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Suez Canal/ Nasser
It allowed water transportation between Europe and Asia with out having to go around Africa.
HS : It is still used today. -
Stalin
Stalin turned the Soviet Union into a totaltarian state controlled by a powerful and complex bureaucracy. He proposed his "Five Year Plans" in 1928, aimed at heavy industry improving transportation and increasing farm output. HS : The Soviet Union developed a command economy under Stalin. -
United Nations
The UN was founded after WWII to replace the League of Nations. Its aims were international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, civil rights, civil liberties, political freedoms, democracy, and the achievement of lasting world peace. HS : Its purpose was to stop war. -
Ho Chi Minh
Ho Chi Minh was a nationalist and communist who controlled North Vietnam. He fought in many important battles in the Cold War, and unexpectedly defeated the French, forcing them out of Vietnam. He tried to overthrow South Vietnam's noncommunist government. HS : He was a strong communist leader who inspired Vietnamese to fight for the unification of North and South Vietnam. -
Vietnam
The conflict between North and South Korea led to this Vietnam War. The US helped and lost. HS : This helped Vietnam with diplomatic relations. -
Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was an international relations policy set forth by the U.S. President Harry Truman in a speech on March 12, 1947, which stated that the U.S. would support Greece and Turkey with economic and military aid to prevent them from falling into the Soviet sphere. HS : It is considered the start of the Cold War and the start of containment against Soviet expansion. -
Sputnik
The Soviet Union launched the first space craft, Sputnik, in 1947. It was visible all around the Earth. HS : Triggered the Space Race. -
The Berlin Airlift
The Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' acess to Berlin. The US, British, Australlian, New Zealand, and South African air forces organized the Berlin Airlift to carry supplies into West Berlin in West Berlin. They delivered 4700 tons of daily necessities in over 200,000 flights in almost one year. HS : This embarrassed the Soviet Union and showed them the Western Allies would go to extraordinary lenghts to help the people of Berlin. -
The Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan the American program to aid Europe in which the US helped rebuild economies after World War II. The goals of the United States were to rebuild a war-devastated region, remove trade barriers, modernize industry, and make Europe prosperous again. HS : After the funding ended, each country surpassed pre-war levels. -
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
In 1949, the US, Canada, and ten other countries formed a new military alliance called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Members pledged to help one another if any one of they were attacked. The USSR felt threatned by this. HS : This caused tenions to grow, and helped protect the US from the Soviets using the Western allies. -
People's Republic of China
PRC was a single-party country, governed by the communists party. They over threw Kuomintag and replace him with PRC. It is a sovereign in the East China. HS : It is the most modern government in China. -
Korean War
This was a war between North and South Korea because both rulers wanted to rule the entire country. Communist North Korean troops attacked in June and soon overran most of the South. United Nations stepped in to help the noncommunist South Korea. In September 1950, United Nations forced North Korean troops in the south to surrender. HS : This was the first armed conflict in the Cold War involving the US and SU and showed how powerful they were. -
Explosion of the First Hydrogen Bomb
The Americans exploded the first Hydrogen Bomb on November 1, 1952 on Eniwetok in the Pacific. These bombs are much more destructive than the atomic bomb. HS : It gave put the US ahead of the Soviet Union in the arms race. -
KGB (Committe for State Security)
The Soviet Union used this as their main security sysstem until it collapsed. It was the main government agency acting as internal security and other important necessities. HS : It's main functions were guarding the USSR boarded and foreign intelligence. -
Krushchev
Nikita Khrushchev was the Soviet leader after Joseph Stalin. He claimed Stalin abused his power. Khrushchev mainted the communist political, but he called for peace with the West and closed prison camps. HS : Soviets got more freedom under him. -
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Pact was a mutual defense treaty between eight communist states of Central and Eastern Europe in existence during the Cold War. HS : The Warsaw Pact -
Berlin Wall is erected
A massive exodus of low-paid East Germans, unhappy with communism. fled into West Berlin. To stop the flight, East Germany built a wall that sealed off West Berlin. When completed, the wall was a massive concrete barrier, topped with barbed wire and patrolled by guards. HS: The wall showed that workers, far from enjoying a communist paradise, had to be forcibly kept from fleeing. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
In 1962, the Soviet Union sent nuclear missiles to Cuba. President Kennedy responded by imposing a naval blockade that prevented Soviet shipments, and demanded the missiles to be removed from Cuba. Nikita Khrushchev agreed to remove the Soviet missiles, and war was averted. HS : One of the major confrontations of the Cold War, and is generally regarded as the moment in which the Cold War almost turned into a nuclear war. -
Brezhnev
Brezhnev was Khrushchev's successor in the Soviet Union, and ruled after him. He held power from 1964 until his death in 1982.He came to a national level during the Cold War, and lead the USSR through it.
HS: He triggered the staghation which caused the dissolution of the Soviet Union. -
Tet Offensive
During the Vietnam War, guerrilla forces cam out of the jungles and attacked American and Sout Vietnamese forces in cities all across the south. The assault was unexpected and occurred during Tet, the Vietnamese New Year. HS : The Tet Offensive marked a turning point in public opinion in the United States. -
Helsinki Accords
This was an agreement between thrity three states including the US, Canada, and most European states. It guaranteed basic rights such as freedom of speech, religion, and the press as well as the rights to a fair trial, to earn a living, and to live in safety. HS : Despite these agreements, human rights occur daily around the world today. -
Iranian Hostage Crisis
This was a crisis between the US and Iran when Iranian students took over the American embassy in Tehran. Fifty two Americans were held capitive for 444 days HS : This led to the Iranian government entering negotions with the US. -
Russian Invasion of Afghanistan
The Russian Invasion of Afghanistan lasted nine years. The US gave the Russians millions of dollars, and the Chinese and Pakistan gave them military training. HS : Many people fled from Afghanistan, and many of them were killed in the war. -
Lech Walesa and the Solidarity Movement in Poland
Lech Walesa was the leader of the Solidarity movement in Poland. This was an independent labor union. Under the Soviet Union pressure, the Polish government outlawed the union and threw Walesa in jail, but he was eventually released. HS : He persuaded former communist parties to form a noncommunist party. -
LA Olympics
During the Moscow Olympics, Americans led a boycott. So in response, 14 Eastern bloc countries boycotted during the Los Angeles Olympics. The Los Angeles Olympics attracted more countries that have ever attended the games. HS : It is known as the most financially successful Olympics. -
Moscow Olympics
These Olympics were held in Soviet Union. Sixty five nations, including the US, boycotted the games because of the war in Afghanistan. HS : This led to the boycott in 1984 at the Los Angeles olympics. -
Gorbachev
In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev rose to power in the Soviet Union. He was eager to bring about change by creating reforms. He signed arms control with the US and removed troops from Afghanistan. He encouraged people to talk about the country's problems openly. HS : His reforms brought economic turmoil. Shortages grew worse and prices soared. -
Chernobyl
In 1986, an accident at the the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Soviet Union exposed people, crops, and animals to deadly radiation over a wide area. Thirty one deaths occured, and long term effects such as cancer and deformities are being accounted for. HS : This was during the Cold War and was considered the worst nuclear power plant explosion in history. -
Perestroika and Glasnost
Gorbachev called for these because he thought they were the only solutions to the problems in the Soviet Union. Perestokia means restructuring and glasnost means openness. HS : The Soviet Union's economy declined because of these two items. -
Geneva Accords
The Geneva Accords were a settlement between Aghanistan and Pakistan on the situation relating to the Democratic Republic of Aghanistan. This put an end to the nine year Soviet occupation in Afghanistan. HS: Ended the war in Afghanistan and Soviet control. -
Tiananmen Square
Tiananmen Square is a large city square in the center of Beijing. It has great historical significance as it was the site of several improtant evens in China's history. HS : This was the focal point of The Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989. -
Berlin Wall is torn down
Soviet communism declined, and Germany moved toward reunification. Without Soviet backing, East German communist leaders were unable to maintain control. They were forced to reopen their western borders. Quickly, East Germans demanded reunification with the West. HS: This was caused the reunification of East and West Berlin. -
European Economic Cooperation
A group called the European Union agreed to promote freer flow of capital, labor, and goods among European nations. Also, East and West Germany reunited. HS: Europe recovered after World War II. -
End of the USSR
The Soviet economy was alreayd struggling, and their struggle in the Afghanistan war did not help. Reforms brought economic turmoil, and shortages grew worse and prices soared. At the end of 1991, the Soviet republics seperated to form twelve independent nations. After 69 years, the Soviet Union had ceased to exist. HS: The Soviet Union failed to exist and new nations were created. -
Yeltsin
He was a Russian politician and the first president of the Russian Federation. He vowed to transfomr Russia's economy into a free market economy HS : Much of his time led to problems. -
Putin
Vladimir Putin was elected president of Russia in its second free election. Putin projected toughness and competence, promising to end corruption and build Russia into a strong market economy. HS : He is responsible for Russia's economic stability. -
Iron Curtain
