-
Berlin Blockade and Airlift
To force the western allied powers (US,UK,&France) to abandon their post-WWII jurisdictions in west Berlin, the Soviets protested by their representative withdrawing from the Allied Control Council. The Soviet occupation forces in eastern Germany began a blockade of all rail, road, & water communication to the west. However, on June 26, the US & Britain began to supply the city with food and other vital supplies by air. -
Korean War
June 25, 1950 North Korea invaded South Korea due to the two sides being divided and having constant battles along the border. When Eisenhower became president, he wanted the war to stop and signed a treaty on July 17, 1953 that ended the war. -
Vietnam War
Also known as the Second Indochina War, fought between North Vietnam - supported by Soviet Union, China, & other communist allies- and the government of South Vietnam- supported by the United States. By 1966, South Vietnam had many "free-fire zones" where innocents were supposed to evacuate and have only the enemy remain. By November 1967, American troops in Vietnam were 500,000 and US casualties reached 15,000 killed and 109,527 wounded. -
Space Race
It had not been a plesant surprise to most Americans that the soviets launched a satellite into the Earth's orbit. Ever since this action, the US & Soviets went back & forth trying to one up eachother until July 20, 1969 when the US' apollo mission landed, and Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the moon's surface. The US effectivley "won" the Space Race -
U-2 Reconnaissance Plane Incident
When the soviets shot down a US spy airctaft, Americans were embarassed. The piolet managed to bail out of the aircraft, but as soon as his parachute floated to earth, he was surrounded by soviet officials and taken to jail. He was put on trial in August 1960, and was sentenced to 10 years in jail, but only served two before being free and having someone else take his place -
Bay of Pigs
Castro made sure he was always one step ahead. When they tried to invade his planes, he moved them out of harms way. When they tried to invade the Bay of Pigs, he pinned invaders on the beach. Exiles surrendered after less than a day of fighting and 114 were killed and 1,100 were taken prisioner -
Cuban Missile Crisis
Cuba was installing missiles so close to the US and from that launch point, they could quickly reach all of the Eastern side. When the Americans were notified about the missiles, people nervously waited for the Soviets response. There was a Soviet-American stand-off at sea and American officials agreed to withdraw their nations missiles from Turkey & on October 28, the crisis grew to a close. -
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT)
The US & Soviet Union agreed to limit the number of nuclear missiles in their arsenals. Negotiations for a second round of SALT began in early 1972. SALT didnt prevent each side from enlarging their forces through the deployment of Multiple Independently Targeted Re-Entry Vehicles (MIRVs). SALT II focused on limiting and reducing MIRVs. -
Soviet Afgahn War
Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in fear that President Amin was having discussions with the United States. The Soviet Union had little success and their army no longer seemed invincible to the rest of the world. By 1988 Gorbachev realized the war wasnt doing more good than bad and signed a peace treaty to end the war. -
Collapse of the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union started to weaken under the pressure of so many states wanting their independence. Mikhail Gorbachev resigned at the same time that the Soviet Union had dissolved.