-
Cold War Begins
The Cold War began because of a rivalry between the United States and the USSR. Both countries were trying to perfect nuclear weapons and tensions built as the two raced to perfect them. During the cold war, there was also a space race to see who could get into space faster. -
Communist Coup in Czechoslovakia
In this event, communist Soviet Union was able to make Czechoslovakia communist. This meant that communism would spread more. This would make the U.S. more uneasy and would make the U.S. want to strengthen their containment efforts. This would also show, that since it was a bloodless coup, how easily communism could spread. -
North Korea Attacks South Korea
Communist North Korea marched into South Korea in an attempt to gain control over the area. This attack sparked the Korean War. This meant another war began during the Cold War. Another similarity is that North Korea's goal was to spread communism but South Korea's goal was to contain the communism. -
West Germany Joins NATO
This event was very important. West Germany was on the capitalist side of the Iron Curtain. Joining NATO would be a way to show their support for other capitalist countries and a way to try to convince East Germany to become capitalist and not communist. This could also help with the strategy of containing communism. -
The Launch of Sputnik
The Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. This was a major step forward in the space race. This would push both the U.S. and USSR to advance their technology. -
Eisenhower Authorizes NASA
President EIsenhower allowed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to be created. This helped the United States get one more step ahead in the space race. -
Cuba
In 1959, Fidel Castro gained power in Cuba. He was a communist leader who would ally with the Soviet Union. This was very important because it led to the Cuban Missile Crisis and the USSR getting very close to the U.S. This also made the U.S. realize how careful they needed to be in whom they trusted and relied on. -
U2 Incident
In the U2 Spy Plane Incident, a U.S. spy plane was shot down by the Soviet Union. This resulted in the pilot being kidnapped and held prisoner. Th U.S. also shot down a Soviet pilot and held him captive. The two countries exchanged prisoners and tried to disregard the incident. This made the U.S. and USSR realize how careful they needed to be and how easily something could go wrong. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
President John F. Kennedy had recently found out about the presence of nuclear missiles in Cuba. They had been placed there by the USSR and were aimed at Florida. He had decided to enable a naval blockade around Cuba. This turned into a 13 day standoff between Cuba and the United States. -
Washington-Moscow Hotline Established
There was a hotline connection between the United States and Soviet Union formed. This would have made it easier to communicate and made it much more accurate at communicating. This greatly reduced the risk of war due to misunderstandings or miscommunication. This helped ease some of the fear of a nuclear war. -
"Six Day War" in Middle East
This was a war between Isreal and Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. This was because the Jewish and Arab people had very different views and both wanted Jerusalem. It was a short war but had many affects. Today, Arabs and Jews don't get along in some areas of the world because of this war. -
Détente
Détente was known as the "release of tensions". This was an important time because many countries had become very tense and stressed due to the arms race. This time meant countries could relieve some of their stress and get back on track to achieve their goals. -
The Fall of Saigon
The fall of Saigon was when the the Vietcong from North Korea captured the capital of South Korea, Saigon. This capture resulted in the end of the Vietnam War and Vietnamisation from the U.S. This meant the United States forces would pull out of South Vietnam. -
The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project
This test project was the first test combining the U.S. and Soviet space programs. This event was seen as a way to make peace and end the space race. This would eventually help end the competition. -
Death of Mao
Mao Zedong was a Chinese communist leader. His death had a major effect on the country, People went into mourning and were very upset. However, this would end the reign of Mao and his communism. He caused many people to die of illness or starvation because of his attempted projects. Even though the leader of China is no longer Mao, it is still a communist country. -
Carter Administration
President Carter was very forward with his views on human rights. He wanted people to realize morals and how they were affecting other people. This was during the nuclear race and right as tensions were high. It would make people realize just how involved they were with people they didn't know and how everyone deserved certain things and rights. -
U.S. Troops Sent to Lebanon
President Reagan feared that conflicts between the Lebanese, Syrians, and Israelis would turn into a war, so he sent U.S. troops into Lebanon. This was an effort to keep peace and could have very well prevented a war in the middle of the arms race. -
Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the Soviet Union. He was the first and last leader of the Soviet Union. He attempted to democratize the country. His efforts led to the downfall of communism and the breakup of the Soviet Union. -
"Tear down this wall!"
When President Reagan visited Berlin, he challenged Mikhail Gorbachev, Soviet leader, to tear down the Berlin Wall. This would help in the continual downfall of the Soviet Union. -
Tadeusz Mazowiecki
In Poland, there had been a lack of support for the communist party. Tadeusz Mazowiecki was the first elected non-communist leader of the Polish government. This would create the first non-communist government in the Eastern Bloc. -
The End of the Cold War
On this day, all Soviet institutions ceased to continue. This would mark the end of the war between the U.S. and USSR commonly known as the "Cold War". This war could have turned into a nuclear war because both sides had the technology capable, but fear prevented that. -
Communist Leaders Elected in Poland and Hungary
When communist leaders were elected in these two countries, it would have been helpful to east Germany. This would have helped spread communism to more of the world and made it harder for the U.S. to contain communism. -
Poland and Hungary Apply for Membership in European Union
When Poland and Hungary applied for membership in the European Union, it would have helped gain back the trust of countries like the U.S. This would be very important in helping to stop the spread of communism and utilize containment.
