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The Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was a policy brought to light in a speech given by President Truman. He stated that if Greece or Turkey fell under the control of the Soviet Union, the United States would give direct military and financial aid to stop the advance. It marked the beginning of the Cold War and the US policy of containment. -
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was a program developed by the United States to help rebuild the broken economies of Western Europe after WWII by means of monetary support. Its main initiative was to help stop the increasing influence and spread of communism throughout Europe. -
Creation of NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a military alliance that was created in response to the Soviet Union's growning military and political influence on the rest of the world. Members of the treaty which included the United States and countries in Western Europe signed an agreement stating that if the Soviet Union were to attack a member, that all other's would be directly involved in military action against the Soviets. -
China becomes communist
The Chinese Revolution which was fought between communist rebels and Chinese nationalists resulted in the overthrow of the nationalist goverment. Lead by communist party leader Mao Zedong, the communists took to power. China, which is the most populous country, was now an extremely influential nation which could spread the communist ideology amongst other Asian nations. -
The Korean War
US lead United Nations' Armed Forces retaliate against a North Korean invasion of South Korea in an effort to unite the peninsula under a communist regime. The war ends three years later at a stand still. The countries are still divided at the 38th Parallel to this day. -
Signing of the Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a military alliance treaty which included eight communist nations in Eastern and Central Europe. It was a direct response to the creation of NATO as well as West Germany's induction into the organization. -
The Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a 20 year long conflict between the democratic government of South Vietnam allied with the United States and the Soviet supported communist forces of North Vietnam. The United States sent troops to the small Asian country after the NVA launched a campaign to unify Vietnam under one communist government through means of military invasion. The highly controversial war quickly lost popular support in the United States, causing their withdrawl in 1973. -
Nikita Khrushchev visits the United States
Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev visits the United States for thirteen days in 1959 following a visit to the USSR by Vice President Richard Nixon. This was one of the key events that lead to detente or the easing of tensions between the two powers. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
A CIA trained group of counter-revolutionary Cuban exiles attempt to overthrow the newly formed communist regime of Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro. The coup was a failure and a humiliation to the United States government, with the rebels being defeated by Cuban Armed Forces in just three days. -
Construction of the Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was constructed by the USSR that ran through the heart of Berlin to act as a concrete barrier between the communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the democratic nations of the West. Citizens were not allowed to cross the wall at risk of being killed by armed guards employed by the communist governments. This lead to the further division of Europe and isolation of the East from the freedom of Western Europe. -
Cuban missle crisis
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The Six Day War
Fearing an attack from surrounding Arab countries, Israel conducts a suprise bombing raid on Egyptian airfields, triggering a massive conventional battle between the Jewish nation of Israel and the surrounding three Arab states of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. Despite being outnumbered, the Israeli army prevails in defeating the Arab nations in a decisive victory which Israel gained control of the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula. -
Soviets Launch Sputnik 1
The Soviet Union entered the space race in 1967 by becoming the first nation ever to launch an unmanned satellite, Sputnik 1, into space. This came with great alarm and distress from the United States, who scurried to enter the space race to prevent the strategic domination of Earth's outer atmosphere by the USSR. -
United States sends a man to the moon
The United States became the first nation in the space race to successfully land a man on the moon. This became the ultimate accomplishment in the US space program. NASA would go on to accomplish 6 more manned moon operations. -
Nixon visits China
For the first time ever a United States president had visited the People's Republic of China. This was the first event that lead to the strengthening of relations between the US and China, whom the US had previously recognized as one of its greatest enemies. This greatly effected the outcome of the Cold War and ultimately lead to the financial relationship we see today between the two great nations. -
USSR invades Afghanistan
Looking to expand the reach of the USSR, the Soviet Union invades Afghanistan in effort to gain new territory and spread the influence of communism to the Middle East. The Soviet Union fought against US backed Islamic rebels, the Mujahideen. The ten year war was a complete failure and resulted in no new territory gained and cost thousands of lives. It is commonly dubbed "Russia's Vietnam". It was one of the main events that lead to the collapse of the Soviet economy. -
The United States Invades Grenada
Triggered by a military coup and a Soviet presence, the United States invades the small island nation of Grenada. The main focus of the operation was an airstrip which US intelligence presumed could be used by Cuban or Soviet military. American medical students also resided on the island, in danger of being apprehended. The move to invade Grenada was extremely controversial, but successful nonetheless. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
After years of oppression in the communist controlled countries of Eastern Europe, the Berlin Wall was finally destroyed in 1989 following extreme economic hardship in the red nations as well as peace agreements between the United States and USSR. The collapse marked the beginning of the end of the Cold War and eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union. -
Collapse of the Soviet Union
After a series of peace talks and resolutions between US presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush and Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev, the USSR decided to disband marking the end of decades of tension between the two powers. The fall of communism in Europe lead to the creation and resurrection of the democratic states of Eastern and Central Europe.
