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Berlin Blockade
Joseph Stalin imposed the Berlin Blockade from June 24th 1948 to May 12th 1949. This cut off all land & river transit between west Berlin and west Germany. Western Allies responded with a massive airlift to aid west Berlin;. The berlin Blockade exposed the deep ideological differences separating the different sides. Ranked number 7 since nothing majorly happened that threatened the world -
Korean war
75,000 soldiers from the North Korean army poured across the 38th parallel. The 38th parallel was the boundary between the soviet-backed democratic people's republic of Korea to the North & the pro-western republic of Korea to the south. This invasion was the first military action of the cold war. America though not involved, tried to create some armistice. In July 1953 the war came to an end. 5 million soldiers & civilians died. The United States now refers to it as "the forgotten war." No.3. -
Suez canal crisis
Egypt colonized Suez canal, (previously owned by Britain & France.) Britain, France, & Israel launched a military operation to regain control of the canal. The U.S. & the soviet union forced them to withdraw. This had significant political and economic implications making a shift in in power dynamics & decolonization efforts in the region. Ranked 6 because Britain, France & Israel did withdraw after a small amount of time. -
Space race
Both The U.S and the soviet union had a competition during the cold war. Both countries were in a race to explore and conquer space. They aimed to achieve significant milestones. Ultimately the U.S had a win by landing astronauts on the moon. ranked 11; nothing bad happened while trying to figure out what space is about. -
Vietnam war
Fought by North vietnam (communist allies) and south vietnam (anti-communist countries.) The war increased the number of protest around the world. It had a significant impact on the U.S. & Vietnam. Ended with devastating consequences for the countries invaded. Ranked number 4, it was a very long war between both opposing sides. -
U-2 incident
The U.S had a spy plane called the U-2. It was shot down by the soviet union while conducting reconnaissance missions over soviet territory. The incident heightened tensions between the the 2 superpowers and temporarily derailed efforts to improve relations between the 2. It was a challenging moment during the cold war. Honestly ranked number 8 the U.S had it coming if they were spying and they got caught what do you expect them to not do nothing no. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
A tense standoff between the U.S and the soviet union. It began when the U.S found out that the soviets were secretly installing nuclear missiles in cuba. This sparked a dangerous confrontation with both sides on the brink of nuclear war. After intense negotiations, it was peacefully resolved. The U.S agreed NOT to invade Cuba, and the soviets removed their missiles that were in cuba. Ranked number 9, no war happened just major disagreements that happened that eventually became an agreement. -
Yom Kippur War
Egypt and Syria had war with Israel. Began on the Jewish holiday "Yom Kippur." Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israel. It was a challenging conflict that lasted several weeks. A ceasefire was reached after a while.
Ranked number 5 because it was a war that was a surprise launch attack. -
Soviet war in Afghanistan
The soviet union began an invasion on December 24th, 1979. THe soviet union air dropped elite troops into principal afghan cities. It deployed motorized divisions across the border. The kgb had infiltrated the afghan presidential palace, poisoned the president, and his ministers. This invasion lasted almost a full decade. This was called "The friendship war" and caused the lives of 1 million civilians and 125,000 soviet and afghan soldiers. Ranked number 1, a lot of innocents died. -
Soviets Downing Korean Air Lines Flight 007
Korea couldn't meet the stop to New York City on flight 007. The soviets mistook the plane for a spy plane, shot the aircraft down. It caused the plane to crash. ALl the passengers lost their lives. This increased the tensions between the U.S and the soviet union. Honestly in my opinion ranked number 2, those were innocent lives that the soviet union killed. -
"Able Archer" Military exercise
It was a NATO exercise designed to simulate a nuclear war scenario. The exercise involved various military activities (communication drills, and simulated nuclear strikes.) However, it was misunderstood by the soviet union; they believed it was a cover for an actual attack. This escalated the tensions between the two superpowers. Ranked number 10, it was just an assumption and no superpowers did anything, it was just practice if it were to happen.