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The Yalta Conference
Franklin D Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin would meet up and discuss about postwar Europe, assign occupation zones in Germany for each country, discuss about the United Nations, and the Soviet Unions entry in the war in the Pacific and what they would gain from it. Stalin also promised that Poland would have their borders back and that Poland, Bulgaria, and Romania would a representative government and free elections. -
Potsdam Conference
All three leaders from the United States, the United Kingdom, and The Soviet Union discussed about the reconstruction of Europe, territory of Germany, and repercussions. They were many disagreements between the USA and USSR, this caused a lack of trust between both nations. Stalin refused to reduce the Red Army and angry that Truman didn’t tell him about the atomic bomb testing until the conference. -
Truman Doctrine
President Harry Truman stated that it would provide economic and military aid to countries who were resisting the spread of communism. This was initially for Greece and Turkey. This foreign policy aid was in hopes that communism from struggling post war countries. Many historians see the Truman conference as the start to the Cold War. -
Marshall Plan
This was also known as the European Recovery Program. This was a program implemented by the United States to provide aid to Western Europe after World War II. It lasted four years and it helped reconstruct cities, redevelop the countries economy, support industries and infrastructure. The Marshall Plan was hoping to stop the spread of communism on European soil. Created by George C. Marshall. -
Berlin Airlift and Blockade
The Soviets blocked all land routes to West Berlin and they wanted control of all Berlin. The Soviets thought if they cut off the supplies, they would gain control of Berlin. Many countries, including the United States, would fly over the city and drop off supplies like, food, water, medicine, etc. This airlift lasted for around ten months. -
NATO is founded
NATO(The North Atlantic Treaty Organization) was signed by Canada, United States, United Kingdom, and many other European countries. The agreement states that if one country is attacked it will be regarded as an attacked on all countries. It was meant for each country to defend themselves from Communism and the Soviet Union. -
Soviet Union testing its first atomic bomb
President Truman announced that the Soviets had tested its first atomic bomb. This was a shock to many because the atomic bomb testing came three years earlier then predicted. This lead to Truman ordering the development of the hydrogen bomb . -
China becomes a Communist country
Mao Zedong, The Chinese communist leader, declared the creation of the peoples Republic of China to the world . It was considered a defeat for the United States and its allies. The “fall of China” was a issue for both parties in the United States. -
Senator McCarthy claims that there a communists in State Department
Senator Joseph McCarthy told Americans during speech that he had a list with over 200 names of members of the department of state who were communist.He failed to identify who were the communists within the government. This led to a witch hunt nationwide in the search for communists. These individuals in the search for communists were known as red-hunters. It also flourished the fear and suspicion of many Americans about communism. This became to be known as McCarthyism -
NSC-68 is created
The National Security Council of Memorandum Number 68 was created by Truman’s national security council. It called for the containment of Soviet expansion, Increase in military aid to US allies, the development of the hydrogen bomb and embark on rapid military expansion. It was a key document during the Cold War. -
The Korean War begins
After World War II, The Soviet union in the United States divide Korea into North and South Korea and set up a temporary governments. By 1949 both countries had withdrawn their forces and in 1950, North Korea invaded South Korea marking the start of the Korean War. -
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are sentenced
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are sentenced to death for Committing espionage and passing atomic secrets to the Soviets Union. They were the only American civilians to be executed for espionage during the Cold War. They were executed in the electric chair in 1953. -
SEATO is established
President Eisenhower and John Foster Dulles founded the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, which includes countries like Australia, Thailand, and the United States and many more. They pledged to work together to prevent communism from spreading around Southeast Asia -
Warsaw Pact is signed
The Soviet union and several countries in Europe signed the Warsaw Pact. It is a mutual military and defense organization and alliance for the Soviet Union and European countries. This was a response to NATO -
The Vietnam War begins
The Geneva Conference spit Vietnam between North and South Vietnam and called for nation wide elections for reunification in 1956. North Vietnam was in control of the communists and the U.S fears that it would spread to South Vietnam and the rest of Asia. -
Hungarian uprising
The Hungarians held a series of uprisings against the Soviet government and were desperate for US aid and intervention but it was soon revealed the limits and influence the US has with international affairs -
The Suez Crisis begins
Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez canal, Israeli armies rushed into Egypt with British and French forces. The Soviets supplied the Egyptian government with weapons. Eisenhower warmed the Soviets to avoid intervention within the crisis and told France, Great Britain, and Israel to leave Egypt and if they didn’t he would impose economic sanctions. This would be the first time the United Nations Emergency force would be used. -
Eisenhower Doctrine
The Eisenhower doctrine was a US foreign policy that it would defend countries in the Middle East against any attacks made by any communist country. The country is under attack would receive economic assistance or aid from the military if they requested it. -
Sputnik Scare
Soviets launched the first artificial satellite into space this led to fears across the US that’s Soviets were dominant in technology in our space and question the superiority of the US technology, a month later the Soviets launched a second satellites with the dog aboard. This led to the creation of NASA. Congress passed the national defense education act to promote science engineering in foreign languages in American classrooms . This was the beginning of the space race. -
Bay of Pigs invasion
It was an attack launched by the CIA were 1200 exiles landed at Cuba’s Bay of Pigs. This was meant to overthrow Castro‘s government . This attempt to assassinate Castro pushed him to embrace the Soviet Union. Many of Kennedys advisors stated that Castro post no threats to the US but Kennedy was serious in winning the Cold War. -
Berlin Wall is constructed
Thousands of East Germans were crossing the border into West Berlin. That night, the leader of the Soviet union gave the east German government permission to close the border for good and in two weeks the East Berlin army police force and volunteers had constructed a barbed wire and concrete block wall known as the Berlin wall that divided one side of the city. -
Charlie Checkpoint standoff
US diplomat in West Berlin was stopped by East German guards on his way to the opera house in East Berlin. The soldiers from the East Berlin side demanded to see his passport but the diplomat insisted that only Soviet officials could check his passport.American tanks were ordered to head for checkpoint Charlie and the Soviet leader sent Soviet tanks to face the Americans. The tanks stayed for 16 hours -
Cuban Missile Crisis
It was discovered that the Soviet Unions had installed nuclear missiles on Cuba and President Kennedy made Americans aware of the presence of the missiles.Kennedy issued a naval blockade around Cuba and many people feared that a nuclear war was about to start. The Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev removed the Cuban missile‘s in exchange of the US not invading Cuba. -
United States leaves Vietnam
There was a cease-fire agreement between the US and north Vietnam.All prisoners of war were released and on March 29 last soldiers left South Vietnam. -
The fall of the Berlin Wall
The East Berlin communist party announced that they were letting citizens cross the country’s borders and both East and West Berliners were at the wall at midnight and flooded the border.Then people used hammers, cranes, and began to destroy the wall. This will be the first time that Berlin would be united since 1945. -
The fall of the Soviet Union
Many nations declared their independence from the Soviet unionThe Soviet Union faced many revolutions like in Germany and Poland. Many communist government officials put go to bed shift go by Che many communist government officials put Gorbachev under house arrest. On Christmas Day, Gorbachev resigned to put his position as leader of the Soviet Union, causing the end of the cold war and the fall of the Soviet Union
