World Civilization Worksheet-From Vietnam to Iraq
Answer the following 57 questions.
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Name the former French colony that was divided into a North and South in 1954.
North Vietnam was run by a communist government under the leadership of who?
South Vietnam was run by a noncommunist government under the leadership of who?
T/F Although South Vietnam’s government was corrupt and often repressive, the U.S. supported the
government because it was anti-communist, in fear that if South Vietnam fell to the communists, all of
Southeast Asia might follow.
Communist-backed gorilla forces who fought against the South Vietnamese government were known as
what?
In August 1964, President Johnson reported that the North Vietnamese had attacked two American ships. At
the president’s request, Congress passed what resolution that allowed the President to carry out a war against
the Vietcong and North Vietnam?
In February 1965, after the Vietcong attacked an American airbase in South Vietnam, Johnson ordered an
escalation in the war. What does escalation mean?
Vietcong guerillas used hit-and-run tactics and booby traps, launching small-scale attacks and then disappear
into the jungles or friendly villages. To counter such tactics, what strategy did American adopt that saw
troops destroy jungles and villages in an attempt to force the Vietcong out in open combat?
On January 30, 1968, the Vietcong launched surprise attacks on numerous towns and bases in South Korea,
shocking Americans that the enemy could make such a large-scale attack after the Johnson administration
told the American people the end of the war was in sight at the end of 1967. What is this Vietcong attack
known as?
Those in America who supported the Vietnam War effort were known as what?
Those in America who opposed the Vietnam War effort were known as what?
Many of the antiwar protests took place where in the United States?
In 1970, where did an antiwar protest turn violent when four university students were killed by members of
the Ohio National Guard?
T/F During this tumultuous period in the U.S., some young people rebelled against established values and
searched for a new set of beliefs. These people made up what was known as the counterculture because their
values and practices conflicted with those of established society.
Name the Democratic presidential candidate who would have likely won his party’s nomination, but was shot
and killed before the election.
After the assassination of the person above, who won the Democratic nomination for president in 1968?
Who was the Republican candidate for president in 1968, eventually winning the election?
Name the influential political scientist who served as President Nixon’s national security adviser and later his
secretary of state.
Wanting to be remembered as a peacemaker, Nixon proclaimed a policy of relaxation of tensions between the
United States and the communist bloc. This policy was known as what?
T/F Despite a campaign promise to end the war in Vietnam, Nixon moved slowly. He did not want to
become the nation’s first president to lose a war.
Name the newspaper that published a secret defense department study which indicated that the nation’s
various administrations had misled Congress and the public about the war in Vietnam.
What was the study in the question above referred to as?
To quiet opposition to the war, Nixon announced a new policy which consisted of withdrawing U.S. troops
“with honor” and replacing them with South Vietnamese soldiers. What was this policy known as?
In January of what year did the warring sides sign a cease-fire agreement ending the military presence of the
U.S. in Vietnam?
In January of what year did North Vietnam launch a major offensive, conquering South Vietnam and uniting
the country under communist rule?
What is the name of the war that broke out between Israel and its Arab neighbors in the Middle East?
In the above war, who did the United States support?
In the above war, who did the Soviet Union support?
The war between Israel and the Arab states ended with a cease-fire. Afterwards, Secretary of State Henry
Kissinger engaged in flying back and forth between the capitals of Israel and Egypt in an attempt to produce
a lasting peace. What is this effort known as?
Name the U.S. president who attempted to promote a foreign policy based on morality and truth rather than
military or economic considerations.
31. The president above helped to broker peace between long-time enemies Egypt and Israel as these two nations
signed what peace agreement in 1979?
32. T/F President Carter’s greatest failure involved the Iranian hostage crisis in which over 50 Americans were
held for 444 days after Islamic leaders in Iran seized the American embassy.
33. Who used the Iranian hostage crisis to his advantage and easily won the Presidential Election of 1980?
34. The above president had a “hands-off” attitude toward the day-to-day operations of the presidency, giving
more responsibility to his staff. This practice aided his national security advisors to sell weapons to Iranians
in exchange for American hostages, then secretly use the profits to support anti-Communist rebels in
Nicaragua. What is this ordeal remembered as?
35. In 1983, President Reagan announced a project that involved creating a shield of new weapons designed to
intercept and destroy nuclear missiles. Reagan’s desire for a strong defense was based on his belief that the
Soviet Union was still a threat to the U.S. What is the full name of this military plan?
36. What is the nickname for the above military plan?
37. U.S.-Soviet relations improved when who became the new, and eventually, the last Soviet premier?
38. Define glasnost.
39. Define perestroika.
40. T/F In 1986, Gorbachev and Reagan first met to discuss reducing their nuclear arsenals and eventually
signed a treaty calling for the removal of all intermediate-range nuclear weapons from Europe. This was the
beginning of the end of the cold war.
41. In 1989, several Eastern European nations overthrew their communist rulers and forced democratic elections.
Demands for democracy then erupted in the Soviet Union itself. Who was the U.S. president at this time?
42. By the end of 1991, the Soviet Union ceased to exist. In its place was a loose federation of self-governing
nations made up of former Soviet republics, including Russia. What is the full name of this confederation?
43. Who became the president of the new Russian Republic?
44. In August 1990, what country seized control of Kuwait, an action that would lead to the Persian Gulf War?
45. Who is the president of the above country?
46. T/F President Bush, with cooperation from more than 25 other nations, assembled a U.S.-led military
coalition that quickly drove Iraqi forces out of Kuwait. Saddam Hussein, however, remains a threat to the
region’s peace and stability.
47. Despite the decline of communism, wars in nearly every world region have arisen from ethnic hatreds,
political boundaries, and religion. In what East African nation was the first foreign policy crisis for President
Bill Clinton?
48. The U.S. and its also confronted violence in Europe’s Balkan region. In 1991, what multinational state
disintegrated as several of the country’s ethnic groups broke away and claimed independence?
49. The largest republic of the above state fought hard against Slovenian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Macedonian
Independence causing severe hardships for the people of the region. Name this republic.
50. T/F The U.S. and its NATO allies bombed Serb military sites in the first NATO military offensive ever and
eventually launched air strikes forcing an end to the conflict.
51. Name the Serbian President driven from power in 2000 and deemed a war criminal by Western leaders and
the international war crimes tribunal.
52. In what country has the United States played a role as peacemaker between the Protestant majority and
Roman Catholic minority?
53. The U.S. has spent much of the past five years in working to end years of fighting between what two groups
in the Middle East?
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54. What nation recently held 24 Americans after a mid-air collision between their jet and a U.S. Air Force jet,
creating the first foreign policy crisis of President George W. Bush?
55. As 2000 began, the United Nations was directing how many peacekeeping operations in countries around the
world?
56. Why is the United States, more than other countries, playing the role of peacemaker around the world?