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end of the World War 2
In the closing months of the war, American and British leaders were concerned about Stalin's intentions in Eastern Europe.They worried that communism and Soviet influence would spread in the postwar world. And Stalin would soon break his promises about respecting democracy in Eastern Europe. World War 2 has ended, but another struggle was about to begin. -
Cold War Begin
The relationship between the Soviet Union and the Western nations continued to worsen after the war. Soon the United States and the Soviet Union entered an era of tension and hostility, which became known as the Cold War. -
the Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan, named after U.S. secretary of state George Marshall, provided $13 billion for rebuilding Europe. The plan helped Western Europe make a rapid recovery from the war,and it also helped preserve political stability and the growth of the European Communism. -
Berlin airlift
the Soviets blocked off all land, rail, and water routes into West Berlin. As a result, Berlin's 2 million residents were no longer able to import food, coal, and other vital supplies. The Soviets hoped these measures would force the West to leave Berlin. But they refused, and they organized the airlift, a massive effort to supply West Berlin by cargo plane and it was taking off from or landing in Berlin every 30 sec. It was a success and Soviets called off the blockade of Berlin in May 1949, -
Hydrogen bomb
In 1949 the Soviet succeed the test of an atomic bomb. Then immediately, the United States sought to develop more powerful weapon, atomic bombs used energy created by splitting apart atoms; but using nuclear fusion together of atoms could produce a much larger explosion. In the fall of 1952 the United States tested the first fusion-powered hydrogen bomb with spectacular results, completely vaporizing the island on which the bomb was tested. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
A force of Cuban exiles, trained by the CIA, aided by the US government attempted to invade Cuba and overthrow the Communist government of Fidel Castro. The attempt failed. -
Cuban missile crisis takes place
In the 1962 came the Cuban missile crisis, a confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union over the installation of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. After a two-week standoff, Soviet leaders removed the missiles when the United States agreed to remove U.S. missiles from Turkey and promised not to attack Cuba. -
SALT I agreement is signed
President of United States in 1968 Richard Nixon, one result of his efforts was the start of negotiations known as the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, or SALT I. The talks led to agreements limiting the number of nuclear weapons held by each side. SALT I also ed to the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, which prevented the development of weapons designed to shoot down nuclear missiles. The ABM treaty was meant to ensure that each side remained vulnerable to the other's nuclear weapon. -
Mikhail Gorbachev came to power
When Mikhail Gorbachev came to power in the Soviet Union in 1985, he saw the need for change. Gorbachev proposed two radical concepts: glasnost and perestroika. Glasnost means "openness" and it meant a willingness to discuss openly the Soviet Union's problems. Perestroika means "restructuring" and refereed to the reform of the Soviet economic and political system. -
the Soviet Union collapses
Mikhail Gorbachev resigned. The hammer and sickle flag on the Kremlin was lowered. And Russia formally recognized the end of the Soviet Union. Finally, the Cold War has ended for good.
