International Relations
Unit 5
Beginnings of the Cold War
Yalta Conference
War time meeting in February of
1945 between:
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United States: Franklin Roosevelt
United Kingdom: Winston Churchill
Soviet Union: Josef Stalin
Yalta Conference (Con’t)
Goal of the conference was to establish
an agenda for post-war Germany
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Soviet’s felt they held the upper hand in the
conference because the Red Army was 65
miles from Berlin
FDR hoped to gain Stalin’s commitment to
the UN
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Also hoped to get Soviet assurance for support in
the Pacific theater
Churchill pushed for free democratic
elections in eastern and central Europe
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Stalin sought Soviet sphere of influence in those
countries
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Especially Poland
Yalta Conference (Con’t)
Poland
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Stalin believed a strong Poland as the
keystone to Soviet peace
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Yet agreed to allow free-democratic
elections
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Later reneged and installed a communist puppet
regime
Red Army strongly held much of
Eastern Europe at this time as well
The Big Three reinforced the
spheres-of-influence philosophy
post-war
“A Novel Burden Far From Our
Shores”
Truman administration between 1945
and 1953 turned traditional U.S. foreign
policy assumptions upside down
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Unilateralism gave way to multilateralism
Through the containment policy:
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Signed a host of international commitments
Mounted peacetime military buildup
Created many new programs
Second World War
Left a broad swath of destruction
and human misery through the
world
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Nearly 60 Million people killed
Cities lay in ruins, factories
demolished or idle, roads and bridges
destroyed, fields unplowed
Second World War (Con’t)
Japan, Italy, Germany were defeated
and reduced to second-rank powers
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Only the United States and the Soviet Union
emerged from the war capable of wielding
significant influence beyond their borders
Middle East and South-SE Asia erupted
into revolutions against their onetime
colonial masters
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War created the rise and fall of new factions
within many countries, increasing instability
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Also allowing intervention from U.S. and Soviets
Additional Changes
Advances in transportation drastically shrank
distances
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Especially the expansion of aviation
Atomic Bomb destabilized international
relations
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Many feared that a new war using Nuclear Bombs
could be more devastating than WWII
Only the U.S. emerged stronger and richer at
WWII’s end
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It alone possessed atomic weapons
UN was located in New York City
A New Manifest Destiny
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“We are now concerned with the peace of the entire
world”
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To straighten out the mess made by the Europeans
Truman
Became president following the death of
FDR
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Which FDR had kept Truman in the dark in
concerns to public and foreign policy
Saw a complex world in black-and-white
terms
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Viewed people, races, and nations through
stereotypes and sometimes ethnic slurs
He preferred blunt talk to the silky tones of
diplomacy
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Also used his subordinates much more frequently
than FDR
Truman (Con’t)
Sought to use James Byrnes who
was FDR “Special Assistant” and
had been present at Yalta
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However used unilateralism, hurt him
in the long run
U.S. Fears
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After V-J Day (Victory over Japan Day),
the U.S. was at the pinnacle of power
Yet felt insecure and threatened from events
in “Korea to Timbuktu”
Feared that an aggressive Stalin might
exploit global instability
Thus branding the one-time ally an enemy
Americans felt that the atomic monopoly
wielded them enormous power over
other countries
Yet the Soviets balked at threats to their own
national interests
Soviet’s Power
Eastern Europe played a critical role
in the postwar transformation of
American attitudes toward the
USSR
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Moves to nationalize major industries
was seen as a threat to a healthy
world economy, according to the U.S.
Political oppression and limited press
increased U.S. fears
Over western allies protests, the
Soviets kept troops in Iran and
Manchuria
Stalin
The Soviet dictator was a cruel
tyrant who presided over a brutal
police state
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He Ruthlessly promoted his own power
and security of his state
Determined to have friendly
governments, or buffer zones
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To guard against German threat
“He was devious yet cautious,
opportunistic yet prudent,
ideological yet pragmatic.”
Council of Foreign Ministers
Met in Moscow in December of
1945
Reinforced sphere-of-influence
principles in regards to East Asia
and Eastern Europe
Even developed a proposal for
international control of atomic
energy
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Truman viewed this agreement as an
“Appeasement Document”
Council of Foreign Ministers
(Con’t)
Began a more hard-line foreign
policy of tough talk and no
concessions
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Actions the following months only
reinforced that U.S.-Soviet differences
were irreconcilable
Long Telegram
An eight-thousand word missive that
assessed Soviet policies in the most
gloomy and ominous fashion
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Written by George F. Kennan
Stressed that Communist ideology
reinforced traditional Russian
expansionism
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Confirmed the futility and even danger of
further negotiations and prepared the way
for a policy called the “Containment Policy”
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Using military, economic and political mechanisms
to deter the spread of Communism
Sinews of Peace
On March 5, 1945 Winston Churchill
gave a speech in Fulton, Missouri at
Westminster College
Churchill warned that from “Stettin in
the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an
Iron Curtain has descended across the
(European) Continent”
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The coining of a phrase used during the rest
of the Cold War
Initially the speech was received very
negatively by many in the U.S.
Germany
Throughout 1945-46 the former allies
attempted to negotiate a peace treaty
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However their actions spoke louder than
words
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Soviet vengeful treatment of Germans, promotion
of leftist political parties, incessant demand for
additional reparations, all reinforced U.S.
suspicions
The western occupation zones merged, among loud
Soviet protests
Byrnes gave speech in September 1946
stating U.S. intentions to preserve and
protect a democratic Germany
Achieving Grand Goals
Unprecedented economic aid
programs were developed to
combat ongoing insurgencies and
clear up breeding grounds of
economic want in which they
believed Communism would
flourish
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Formed an alliance with Western
European nations that involved a
binding commitment to intervene
militarily
The Cold Warriors
Byrnes retired as Secretary of State and was
replaced by George C. Marshall
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Greatly supported by Dean Acheson and Kennan
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Known as the Wise Elihu Root
They were appalled by Marxist Dogma and Soviet
totalitarianism
New task was to restructure government for a
new era of global involvement
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Organize its institutions and mobilize its resources to
wage the Cold War
Passed the National Security Act of July 1947
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Created the Joint Chiefs of Staff, National Security
Council and the Central Intelligence Agency
A Containment Policy
Economic and military aid were
given to Greece and Turkey
A Leftist victory could have a
bandwagon effect on the already
fragile political institutions in France
and Italy as well
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Could create a Domino Effect
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U.S. assumption in all the revolutions, that
the Soviets had a hand in the rise of leftist
groups
A Containment Policy (Con’t)
Became known as the Truman
Doctrine
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The U.S. needed to “Support free
peoples who are resisting attempted
subjugation by armed minorities or
outside pressures.”
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Became the foundation for interventionism
throughout the Cold War
Marshall Plan
United States, unlike the years
following WWI, gave in huge sums,
money to help stabilize Europe
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Viewed Germany as most vital to
European recovery
Americans pushed European countries
to integrate their economies and to
create multilateral trade
Marshall Plan (Con’t)
The Marshall Plan was passed in
April 1948, with the price tag of
$13 Billion
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Provided capital to Western Europe
without sparking inflation
Started the process of integration that
led to the Common Market and
ultimately the European Union
One of the Most successful 20th
century initiatives
Covert Operations
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Truman Administration employed many
of its new national security mechanism,
including CIA covert operations, in order
to prevent Communist victories
Successful initially during the Italian election
of 1948, producing an inflated faith in the
utility of covert operations
Operation Rollback sought to use
sabotage, guerrilla operations and
propaganda to stir up rebellion in Soviet
Bloc countries
Results were disastrous
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Either spies were captured or rebellions did not
receive the type of support they anticipated from
the U.S.
Berlin Airlift
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In July 1948, when U.S. began moving
western Germany toward a nation, the
Soviets sealed access to the city of
Berlin by highway, rail and water
Blockade posed a major challenge for the
U.S. and its allies
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Created a volatile situation in which the slightest
misstep could provoke conflict
U.S. for eleven months flew 250 missions a
day around the clock in order to maintain
some semblance of a functioning economy in
west Berlin
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This action greatly backfired on Stalin and backed
down from the blockade
North Atlantic Treaty
Organization
Started after Britain and four European
nations formed the Brussels Pact
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A mutual defense treaty
Europeans feared Soviet intimidation
and subversion more than its military
power, thus seeking support from U.S.
and Canada
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Nations would join together to protect one
another from Communist intervention, using
force if necessary
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U.S. Senate approved the treaty in July 1949
Cold War Policies in Latin
America
U.S. shifted from neglect to concern to
active involvement centered around
Anti-Communism
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However initially gave limited technical
assistance, loans, private capital, and
increased trade
Created the Organization of American States
to enforce regional security
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Passed an anti-Communist resolution sponsored by
the U.S. delegation
U.S. viewed Latin America as especially
susceptible to Communist penetration
Cold War Policies in the Middle
East
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In dealing with the Arab-Israeli conflict,
the U.S. was in a difficult position
Recognize an independent Israel in the
Palestinian territory
Refuse Recognition of an independent Israel
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Either way isolate a either group and allow the
Soviets an opportunity to gain more supporters
Ultimately the U.S. recognized the new
Jewish government within eleven
minutes of it’s establishment
Infuriated the Arabs and represented the
first step in building what would be the U.S.Israelis special relationship
Cold War Policies in East Asia
Marshall, before being tapped to
Secretary of State, was sent to negotiate
a truce between Nationalist Chiang KaiShek and Communist Mao Zedong
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Tried to create a “U.S. styled Democracy,”
with Chiang Kai-Shek having the upper hand
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Considered by many the most thankless missions
every undertaken by a U.S. diplomat
Cold War Policies in East Asia
(Con’t)
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Nationalist began collapsing, creating a
difficult situation for U.S. officials
Intervene to prevent the spread of
Communism?
Ultimately they viewed that Chiang was
insufficient as leader and that China was a
“Secondary Theater”
Japan gained even more importance
following the demise of the Nationalist
within China
U.S. General Douglas MacArthur was given
the task of creating a “Switzerland of the
Pacific” in Japan
Cold War Policies in East Asia
(Con’t)
Vietnam Revolution against France
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1949 U.S. recognized the French puppet
government headed by emperor Bao Dai
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Vietnamese independence movement was
headed by longtime Communist operative Ho
Chi Minh
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U.S. viewed Ho as a puppet of the Kremlin
The Tumultuous Years from
1949-1950
A series of stunning events sharply
escalated Soviet-American tensions
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Truman administration officials globalize the
containment policy
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Assumed commitments in the world wide struggle
against Communism and increased full-scale,
peacetime rearmament
Soviet explosion of an atomic bomb in
September 1949 challenged the U.S.
superiority
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U.S. began development of the Hydrogen Bomb,
even more powerful than the Atomic Bomb
The Tumultuous Years from
1949-1950 (Con’t)
A series of stunning events sharply
escalated Soviet-American tensions
(Con’t)
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Fall of China seemed to shift power
struggle toward Communism
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Began creating domestic turmoil in U.S.
over “Communist sympathizers…
undermined efforts… within the State
Department
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Began the Red Scare by Joseph R. McCarthy
The Tumultuous Years from
1949-1950 (Con’t)
NSC-68
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Drafted in late 1949 that proclaimed
defending freedom across the world in
order to save it at home
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Painted a zero-sum world in which any
gain for Communism was automatically a
loss for the “Free World”
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Pressed for shoring up Western European
countries
Huge boost to defense spending
Korean War
Conflict began from occupation zones
hastily carved out at WWII’s end
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Divided between U.S. and Soviet at 38th
parallel
Regimes emerged in each zone bearing the
distinct imprint of the occupying power
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U.S. backed Syngman Rhee
Soviets supported Communist zealot Kim Il-Sung
Initially U.S. left South Korea out of its
“Defense Perimeter”
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However Communist victory in China reinforced
necessity in a buffer through Korea
Korean War (Con’t)
Kim Il-Sung pressed Stalin for the
go-ahead to invade the South
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Stalin approved it provided that Kim
got a quick victory
To Soviet surprise, the Truman
administration responded promptly
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Received UN support to back the
military of the South Koreans
Korean War (Con’t)
Though the South was initially losing, UN
commander General MacArthur devised a plan
for an amphibious assault on the northern
coastline
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An incredibly dangerous plan, that was extremely
successful
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However Chinese intervention by 1950 ultimately
helped stall the war near the 38th parallel
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The South pushed the North Koreans back to the 38th
Parallel
Ultimately the fighting ended under Eisenhower
MacArthur was suspended for insubordination before
wars end
Major victory for Chinese Communist party
Coexistence and Crises, 19531961
By March 6, 1953 Joseph Stalin
was pronounced dead
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His death, along with the development
of nuclear weapons, fundamentally
changed the Cold War
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New leaders on both sides struggled to
cope with a more complex and menacing
world
Coexistence and Crises, 19531961 (Con’t)
By 1950’s, the Cold War was
prominently between the U.S. and
Soviet Union
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Each side saw each other as completely
hostile
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They used imaginable weapons, alliances,
economic and military aid, espionage, proxy wars,
targeted assassinations and arms race
Both sides primarily chose to wage conflict
through client states, diplomacy,
propaganda, and threats of force
Coexistence and Crises, 19531961 (Con’t)
During this time nearly 100 new
nations were created
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Created a fertile breeding ground for
great power competition
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These countries were labeled “Third World”
Countries
Areas were used for proxy wars
Life Post-WWII
U.S. citizens were accustomed to conscription
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Through a global network of alliances, the U.S.
was committed to defend forty-two nations
Intelligence agencies used any means to
monitor USSR actions
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Nearly 3.5 million people were serving through the
draft
To win global competition for hearts and minds,
Americans stationed abroad helped grow crops, build
schools, train military personnel, and manipulate the
outcome of elections
Public relations firms sought to boost their U.S.
images and secure maximum economic and
military assistance
Communist Hysteria
Communist threat created a near
hysterical fear and suspicion that
“…Communist were everywhere…”
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“Busy undermining your government,
plotting to destroy your liberties and try to
aid the Soviet Union
U.S. government deported real and
suspected Communists and even
encouraged citizens to spy on each other
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Church membership soared during this
period as well
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Dwight D. Eisenhower had “In God We Trust” added
to coins
Communist Hysteria (Con’t)
Some U.S. officials viewed the Cold war
as equivalent to a holy war
Republican Joseph R. McCarthy wreaked
havoc through investigations of alleged
Communist influence in the government
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Claimed to have the names of known
communist operatives within the U.S.
government other influential positions
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Ultimately became so ridiculous that Congress
censured him
Ultimately ruining the lives of many
dedicated public servants and eliminated
much of its expertise on East Asia
A New U.S. Cast
Dwight D. Eisenhower
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Personified the values the nation clung
to under external threat
Also had a lifetime of experience in the
national security matters that now
held top priority
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He kept his military advisers at arm’s
length
Had the NSC meet weekly or more
A New U.S. Cast (Con’t)
John Foster Dulles
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Became the nation’s Secretary of
State
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Related to previous famous secretary of
states
A cool pragmatist with a sophisticated
view of the world and ample tactical
skills
Handling Post-Stalin USSR
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New leaders Molotov, Beria and Malenkov
attempted to shift toward a less
confrontational mode with the U.S.
However coolly received by U.S. officials
U.S. officials viewed the peace overtures by
USSR as designed to undermine Western
morale and hold back Western rearmament
Yet U.S. officials began moving away from
NSC-68 toward The NEW LOOK strategy
Relied more heavily on nuclear weapons and
collective security to maintain the containment
policy
Also believed even greater in propaganda and
psychological warfare
East Asian Success and New
Problems
Eisenhower was able to negotiate an end
to fighting on the Korean peninsula
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Yet there has never been an actual peace
treaty
Indochina became the new hotspot for
the Cold War
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In 1954 France’s 8 year war against the
Communist-led Vietminh seemed to be
tipping away from France
U.S. sought to help due to the famous
domino theory,
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Warning that if Vietnam should fall to the
Communist, the rest of SE Asia might soon follow
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Possibly leaving affects in Middle East and Japan
East Asian Success and New
Problems (Con’t)
Indochina became the new hotspot
for the Cold War (Con’t)
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Despite agreements reached at
Geneva to allow free elections, the
U.S. the non-communist leaders
refusal to participate in the national
elections
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Fear that he would lose to Ho Chi Minh
Dulles negotiated the Southeast Asia
Treaty Organization (SEATO)
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Similar in design and purpose to NATO
East Asian Success and New
Problems (Con’t)
China-Taiwan
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U.S. in 1955, fearful of Chinese intentions,
recognized Chiang Kai-Shek’s establishment
of an independent country on the island of
Taiwan
With yet another country, we signed a
mutual-protection agreement
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Today still a hot-bed issue
Possibly the start of Chinese desire for
Nuclear weapons
Eastern Europe
Even more fervently, Eisenhower
used psychological warfare to win
hearts and minds in Eastern Europe
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Used the Radio Free European radio
station, despite jamming by the Soviet
Union
These actions encouraged the Eastern
Europeans countries to revolt,
ultimately unsuccessfully
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Sobered U.S. expectations for quick
uprisings in Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe (Con’t)
The United States during the 1950’s
even initiated cultural exchanges with
the Soviet Union and blocs
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Music and especially jazz became a powerful
weapon in the new arsenal of liberation
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1955, Voice of America’s “Music of America,”
reached an estimated thirty million people in the
Soviet Union and Eastern Europe
Became a very powerful tool to gain positive
recognition of the U.S. throughout Eastern
Europe
Arab-Israeli Conflict
By 1955, Krushchev had struck an
arms deal with Egypt
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Helped increase the West’s fear of
Arab nationalism might veer to the left
and that the West must work to keep
them from Soviet influence
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In return, U.S. signed an arms deal with
Israel
Arab-Israeli Conflict (Con’t)
Eisenhower and Dulles deepened
U.S. involvement in the Middle East
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Military bases, lines of communication
and huge reservoirs of oil
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Mounted covert operations to overthrow
unfriendly governments
However not realizing the amount of hate
throughout the Middle East
Arab-Israeli Conflict (Con’t)
Iranian nationalist took control of
British Anglo-Iranian Oil Company
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U.S. officials used interventionism, yet
blurring the lines between local
nationalism and communism
Eisenhower called for CIA to overthrow
the Prime Minister of Iran
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Replaced him with the Shah
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A friendly government, yet ended up becoming
a brutal dictatorship
Tried same thing in Syria, however
unsuccessfully
Arab-Israeli Conflict (Con’t)
In 1954, signed the Baghdad Pact
with Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and
Pakistan
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Viewed by some as the West’s new
form of imperialism
Yet, most Arabian countries viewed
Israel as a “cancer,” and must be
removed
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The more the U.S. pressed for peace, the
more strained Arab-Israeli relations
became
Suez Canal of 1956
In 1952, Nasser overthrew British
puppet King Farouk in Egypt
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U.S. sought to win him over by giving
$400 million to help build a dam at
Aswan on the Nile
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U.S. reneged due to Nasser seeking Soviet
support as well
Nasser then in 1956 overthrew British
controllers of the Suez Canal
Suez Canal of 1956 (Con’t)
In 1952, Nasser overthrew British
puppet King Farouk in Egypt (Con’t)
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On October 29, 1956 (Supported, but not by
France and the U.S.) Israel attacked and
seize the Sinai and Gaza without significant
opposition
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The West threatened to use sanctions against Israel
and Soviet threatened to unleash rockets against
London and Paris
Through the Eisenhower doctrine,
interventionism, Nasser became the
“Champion of Arabs”
Latin America
U.S. rebuffed Latin American pleas for a
hemispheric Marshall plan
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Insisted instead that modest loans and
private investment were the correct path to
economic development
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Also warned about the dangers of Communism
U.S. also continued to support dictators,
as long as they were friendly
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Continued the practicing dating back to the
1920’s
Latin America (Con’t)
Operation PBSUCCESS in 1954 was
used to overthrow the Guatemalan
government
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Mainly successful due to Arbenz
resigning, fearful of U.S. doing
anything to get rid of him
The success of this operation created
complacency and confidence in
overthrowing unfriendly governments
Cuban Relations
The rise of Fidel Castro, and his lean
toward Soviet Union, brought the Cold
War into the U.S. backyard
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With U.S. support, Fulgencio Batista
governed oppressively in Cuba
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Fidel had tried in both 1953 and 1956 to
overthrow U.S. dominance
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The Platt amendment had been reneged by 1934,
however the U.S. domination continued
Ended disastrously
Finally on January 1, 1959, Fidel rode
triumphantly into Havana on a tank given to
Batista by the U.S.
Cuban Relations (Con’t)
Castro sought to free Cuba from U.S.
domination and eventually saw the
Soviet Union as a means to that end
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He legalized the Communist Party, executed
Batista supporters, purchased weapons from
the Soviet Union
In response the U.S. began the Social
Progress Trust Fund to help stabilize Latin
America
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However U.S. launched a full-scale economic
warfare, including trade embargo, broke relations,
and sought to mobilize opposition groups
Beginnings of a Cooling, or
Détente
At the end of Eisenhower’s 2nd term,
politicians began questioning his foreign
policy, specifically the New Look Program
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•
October 4, 1957 Soviet Union launched
Sputnik
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It created a sense of profound vulnerability
Also used by Democrats like JFK, who said the U.S.
was dangerously behind the Soviet Union in
weapons of mass destruction
In response he created NASA, and ordered
the construction of super-secret underground
bunker complexes
Beginnings of a Cooling, or
Détente (Con’t)
Both Khrushchev and Eisenhower
began to come to agreements on
nuclear disarmament and
inspection
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•
Khrushchev was invited to the U.S. in
the fall of 1959
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Ended at Camp David (Named after
Eisenhower’s grandson)
Meetings brought forth worldwide
hope for peace
Beginnings of a Cooling, or
Détente (Con’t)
On May 1, 1960 all hopes for quick
peace were destroyed when a U.S.
spy plane (U-2) was shot down
over the Soviet Union
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Constituted an act of war
Ultimately each side hardened their
stance toward the other, substantially
ending negotiations

Used, among other things, to usher in JFK
to office
Consequences of the Actions
From 1950
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While covert actions seemed necessary
and sometimes successful, it left longterm negative feelings throughout the
world
The Eisenhower administration left
massive problems for the Kennedy and
Johnson administration, that would lead
to the most dangerous period of the Cold
War