wars• The major conflicts of the Cold War were Proxy Wars –

Regional conflicts where the US and USSR didn’t fight each other but supported certain sides in a war

• Proxy wars generally took place because the US and USSR were afraid of a nuclear war on each other – wanted to protect either Communism or Democracy in certain places

• Domino Theory – President Eisenhower’s that if one country falls to communism, its neighbor’s will follow

The Korean War• North Korea was communist –

Supported by the USSR• North Korea crossed the 38th

Parallel – line dividing North and South Korea – on June 25th, 1950 and launched a surprise attack

• President Truman’s Containment policy was put to the test

The Korean War• The United Nations supporting the South Korea army led by

U.S. General Douglas MacArthur• By September, 1950 the North Korean army advanced and

had overtaken most of the peninsula• MacArthur launched a surprise attack and pushed the

forces back up north of the 38th Parallel• China (Communist) supplied 300,000 troops in October,

1950

The Korean War• By January, 1951 China and North

Korea had pushed UN forces back into South Korea

• MacArthur wanted to drop the A-Bomb on China, President Truman didn’t – This was a huge dispute that resulted in MacArthur’s removal

• By 1953, UN Forces took control of South Korea back and they agreed to stop fighting

• The border was set back to where it started – 4 million soldiers and civilians had died

Origins of The Vietnam War• Vietnam was controlled by the French

before and after WWII• After WWII, Ho Chi Minh led his

Communist Party against the French Imperialists in Vietnam

• After 9 years of fighting, the French surrender to Ho Chi Minh after their major defeat at Dien Bien Phu

• The US had supported France because their policy of Containment and the Domino Theory

Ho Chi Minh means “He Who Enlightens”

Divided Country• After the defeat of France,

there was an international peace conference to decide what to do with Vietnam.

• They divided the country at the 17th parallel– North Vietnam was controlled by

Ho Chi Minh’s communist forces– In South Vietnam, the US and

France set up an anti-communist government under the leadership of Ngo Dinh Diem

Turmoil in South Vietnam• Diem ruled South Vietnam as a

dictator• A group of communist guerillas –

Vietcong – took over a lot of areas in the South

• Diem was assassinated by South Vietnamese Generals, but they weren’t like anymore than he was

• It appeared that the Vietcong – backed by Communist North Vietnam – would takeover

The U.S. Involvement

• The U.S. committed many more troops to Vietnam in 1964 after 2 U.S. boats had been hit in the Gulf of Tonkin

• By 1968, The U.S. had committed over 500,000 troops

• The U.S. faced 2 major difficulties:– Fighting guerillas in unfamiliar terrain– South Vietnamese government was becoming

more and more unpopular• The US had to start bombing which made the

South Vietnamese even more upset

Bombing and Napalm

Unpopularity in the U.S.• Protests were very frequent in the

U.S.• From 1969 to 1973, the U.S.

executed President Nixon’s plan of Vietnamization – gradually pull troops out of Vietnam

• In 1975, the North Vietnamese overran South Vietnam – 1.5 million Vietnamese and 58,000 Americans died

• Vietnam remains communist but relations with the U.S. have been restored

Trouble in Cuba• By 1959, Fidel Castro led a group of

communist guerillas and overthrew the government – He became a dictator

• For the next two years, the US and the C.I.A. attempted to push Castro out of power

• The C.I.A. trained Cuban anti-revolutionary exiles for a possible invasion

Bay of Pigs Invasion• On April 17, 1961 President Kennedy (JFK)

gave orders to send 1300 exiles armed with US weapons to invade through the Bay of Pigs

• This was a very secretive operation

Bay of Pigs Invasion• JFK had the option to use the Air

Force to help the operation be successful, but decided against it – What reason would he have to

decide against it?• By April 19th, 90 exiles were

killed, the rest were imprisoned• This was a major embarrassment

for the U.S.! • Fear was increased on both sides

The Cuban Missile Crisis• On October 16th, 1962 a spy plane took photos over Cuba,

which revealed nuclear missiles being stored – These missiles were only 90 miles from the U.S. coast

Cuban Missile Crisis

• On October 17th, JFK was informed by the C.I.A. these missiles had a range of 2,000 miles and would only take 17 minutes to get to the U.S.

• Military intelligence also reported that 20 USSR ships carrying missiles were headed to Cuba

• JFK presented this information to the American public on October 22nd

• The world was on the brink of destruction…

Brink of Nuclear Destruction• On October 22nd, JFK decided to put

a naval blockade on Cuba and declared they would be ready to use military force

• JFK received two letters from Khruschev- Russian leader – with conflicting statements– One was threatening and said

the US needed to remove missiles from Turkey

– One said the USSR would remove missiles if they ended the naval blockade on Cuba

JFK’s Offer• JFK offered that if the USSR removed the missiles, the US

would end the blockade and promise not to invade Cuba• Khruschev had until Oct. 29 to respond or else the US

would use military force on Cuba• Khruschev accepted on Oct. 28th and nuclear war was

avoided• Great success for the US – opened a line of communication

with the USSR• Nuclear Test Ban Treaty – neither would explode a nuclear

bomb into the atmosphere – signed in 1963

End of the Cold War:

• Change in relations since 1945 Diagram• Finally- End of the Cold War Diagram• These go on page 182 with a foldy flap