Cold War Part III
Old Pals: Ronald Regan and
Mikhail Gorbachev
Events not just in Vietnam
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Prague Spring
Leonid Brezhnev became leader of the
Soviet Union after Khrushchev lost power.
 In 1968, the reforms of Alexander Dubcek
threatened the single party leadership in
Czechoslovakia.
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Lifting of censorship and the freeing of artists
The Soviet Union sent 250,000 troops to
suppress the revolution.
 The Brezhnev Doctrine is introduced which
gave the Soviet Union the ability to intervene
and protect socialism against internal or
external forces.
Prague Spring in action
The Velvet Revolution
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Also known as the “Gentle Revolution”
Various protests began in November 1989 in
Prague.
By November 27th a two hour general strike
was held involving all citizens of
Czechoslovakia.
Warsaw Pact and communist single-party
rule collapsed.
By Dec. of 1989, the government was largely
made up of non-communists, the most since
since 1948.
Vaclav Havel was elected president on Dec.
29, 1989
Vaclav Havel
Back to China-1970’s
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When we last studied China-Mao had just
died and the Cultural Revolution was just
coming to an end.
 Mao died on Sept. 9, 1976 and the Gang of
Four attempted to seize power.
 The Gang of Four controlled much of the
Communist party during the last 10 years of
the Cultural Revolution.
 Members of the Gang of Four included:
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Jiang Qing (Mao’s wife)
Zhang Chunqiao
Yao Wenyuan
Wang Hongwen
The Gang of Four
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After Mao dies, the Gang will attempt a coup
to seize power
 The coup is successful and the Gang is
charged with counterrevolutionary activity
 The Gang will also be held responsible for
the chaos during the final decade of the
Cultural Revolution.
 The Gang was put on “trial” and all member
were sentenced to life in prison.
The Gang of Four
The rise of Deng Xiaoping
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Became leader of the Chinese communist
party after taking power from Hua Gaofeng
(who was Mao’s chosen successor) in 1978.
Deng inherited MANY remaining problems
from the Great Leap and Cultural Revolution.
Became the core of the “second generation”
of Chinese leadership.
Believed in Socialism with Chinese
characteristics.
Also believed in a socialist market economywith some limited private business
ownership.
He can be credited with the success of
China’s economy today.
Deng Xiaoping
The 4 Modernizations
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Agriculture
Industry
National Defense
Science and technology
The goal was to make China an economic
super power by early in the 21st century
Economic self-reliance, modernization,
foreign trade and the opening of markets.
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“Socialism does not mean shared
poverty”.
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Deng Xiaoping
Tiananmen Square Protests
and Massacre
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Protests were sparked by the death of Hu
Yaobang, a reformist who was backed by
Deng.
 Hu Yaobang died of a heart attack and the
Chinese people were upset by the slow
response by the government in planning the
funeral.
 Public mourning took place in and around
Tiananmen Square.
 Over 100,000 demonstrators had gathered
and the people began to call for democratic
reform. Most people were students and
intellectuals.
Tiananmen Square Protests
and Massacre cont….
Marshall Law was declared on May
20th.
 Soldiers and tanks were sent to
Tiananmen Square on June 4th to take
control of the city.
 Massive arrests took place and the
number of deaths is not accurately
known.
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“Tank Man”
Nixon in China
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When Nixon took office in 1969, the growing
importance of China had to be recognized.
 In 1971, the U.S. withdrew its objections for
China’s entry into the UN
 It was no longer a bi-polar world and the
emerging powers (such as China) had to be
recognized.
 In 1972, Nixon visited Mao in Beijing and
initiated diplomatic and economic relations
with China.
M.A.D
Throughout the 1960’s and 70’s the
arms race began and continued
through the 1980’s. Weapons of every
type were developed.
 By 1986, there were an estimated
50,000 nuclear warheads.
 Also throughout the 60’s and 70’s,
Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD)
was the doctrine of retaliation.
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Definition of Detente
A relaxing or easing of tension between
rivals.
 A policy toward a rival nation or bloc
characterized by increased diplomatic,
commercial and a desire to reduce
tensions through negotiation or talks.
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Pressure for detente
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U.S. diplomatic relations with China put
more pressure on the Soviet Union for
détente.
 SALT I-Strategic Arms Limitation
 Signed in 1972 by both the U.S. and the
Soviet Union and reaffirmed the goal of
“peaceful coexistence”.
 The Helsinki Accords was not a formal
treaty, but was the high point of détente in
1975.
Can détente continue??
In 1974, Nixon resigns and Gerald
Ford takes office.
 In 1977, Jimmy Carter takes office.
 SALT II is signed 1979.
 Carter focuses on human rights, but
meanwhile both the U.S. and the
Soviet Union reinforced their nuclear
and military strength.
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Brezhnev Era in the Soviet Union
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Also known as the Brezhnev Stagnation for
the lack of economic growth.
 Officially lasted from 1965-1985, but was
most intense in the 1970’s.
 Tried to improve the standard of living for the
Soviet people, but allowed the the economy
to begin to lag behind western countries.
 Dealt with issues such as Prague Spring and
the beginnings of Soviet involvement in
Afghanistan.
Soviet Leader Brezhnev
Afghanistan-The Soviet
Union’s Vietnam
Beginning in 1979, the Soviet Union
invades Afghanistan, based on the
request of the Afghan government.
 Lasted until 1989, involving 100,000
Soviet troops.
 Carter proclaimed that this was “the
most serious threat to world peace
since 1945” and a “stepping stone in
their possible control over much of the
world’s oil supplies”.
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Mujahideen (Islamic guerrillas) stand on top of a Soviet helicopter
they brought down. The mujahideen fought against the Soviet
military occupation of Afghanistan). They used guerrilla-war tactics
to ambush Soviet troops.
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Reagan is Elected
In January 1981, Ronald Reagan took
office.
 Reagan’s position was to take a “hard
line” on the Cold War.
 He openly called the Soviet Union:
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“the focus of evil in the modern world”
– “an evil empire with dark purposes”.
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Nuclear Arms Control
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Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union
continue to build arms:
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Strategic long-range missiles
Continental ballistic missiles
Launched from land, sea or air
Guided missiles
Continuous testing of nuclear weapons
Nuclear Powers and Capacity
#1 The United States
 #2 The United Kingdom
 #3 The Soviet Union
 #4 France
 #5 China
 #6 India
 Today: Israel, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq,
Libya and North Korea
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Star Wars (not the movie)
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On March 23 1983, Reagan announces his
plan for the interception of long-range
missiles from both the ground and space.
Reagan hoped this would end the threat of
nuclear attack
Called “Star Wars” by the press, Strategic
Defense Initiative by Reagan.
Over 10 years, $50 Billion was spent on this
initiative.
In 1993, Clinton renamed “Star Wars”,
Ballistic Missile Defense Organization
(BMDO)
''What if free people could live secure in
the knowledge ... that we could
intercept and destroy strategic ballistic
missiles before they reached our own
soil...?”
-Ronald Reagan
March 1983
The Soviet Union--1985
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Mikhail Gorbachev rises to power in the
Soviet Union
Perestroika: drastic modification of the
centrally planned command economy
inherited by Stalin
Glasnost: openness, which would be linked
to economic reform.
Changes were brought about that had not
been seen since the revolution.
The world realizes that the USSR had been
struggling economically for money years
behind the façade of the arms and space
race and the Cold War itself.
Gorbachev and Reagan
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Gorbachev becomes very popular in the
West
 In 1981, Reagan administration focuses on
arms limitations, now called START
(Strategic Arms Reduction Talks)
 Gorbachev sees détente as a real way to
achieve peace
 The leaders meet multiple times to attempt
to deduce long-range nuclear weapons.
“Mr. Gorbachev tear
down this wall!”
-Ronald Reagan, June 12, 1987
The Collapse of Communism
Some events prior to the collapse
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Détente and Gorbachev’s “open” policies.
Centrally planned economies had stagnated
since the 1970’s.
Lech Walesa rose to power in Poland calling
for free elections.
In 1989, Hungary opens it’s boarders to
Germans.
Revolutions continue to spread to
Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria.
The Berlin Wall
On November 9, 1989--Germans on
both sides of the wall began to tear it
down.
 On October 3, 1990--Germany officially
reunited.
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The Collapse of the Soviet
Union
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Boris Yeltsin elected to the legislature in
1989 was opposed to Gorbachev.
 Gorbachev was intent on keeping the “union”
in tact, Yeltsin demanded independence for
the Baltic states.
 On December 22nd, 1991 the republics of
the Soviet Union agreed to its dissolution.
 Gorbachev resigns and Yeltsin becomes the
first popularly elected president.
Boris Yeltsin
Questions to consider:
Why did the Soviet Union collapse?
 Was the Soviet system always
destined to fail?
 If communism failed, could capitalism
also fail?
 What becomes of all the weaponry
produced during the Cold War?
 In the end-who won the Cold War?
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