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Sino-Soviet Treaty
Despite U.S. efforts, mainland China became a Communist People's Republic. -
U.S. Hydrogen Bomb
the United States announced it had successfully detonated a hydrogen bomb. -
Stalin's Death
First Secretary of the Communist Party, Nikita Khrushchev, ultimately consolidated power and became the de facto leader of the Soviet Union. -
Creation of the Warsaw Pact
the Soviet Union concluded a military defensive alliance known as the Warsaw Pact with Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania. -
Creation of the Warsaw Pact
Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania -
Korean War
Following World War II, the United States administered the southern occupation zone in Korea, while the Soviets administered the northern zone. -
Atomic Energy Act
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Atomic Energy Act in August 1954 to authorize the international exchange of information on the peaceful uses of atomic energy, and endorsed the development of commercial nuclear power. -
Twentieth Congress of Soviet Communist Party
This marked the beginning of a brief loosening of the most stringent forms of censorship in the Soviet Union. -
Suez Crisis
After the United States reneged on a deal to finance the building of the Aswan Dam, Egypt seized and nationalized the Suez Canal, through which the West received its oil supplies. -
Hungarian Uprising
The United States sponsored UN resolutions condemning the Soviet invasion, and called for the immediate withdrawal of Soviet troops. -
Hungarian Uprising
the Soviets beat the United States into space by successfully launching the first man-made earth satellite, Sputnik I, into orbit. -
Sputnik and the Space Race
he Soviets beat the United States into space by successfully launching the first man-made earth satellite, Sputnik I, into orbit. A month later, the Soviets sent up another satellite, this time carrying a dog. -
Suspension of Nuclear Tests
politicians warned of the dangers of Soviet superiority in technology and science, and speculated that the Soviets might possess superior missile stockpiles. -
Warsaw Pact and Hungarian Revolution
While Stalin's death in 1953 slightly relaxed tensions, the situation in Europe remained an uneasy armed truce. -
Khrushchev Visits the United States
Just before he left, Khrushchev addressed the American people on national television. This was first visit to the United States of a Soviet leader since the establishment of U.S.-Soviet relations in 1933. -
Khrushchev-Eisenhower Meeting at Camp David
he two leaders agreed to expand exchanges and to remove the Soviet deadline for a Berlin settlement, but no progress was made on disarmament or the reunification of Germany.
