Chapter 7 – Unit 2
CHALLENGES TO LIBERALISM RELATED
TO FOREIGN POLICY
CHAPTER FOCUS
The Cold War (1945 – 1991)
shaped the second half of the
20th century, and it continues
to have significant influence
not only on international
relations, but also on the
citizenship and daily lives of
people around the world.
 In chapter 7, we will consider
the Cold War and related
examples of international
conflict to explore: The extent
that ideological conflict has on
shaping our world.

WORLD WARS – D.E.S.S.K




Date: 1914 – 1919
Event: World War 1, the Great War, War to end all Wars
Significance: long term causes of the war led to the
imperialistic foreign policies of the great wars of Europe.
Summary: The assassination of Archduke Franz
Ferdinand of Austria sparked the war that killed more
than 9 million combatants. The Allies - France and the
British Empire(Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Egypt,
India) vs. The Central Powers - Germany, Austria-Hungry,
Ottoman Empire (Slovakia, Czech Republic, Bosnia,
Croatia, Romania, Slovenia, Italy)
WORLD WARS – D.E.S.S.K





Date: 1939 – 1945
Event: World War II
Significance: It was the most widespread war in history, with
more than 100 million people serving in military units.
Marked by significant events involving the mass death of
civilians, including the Holocaust and the only use of nuclear
weapons in warfare, it resulted in 50 million to over 70 million
fatalities. These deaths make World War II by far the deadliest
conflict in all of human history.
Summary: Axis powers (Germany, Italy, Japan, Hungary,
Romania, Bulgaria) versus Allies (U.S., Britain, France, USSR,
Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Greece,
Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Africa,
Yugoslavia).
Key concepts: Holocaust
COLD WAR 1945 - 1991
The Cold War, which followed the Second World
War, was an all-out political, economic, and
social struggle between the Soviet Union and
the United States.
 They both wanted victory over not only each
other, but also over other countries around the
world.

COLD WAR 1945 - 1991
Less than a year after WWII, Prime Minister of
Britain – Winston Churchill, delivered a speech and
coined the metaphor The Iron Curtain to describe
the division between American (democratic) and
Soviet (communist) ideologies.
The Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological conflict
and physical boundary dividing Europe into two
separate areas from the end of World War II in
1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvax5VUvjWQ
The Berlin Wall was a physical manifestation of the iron
curtain metaphor used by British prime minister Winston
Churchill.
WESTERN DEMOCRATIC IDEOLOGICAL
PERSPECTIVE (NATO)


Includes the US and
Western Democracies –
much of Eastern Europe
and parts of Central
Europe including West
Germany, Switzerland,
Austria later gaining
control of many other
regions.
Viewed the concept of
The Iron Curtain as a
1. barrier meant to
contain those oppressed
by communism
2. restriction to civil and
economic freedoms
THE SOVIET IDEOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
(WARSAW PACT)
Includes the Soviet and
Eastern Bloc Nations –
Soviet Union, East
Germany, Poland,
Czechoslovakia, Hungary,
Romania, Bulgaria,
 Saw the Iron Curtain as a
protective measure
protecting themselves
from

Capitalist influences
 The potential expansion of
fascism

THE IRON CURTAIN




Physically, the Iron Curtain
took the form of border
defenses between the
countries of Europe in the
middle of the continent.
The Iron Curtain is painted as
a black line.
Warsaw Pact countries on one
side of the Iron Curtain appear
shaded red; NATO members
on the other are shaded blue;
militarily neutral countries are
shaded grey.
Yugoslavia, although it was
communist-run, remained
largely independent of the two
major blocs and is shaded
green.
SOVIET UNION VS. THE UNITED STATES
Whether it was ideology or simply the desire for
economic and political power that drove the
United States and the Soviet Union is open for
debate.
 The Cold War between the two superpowers
caused long-term global tension and
disharmony.
 These two countries emerged from WWII
stronger than they were before they entered it.

SOVIET UNION VS. THE UNITED STATES

They had both mobilized their resources and used
them to maximum effect:
Building more weapons
 Placing citizens in military positions more so than ever
before in either country’s history
 Expanded territorial control and influence far beyond
previous limits


Due to their great influence around the world and
economic and military strengths, the US and the
Soviet Union were considered superpowers.
YALTA – FEBRUARY 1945 CONFERENCE
Allied forces could see
that the Second World
War would soon end.
 The “Big Three”(Stalin,
FDR, Churchill) met at
Yalta (on the Black Sea)
 Attempt to plan how the
war would end and the
future for postwar Europe.
 Essentially they planned
to re-draw the map of
Europe.

KEY POINTS FROM YALTA






the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany. Germany
would undergo demilitarization and denazification.
After the war, Germany and Berlin would be split into
four occupied zones.
Nazi war criminals were to be hunted down and brought
to justice.
German reparations were partly to be in the form
of forced labor. The forced labor was to be used to repair
damage Germany inflicted on its victims
Stalin requested that all of the 16 Soviet Socialist
Republics would be granted U.N. membership. This was
taken into consideration, but 14 republics were denied.
A "Committee on Dismemberment of Germany" was to
be set up. Its purpose was to decide whether Germany
was to be divided into six nations.
POTSDAM JULY 1945 CONFERENCE




Between American President Harry
Truman, Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin
and Winston Churchill (Clement Attlee)
met.
Regardless of the outcome, these men
would determine the future course of
world history.
Gathered to decide how to administer
punishment to the defeated Nazi Germany,
which had agreed to unconditional
surrender nine weeks earlier, on 8 May
The goals of the conference also included
the establishment of post-war order, peace
treaties issues, and countering the effects
of the war.
RELATIONSHIPS AMONGST LEADERS

In the 5 months since the
Yalta Conference, some
things had changed:
The Soviet Union was
occupying Central and
Eastern Europe
 Britain had a new Prime
Minister – Clement Attlee
 America had a new President
- Vice-President Harry
Truman assumed the
presidency

GAINING POWER
The superpowers of the Cold War practiced
expansionism – attempt to enlarge territorial and
ideological influence beyond a country’s borders
and allies.
 This is exactly what both the Soviet Union and the
United States would practice until the end of the
Cold War in 1999. This is where we see a shift in
some territory including Yugoslavia which had
managed to stay neutral throughout the unrest of
this time.

GAINING POWER
End of WWII, the US and the Soviet Union began to
establish their spheres of influence in Europe
displaying their dominance over certain territories
and countries.
 Containment was used by both parties in an
attempt to impede the other groups ability to
expand
 Many historians would argue that containment
was used by Stalin as a way to “command the
world economy” in a distasteful way.

TRUMAN DOCTRINE 1947

As outlined by the Truman Doctrine of 1947,
The United States framed its expansionism in
terms of providing other countries with
 The
freedom to choose the side whose governing
ideology would “fit” their political stance.
Democratic. Goal – “Containment” of
Communism & the eventual collapse of the
Communist world.
 Soviet Communism. Goal - spread world-wide
Communism.
 Western
At the present moment in world history nearly every nation must choose
between alternative ways of life. The choice is too often not a free one. One
way of life is based upon the will of the majority, and is distinguished by
free institutions, representative government, free elections, guarantees of
individual liberty, freedom of speech and religion, and freedom from
political oppression. The second way of life is based upon the will of a
minority forcibly imposed upon the majority. It relies upon terror and
oppression, a controlled press and radio, fixed elections, and the
suppression of personal freedoms. I believe that it must be the policy of the
United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted
subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures. I believe that we
must assist free peoples to work out their own destinies in their own way.
I believe that our help should be primarily through economic stability and
orderly political process.
-Harry S. Truman March 1947
PRESIDENT TRUMAN 1884-1972
In postwar Europe—and around
the world—countries were
making exactly the choices that
Truman described.
 Truman wanted to stop Soviet
expansionism to contain the
communist influence and,
rather than resorting to a hot
war (which includes troops and
battles in direct conflict), the
United States fought its
ideological conflict by creating
alliances and giving aid.

MARSHALL PLAN – EUROPEAN RECOVERY
PLAN 1947 – 1952
The biggest aid plan was
the Marshall Plan, a $13
billion ($100 billion today)
plan to help the recovery
of countries ravaged by
war in Europe.
 Over the lifespan of the
Marshall Plan 17
countries in Europe
received funds and
technical expertise from
the United States

REJECTION OF AID

The Soviet satellite states (now communist)
rejected the Marshall Plan aid for a number of
reasons:
 Recipients
of aid were expected to submit a
through economic assessment and participate in a
unified European economy
 Abide to conditions that were incompatible with
Soviet Ideology
 Questionable that the US would follow-through with
aid to countries under the influence of a communist
power.
EXPECTATIONS

The Marshall Plan was
highly conditional
assuming that states
would:
 Balance
their budgets
 Stop inflation and stabilize
their exchange rates at
realistic levels
 Impose free market
policies on Western
Europe in return for aid
SOVIET AID PACKAGE – MOLOTOV PLAN
As an alternative to American aid, the Soviets
proposed their own aid package.
 The Molotov Plan involved:

 Bilateral
trade agreements that helped to
consolidate the economies of socialist countries
such as Poland, Czechoslovakia, East Germany,
Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania
 To solidify the Soviet presence in Europe
BERLIN, GERMANY 1945
The Second World War has come
to an end. Japan has been
defeated. Germany has
surrendered. Nuclear bombs
have been dropped on Hiroshima
and Nagasaki.
 Berlin has been shelled,
bombed, and blasted for days
and weeks on end by the Allied
bomber-planes.

BERLIN, GERMANY





The moment the Second World War ended, another war
started – The Cold War.
A war of ideologies between the capitalists and
communists.
The Germans had started the Franco-Prussian War, the
First World War and the Second World War.
The Allies were too aware of Germany’s potential to
allow them to control their own future.
Instead, the German nation was occupied.
POSTWAR GERMANY
Germany was split in two.
 The Americans, the British,
and the French took joint
control of West Germany
 The Soviets took control of
East Germany.
 The capital city of Berlin was
slightly problematic because it
was located smack in the
middle of East Germany.
 The Allies refused to allow the
capital to become communist,
so the city too, was divided up.

BERLIN AIRLIFT AND BLOCKADE JUNE 1948




Attempting to seize control of
the German capital, the Soviets,
under Stalin’s leadership,
attempted to starve Berlin into
submission.
All road transport and rail
transport to Berlin was cut off.
Roads and railway lines were
barricaded and utility-supplies
were cut off affecting 2.1 million
west Berliners.
They wanted their slice of Berlin
and they wanted it now!
BERLIN, GERMANY
Berlin was no longer seen as the ‘enemy’.
 It was not Nazified anymore.
 It was an ordinary city just like any other but it
was a city that wanted to be free and capitalist
 They were being held hostage by the REDS who
wanted it all for themselves.
 The people of Berlin were trapped in a hole.

BERLIN AIRLIFT AND BLOCKADE



In response, the Western
Allies organized the Berlin
airlift to carry supplies to the
people in West Berlin.
The airlift was nothing less
than dozens of day-and-night
deliveries of food, clothing
and other supplies to the city
of Berlin by air, from West
Germany to East Germany.
At the height of the airlift,
flights were landing in West
Berlin at the rate of one
every three minutes.
BERLIN AIRLIFT AND BLOCKADE
The Berlin Airlift lasted from June, 1948 until
April of 1949.
 During those months, Western planes flew over
Berlin, dropping parachute-lowered supplies of
food to the people of Berlin.
 They dropped milk, bread, gum, and chocolate
bars – in an attempt to keep the morale of the
people high and their bodies healthy.

BERLIN AIRLIFT AND BLOCKADE
The airlift was a big success and a total
humiliation to the Soviets who thought that
they could overpower the West and keep a hold
on the German capital.
 When the Soviets realized that the West would
not stop with its airlift, they had to admit defeat
and the blockade on Berlin was lifted.

BERLIN BLOCKADE 1948 - 1949
The blockade was lifted in May 1949.
 After approximately 100 casualties with 17 US
and 8 British planes crashing.
 Resulted in the creation of two separate
German states.

 The
Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany)
 German Democratic Republic (East Germany) split
up Berlin.
PHYSICAL BOUNDARIES – BERLIN
When the Soviet blockade of Berlin failed, the
Soviets had to bow to pressure from the West
to divide Berlin between the Capitalists and the
Communists, just like the rest of the country.
 For the next 41 years, West Berlin would
become an island of capitalism amongst a sea
of communism, surrounded on all sides by East
Berlin and East Germany.
 East Berlin became part of the Soviet Union, a
prison city with its people under siege.

PHYSICAL BOUNDARIES
Berliners were terrified of living
under the heel of the Soviets
and they wanted out of this
“Soviet city.”
 Between 1949 and 1961,
thousands of East Berlin citizens
fled to the West.
 There was no Berlin wall during
these years of the city’s history
and East Berliners could flee to
the west with relative ease,
however Berliners weren’t the
only people running.

PHYSICAL BOUNDARIES
It wasn’t just the citizens of Berlin fleeing the
Soviets, East Germans everywhere were fleeing
from the Soviets but were forced into Berlin due
to travel restrictions.
 Once you got into Berlin, it was easy to get to
the West.
 The Soviets were worried that it was too easy
so in order to stop the easy flow, they built a
wall.

THE BERLIN WALL: 1961
Even though there had been tension between
the Soviets and the West ever since the end of
the Second World war in 1945, it wasn’t until
1961 that the Soviets actually tried in any
serious capacity, to stop people from getting in
to the West.
 This all changed on the night of August 12th,
1961.

THE BERLIN WALL 1961



That evening the order was
given for the border between
East and West Berlin to be
officially closed and for a wall to
be erected.
The wall was put up in record
time and by six o’clock the on
the morning of August 13th,
Berlin was a city divided.
It became obvious quite quickly
that the Soviets were serious
about keeping the people of
East Berlin penned in.
BUILDING OF THE BERLIN WALL 1961



The Berlin Wall was a series of walls constructed in a
slap-up overnight job of wood, brick, concrete blocks, and
barbed wire.
In some areas of the wall, the only thing keeping East and
West Berliners apart was a few feet of barbed wire
stretched out across a road.
People who were desperate enough could push and cut
their way through and could still get across to the West.
Some even used car-bombs to blast holes in the wall.
BUILDING OF THE BERLIN WALL 1961
In order to make the wall in record time, the East
German army took a few shortcuts.
 Where possible, they followed roads and streets to
make the wall as straight and as short as possible.
 They incorporated walls of buildings into this first
generation of the wall to speed up the
construction.
 The Soviets were quick to see the loopholes in
their design (people jumping out of windows) and
responded by bricking up windows and
doorframes that opened out into West Berlin.

BUILDING OF THE BERLIN WALL 1962


The Soviets could see that
their quick fixes would not
serve the purpose and the
initial barrier was not
working.
Between 1962 and 1965,
the second and eventually,
third versions of the Berlin
Wall were constructed of
huge slabs of concrete that
were tough, high and
impossible to blast through,
ram with cars or climb over.
BUILDING OF THE BERLIN WALL
Eventually by the early 1970s, the Berlin wall
didn’t just divide the city, it completely
surrounded it.
 The entirety of West Berlin was surrounded by a
huge, twelve-foot high wall of solid concrete.

HUNGARY: REVOLUTION 1956


1956 the Hungarian
people revolted
against their Stalinist
government, forming
militias and battling
the state police and
Soviet troops.
Less than 2 weeks – a
new Hungarian
government was
formed, the state
police were disbanded
and they were working
towards a democratic
state.
HUNGARY REVOLUTION 1956

A Few months later, Soviet forces invaded
Hungary and
defeated the newly independent country
 reversed the changes that came from the revolution
 restored Pro-Soviet government.

Soviet power within Central Europe was
strengthened.
 Message - the irreversibility of communism and
Soviet influence was sent around the world.

CZECHOSLOVAK SOCIALIST REPUBLIC 1968
1968, reformist Alexander Dubcek (Doob-chick)
came to power in the Czechoslovak Socialist
Republic (CSSR).
 Under new rule, he

Granted additional rights and freedoms to its citizens
 Loosening restrictions on the media, speech, and travel
 Limited the power of the secret police
 A 10 year plan towards democratic elections

CZECHOSLOVAK SOCIALIST REPUBLIC 1968
The Soviets launched talks with the
Czechoslovakian government to reach an
understanding about the nature of the country’s
reforms.
 August 20 1968, Eastern armies from the Warsaw
Pact countries – Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Poland,
and Hungary – invaded and occupied the CSSR
 Within a year, Dubcek’s reforms had been
reversed.

YUGOSLAVIA
After WWII, Yugoslavia elected a communist
government and aligned itself with the Soviet
Union.
 Soon the Yugoslavian leader, Josip Tito began
to distance his country from the Soviet Union.
 Tito became the first and only socialist leader
to defy Stalin and reject Soviet demands for
absolute loyalty to the Soviet Union.

YUGOSLAVIA
1955, Yugoslavia, under Tito’s leadership, became
a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement,
an international organization of states who
consider themselves not formally aligned with or
against any major power bloc.
 Over the years, Tito adopted a more liberal
government and fostered relationships with
Western Countries, creating a political, economic,
and ideological division between Yugoslavia and
the Soviet Union.

DETERRENCE
Deterrence is a method of cold war, rather than a
method of hot war. It involves the building up of
one’s capacity to fight such that neither opponent
will fight because of the expected outcomes.
 After the 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki and the development of nuclear
weapons by the Soviets in 1949, the governments
of the world knew that a hot war between the
superpowers would mean a nuclear war, one that
would kill not only the opponents but also the
population of the entire planet.

MAD
Mutually assured destruction –MAD deters
each side from entering into direct conflict of
an unwinnable nuclear war.
 WMDs – weapons of mass destruction have
been key issues in more recent international
conflicts, such as those between the United
States and North Korea, Iraq and Iran.

CANADA IN THE COLD WAR
With historical ties to Great Britain and its
shared border with the US, there was never any
doubt as to Canada playing a role in the Cold
War.
 1949 Canada becomes a founding member of
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
 NATO – a military alliance designed to defend
member countries against attack from the
Soviet Union and its allies.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(1949)
 United States
 Belgium
 Britain
 Canada
 Denmark
 France
 Iceland
 Italy
 Luxemburg
 Netherlands
 Norway
 Portugal
 1952: Greece &
Turkey
 1955: West Germany
 1983: Spain
Warsaw Pact (1955)
}
U. S. S. R.
}
East Germany
}
Albania
}
Hungary
}
Bulgaria
}
Poland
}
Czechoslovakia
}
Romania
BRINKMANSHIP
Brinkmanship – attempting to push a dangerous
situation as far as possible without surrendering
anything to your opponent.
 Expansionism, containment, and deterrence all
came to a head in the Cuban Missile Crisis – a
classical example of brinkmanship.

http://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/history/u
s-history/v/us-history-overview-3---wwii-to-vietnam
NON-ALIGNMENT
Many nations chose not to align themselves
with one superpower or the other.
 Nations from every political spectrum chose to
stay neutral in the ideological conflict between
the superpowers.
 Yugoslavia was a founding member of the NonAlignment Movement along with Egypt, India,
Indonesia, and Ghana.

CONTAINMENT & DETERRENCE
American foreign policy during the Cold War
was one of containment.
 If a nation looked venerable to a Communist
takeover, the US would intervene often
financially and occasionally with military
intervention.
 The practice was controversial, since the AntiCommunist regimes were often brutal
totalitarian governments.

CONTAINMENT – THE “BUFFER ZONE”

United States policies – The Truman Doctrine,
Marshall Plan and NATO.

Soviet Union – COMECON ( Council for Mutual
Economic Assistance) & the Warsaw Pact
BRINKMANSHIP – CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
Brinkmanship – Both the Soviet Union and the
US were on the brink of war during the Cuban
Missile Crisis.
 Cuba had a communist government and fell
under the Soviet sphere of influence.
 Soviet Union leader: Nikita Khrushchev. 1962,
he placed nuclear missiles in Cuba – 150 km
off the Florida Coast.
 US had missiles at a base in Turkey aimed at
the Soviet Union.

BRINKMANSHIP – CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
The world was on edge so President JFK ordered a
blockade of Cuba and threatened the Soviet Union
with massive retaliation should any missiles be
launched from Cuban bases.
 Khrushchev (Soviet premiere) declared the
blockade illegal and promised retaliation should
any Americans interfere with Soviet ships.
 This Brinkmanship showed how unwilling both
superpowers were to back down.

BRINKMANSHIP – CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
The world stood on edge until the a consensus
was reached.
 Consensus = The Soviets and Americans
removed their WMD.

DETENTE – FURTHER CONSENSUS
By the early 1970s, both superpowers were
growing weary of the constant tension.
 The nuclear arms race was expensive and was
taking a toll on the superpowers economies.
 There was increasing political and civil unrest in
the United States due to the nuclear situation and
the Vietnam War.
 Soviet Union had their own list of problems
including a political split from communist China.
 It was in the best interest of both parties to ease
tensions. This is known as Detente (French for
"relaxation")

DETENTE – PERIOD OF `THAWING OUT`
The detente period is marked by
a series of treaties between the
superpowers.
 The treaties were drafted to limit
the nuclear arsenals of the
superpowers and to prevent the
development of nuclear weapons
in other countries.

TREATIES OF DETENTE – FOREIGN POLICY
NPT (1968) – Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Under the terms only the US, Soviet Union, UK,
China & France were permitted to possess,
acquire, and manufacture nuclear weapons.
 SALT 1 (1972) – The first Strategic Arms
Limitation Treaty. Under the terms, the
superpowers agreed not to increase the
number of missile launchers beyond the
existing levels.

TREATIES OF DETENTE - FOREIGN POLICY
AMB Treaty (1972) – The Anti-Ballistic Missile
Treaty. Under the terms the superpowers agreed
not to build up defences against ballistic missiles
to equalized the balance of power.
 SALT II (1979) – The second Strategic Arms
Limitations Treaty. SALT II was never actually
approved by the US, but both superpowers abided
by its terms, which further imposed limits and
reductions on strategic ballistic missile launchers.

SOVIET CHANGES

In the 1980s, Soviet General Secretary
Gorbachev introduced a series of reforms:
 Restructuring
(Perestrokia)
 Reform of the Soviet Economy
 Openness (glasnot)
 Reform of the political structure – more freedom

Beyond Gorbachev`s intentions, these reforms
resulted in the collapse of the Soviet Union.
SOVIET CHANGES
Liberation movements swept through communist
countries.
 In East Germany and Czechoslovakia, mass
popular uprisings toppled their Communist
governments in 1989.
 1989, Hungary and Poland organized open, fair
elections.
 Violent overthrow of the government in Romania.
 Soon enough, the nations that were part of the
Soviet Union began to declare their independence.
 December 30 1991, the Soviet union was officially
dissolved.

WALL COMES DOWN

June 12, 1987
Speaking in West Berlin at the wall, US
President Ronald Reagan says : "General
Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you
seek prosperity for the Soviet
Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek
liberalization: Come here to this gate. Mr.
Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear
down this wall."






May 2, 1989
Dismantling of the Iron Curtain – the boundary between Warsaw Pact
and NATO countries – begins through the series of reforms.
Sept. 10, 1989
Hungary reopens its border with East Germany, allowing 13,000 East
Germans passage to escape
Nov. 4 , 1989
One million people rally in East Berlin during weeks of mounting
demonstrations.
Nov. 9, 1989
The Berlin Wall falls.
April 8, 1990
Hungary elects a non-communist government.
Oct. 3, 1990
Germany unifies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkTO8ZDcOeg&feature=related