Cold War By knaymon Period: Jan 1, 1945 to May 19, 1990 Key Events of the Cold War Jan 20, 1945 Harry Truman elected president Feb 4, 1945 Yalta and Potsdam Conferences Feb 5, 1945 Russia declares war on Japan May 19, 1945 Berlin blockade and airlift May 19, 1945 US drops bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan Aug 11, 1945 Japanese surrender End of World War II Mar 5, 1946 Winston Churchill Iron Curtain speech May 19, 1946 Churchill's Iron Curtain speech Jun 5, 1946 Marshall Plan is announced Mar 6, 1947 Brussels Pact organized to protect Europe from communism May 19, 1947 Truman Doctrine and Marshall Plan Sep 2, 1947 Rio Pact - U.S. meet 19 Latin American countries and created a security zone around the hemisphere May 19, 1949 NATO formed May 19, 1949 USSR explodes an atomic bomb Oct 5, 1949 Communist Mao Zedong takes control of China and establishes the People's Republic of China Feb 5, 1950 Joe McCarthy begins Communist witch hunt and loyalty tests Jun 4, 1950 Truman approves hyrdogen bomb Jan 20, 1953 Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes president May 19, 1953 Stalin dies May 19, 1953 Nikita Krushchev leads USSR May 19, 1955 Warsaw Pact formed Feb 4, 1956 Stalin gives speech against capitalism May 19, 1956 Revolt in Hungary against the USSR May 19, 1957 Sputnik 1- first satellite (USSR)