Unit 5
• Topic: The Cold War (1945-1991)
• The United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (USSR) emerged as the two strongest
powers in international affairs. Ideologically
opposed, they challenged one another in a series of
confrontations known as the Cold War. The costs of
this prolonged contest weakened the USSR so that it
collapsed due to internal upheavals as well as
American pressure. The Cold War had social and
political implications in the United States.
Chapter 5: End of the Cold War
• Content Statement: The collapse of communist
governments in Eastern Europe and the USSR brought
an end to the Cold War.
• Expectations for Learning: Explain how the collapse
of communist governments in Eastern Europe and the
USSR brought an end to the Cold War era.
Section 1: Fall of Communism
• Content Elaboration: There were multiple causes for
the collapse of communist governments in Eastern
Europe and the Soviet Union. The effect of these
was the reduction of the tensions between the U.S.
and U.S.S.R. that characterized the Cold War period.
Several communist governments in Eastern Europe
gave up power following mass demonstrations for
democracy. The collapse of the Soviet Union
resulted in independent republics that moved to
institute democratic reforms and introduce freemarket economies. This brought an end to the Cold
War era.
Independence Movements in
Former Soviet Satellites
• Reminder: After WWII, the Soviet
Union stayed in Eastern European
countries and set up communist
governments. These countries acted
as a buffer zone between the S.U. and
western Europe.
Reasons for the Movements
• Economic problems—no money, no
food, etc
• People wanted freedom of speech and
other civil liberties
• People wanted free elections
Countries That Won
Independence
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Poland
Hungary
Czechoslovakia
Romania
Bulgaria
East Germany
• Tearing Down of the Berlin Wall
• President Reagan: “Tear Down This Wall”
• ***All of this done in late 1980s and early
1990s.
Fall of the Soviet Union
• maybe the most dramatic event since WWII
• collapse of SU and end of Cold War
• 70 years: SU maintained power over its people
• HOW DID IT ALL END????????
Causes of Soviet Collapse
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There were many causes
– 1. Biggest: people wanted to be free and
prosperous
– 2. Arms race made economy weak
• A. Communism: profit goes to gov.
• B. Gov. spends $$$$ on arms/space race
• C. People’s needs are not met
• D. People are hungry and unhappy
• E. People angry at gov. and want change
Effects of the Arms Race
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a. US in 2nd half of 20th Century
– economic prosperity
– choices: food, clothing, housing, entertainment
– gov. spending millions on military
• b. SU
– gov. controlled economy = fewer choices
– gov. spending on military = reduction in
spending on consumer goods
– common items in short supply (milk, soap,
bread, etc)
– long lines to buy items
– no housing--many lived together
Mikhail Gorbachev: leader
of the S.U. when it fell apart
• Took over S.U. in 1985
• He was a reformer
• Glastnost: new policy of openness, including
freedom of speech and to criticize the
government
• Perestroika: changing the economy. People
could now own land and factories
• Electoral process changed: non-Communists
could now run for offices
Mikhail Gorbachev
• These reforms led to the collapse of
the Soviet Union
• When Eastern European Communist
governments began to fail, S.U. did not
intervene
Section 2: The United States Helps
• Content Elaboration: The political and economic
turmoil occurring in some of the new governments
posed new challenges for the United States. The
U.S. supported economic and education reforms by
providing assistance to some of the former
communist countries.
OGT Short Answer
• Why was the dismantling of the Berlin
Wall a symbol of the political events
during late 1980’s Europe?
OGT Extended Response
• Explain 2 reasons for the fall of the
Soviet Union.
OGT Extended Response
• Explain 2 reasons why Soviet satellite
countries in Eastern Europe began to break
from their Soviet Union backed communist
governments.