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Berlin Blockade
During the multinational occupation of post–World War II Germany, the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to the sectors of Berlin under allied control. No one was allowed passage to Berlin, especially the Allies. -
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Berlin Blockade
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Berlin Airlift
In response to the Soviet blockade of land routes into West Berlin, the United States begins a massive airlift of food, water, and medicine to the citizens of the besieged city. For nearly a year, supplies from American planes sustained the over 2 million people in West Berlin. -
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Berlin Airlift
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Formation of NATO
In 1949, the prospect of further Communist expansion prompted the United States and 11 other Western nations to form the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). NATO continued its existence beyond the Cold War era and gained new member nations in Eastern Europe during the late 1990s. -
Chinese Civil War
Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong declared the creation of the People’s Republic of China on October 1st, 1949. The announcement ended the costly full-scale civil war between the Chinese Communist Party and the Nationalist Party, which began immediately following World War II and had been preceded by on and off conflict between the two sides since the 1920’s. -
National Security Council Report NSC-68
National Security Council Paper NSC-68 was a Top-Secret report completed by the U.S. Department of State’s Policy Planning Staff on April 7, 1950.The authors concluded that the Soviet threat would soon be greatly superior by the addition of more weapons, including nuclear weapons, to the Soviet arsenal. -
Korean War
Korea, a former Japanese possession, had been divided into zones of occupation following World War II. U.S. forces accepted the surrender of Japanese forces in southern Korea, while Soviet forces did the same in northern Korea. The Soviets assisted in the establishment of a communist regime in North Korea, while the United States became the main source of financial and military support for South Korea. -
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Korean War
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President Truman fires General McArthur
MacArthur led the Allied forces in the Southwest Pacific during World War II, and after the war was in charge of the occupation of Japan. When North Korea invaded South Korea in June 1950, starting the Korean War, he was designated commander of the United Nations forces defending South Korea. He conceived and executed the amphibious assault at Inchon on September 15th of 1950 and this went against President Truman's orders. -
Formation of the Warsaw Pact
The Soviet Union and seven of its European satellites sign a treaty establishing the Warsaw Pact, a mutual defense organization that put the Soviets in command of the armed forces of the member states. -
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Warsaw Pact
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Launching of Sputnik
Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I, which was the world's first artificial satellite.The spacecraft was named Sputnik after the Russian word for “satellite,” was launched at 10:29 p.m. Moscow time from the Tyuratam launch base in the Kazakh Republic. -
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Sputnik
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Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 was a direct and dangerous confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War and was the moment when the two superpowers came closest to nuclear conflict. -
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Cuban Missile Crisis
