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Yalta Conference 1945
This conference involved The Big Three (Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the U.S.) powers and was held at Yalta in southern Russia. At this conference, Roosevelt wanted military aid against Japan from the Soviet Union. Both countries had conditions but both agreed. This was one of the few times when the U.S. and the Soviet Union worked together. While they were working together, however, they both had misconceptions about each other and different intentions. -
Truman Doctrine 1947
The Truman Doctrine promised that the U.S. would assist countries that were threatened by Communist forces. The U.S. would support hese nations financially. This contributed to the Cold War because ultimately, this war was between Communism and Capitalism (the Soviet Union and the U.S.). This agreement reinforced the U.S.'s position. -
Marshall Plan 1947
Also known as the European Recovery Program, the Marshall Plan was designed to "rebuild the prosperity and stablity of war-torn Europe". This plan involved the giving of $13 billion dollars to Europe to help their recovery.
This was important to the Cold War because non-communists believed that communism flourished in countries that have severe economic problems. This plan was an act against communism by the U.S. -
Berlin Airlift 1948
The Berlin Airlift was the agreement that the U.S. and Britain would deliver supplies via airplanes to Berlin, since it was in a Soviet zone and the Soviet Union had created a blockade around Berlin. -
NATO - 1949
NATO, short for North Atlantic Treaty Organization, consisted of Belgium, Luxemburg, France, the Netherlands, Great Britain, Italy, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Iceland, the U.S. and Canada. This organization was ultimately an alliance because all of these countries agreed to protect another if one of them were to be attacked. -
USSR Atomic Bomb 1949
The explosion of this atomic bomb further established the fears of the U.S. concerning the spread of communism. This fear led to the U.S. growing their arsenal and making nuclear weapons. The USSR was also arming itself with nuclear weapons. -
Korean War Begins 1950
This war was a war between North and South Korea. These two had very opposing governments, anti-communist and communist, that had opposed each other for too long. It started with North Korea (communist) invaded South Korea, with the approval from Stalin. At this point the U.S. agreed to assist South Korea and stop the invaders. -
Rosenberg Spy Case 1951
The Rosenburg Spy Case involved a spy from the Soviet Union in America and an American spy in the Soviet Union. -
East German Uprising 1953
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Korean War Ends 1953
The war continued for three years with no end in sight. The fighting eventually led to an armistice being signed in 1953. Neither side had a victory since North and South Korea still remain seperate. -
Warsaw Pact 1955
This alliance between the Soviet Union, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania greatly influenced the Cold War. This alliance only made the USSR a stronger enemy against the U.S. -
Nikita Khrushchev Comes to Power 1955
This is vital to what happened in the Cold War because Nikita Khruschev contributed greatly to the Cold War. -
Hungarian Uprising 1956
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Sputnik 1957
The creation of this satellite was a cause for fright to non-communist nations. They thought that if the USSR was capable of engineering such advanced equipment, they must be ahead the rest of the world with building missiles. -
U2 Incident 1960
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Berlin Wall (building) 1961
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Bay of Pigs Invasion 1961
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Cuban Missile Crisis 1962
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Prague Spring 1968
A period of euphoria that resulted from the positive reforms Alexander Dubĉek instituted as first secretary of the commnist party. His goal was to make "socialism with a human face". Some reforms included freedom of speech, freedom of press, and freedom of travel. -
Mikhail Gorbachev comes to power 1985
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German Unification 1990