Cold War By carr0604 Period: Feb 3, 1945 to Aug 31, 1991 Cold War Feb 4, 1945 Cold War Begins Aug 6, 1945 United States first used atomic bomb Aug 8, 1945 Russia enters war against Japan Aug 14, 1945 Japanese surrender End of World War II Mar 1, 1946 Churchill delivers "Iron Curtain" Speech Mar 14, 1947 Truman declares active role in Greek Civil War Jun 4, 1947 Marshall Plan is announced Feb 14, 1948 communist takeover in Czechoslovakia Jun 24, 1948 Berlin Blockade begins May 12, 1949 Berlin Blockade ends Jul 1, 1949 NATO ratified Sep 30, 1949 Soviets explode first atomic bomb Jan 12, 1951 Federal Civil Defense Administration established Jun 19, 1953 Rosenberg executions Jul 1, 1953 Korean War ends Jul 18, 1954 vietnam split at 17th parallel Oct 31, 1956 Rebellion put down in Communist Hungary. Egypt took control of Suez Canal; U.S. refused to help take it back Oct 4, 1957 sputnik launched into orbit Jan 2, 1959 cube taken over by Fidel Castro May 18, 1960 Soviet Union reveals that U.S. spy plane was shot down over Soviet territory Aug 13, 1961 Berlin border closed