Pump-Up
• How do you think the problems of the Cold
War will be resolved?
Cold War Thaws
Today’s Vocabulary
• Détente
– Lessening Cold War tensions by dealing with other
nations through a practical and flexible manner.
• SALT
– Limited the number of missiles the U.S. and the Soviet
Union could have.
• Glasnost
– Soviet policy of openness.
Soviet Policy in Eastern Europe & China
• Nikita Khrushchev began a policy called
destalinization (purging the country of
Stalin’s memory).
– Destroyed monuments of Stalin.
– Denounced Stalin for killing loyal Soviet
citizens.
• Satellite countries controlled by the
Soviet Union wanted their freedom.
– Hungarians began protesting, but were
overthrown and a pro-Soviet gov’t was
installed.
– When the leader of Czechoslovakia began
making changes, members nations of the
Warsaw Pact invaded the country.
• The Soviet Union and China split from one
another.
From Brinkmanship to Détente
• U.S. presidents that followed the
policy of brinkmanship:
– John F. Kennedy
• Cuban Missile Crisis
– Lyndon B. Johnson
• Vietnam War
• U.S. presidents that followed the
policy of détente:
– Richard Nixon
• Realpolitik- being practical and flexible
when dealing with other nations.
• Visits China.
• SALT I Treaty
Collapse of Détente
• Ronald Reagan heightens Cold
War tensions again.
– Increased defense spending.
– Strategic Defense Initiative (“Star
Wars”).
• A program to aimed at protecting the
U.S. against enemy missiles.
Gorbachev Moves Toward Democracy
• Mikhail Gorbachev becomes leader of
the Soviet Union in 1982.
• Glasnost
– Economic and social reforms couldn’t
occur without a free flow of ideas and
information.
• Churches to reopened.
• Released protesters from prison.
• Reporters investigated problems and criticized
officials.
Reforming the Economy and Politics
• Perestroika—economic restructuring.
– Managers gained greater authority over
their farms and factories, and people were
allowed to open small private businesses.
• Democratization—opening the political
system.
– People could vote (from a previously made
list) on which candidates they wanted for
office.
• Foreign Policy
– Since the U.S. had begun the “Star Wars”
program, both nations signed the
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF)
Treaty.
• Banned nuclear missiles with ranges of 300 to
3,400 miles.
Soviet Union Faces Turmoil
• As glasnost, perestroika, and
democratization loosened central
authority, ethnic tensions brewed
beneath the surface of Soviet society.
• Lithuania declared its independence.
– Gorbachev ordered an economic blockade.
– Soviet troops then attacked unarmed
civilians.
• Boris Yeltsin become first directly elected
president of the Soviet Union in 1991.
– Faced problems from the Hardliners.
• Vowed to remove Gorbachev from power.
End of the Soviet Union
• The August Coup
– Hardliners detained Gorbachev and
demanded his resignation as Soviet leader.
– Hardliners gain control of the military and
ordered troops to attack the parliament
building, but they refused.
• Hardliners lose power when the military
refused to follow their orders and Gorbachev is
able to return.
• Soviet satellite nations declare their
independence.
– The Commonwealth of Independent States
(CIS) is formed.
• A loose federation of former Soviet territories.
– Death of the Soviet Union.
• On December 25 1991, Gorbachev
announced his resignation as leader of
the Soviet Union.