The Cold War & The Space Race

The Cold War&The Space Race 1945- 1991

The End of WWII • Before his death, Roosevelt had set the groundwork for an international political organization. -> On April 25, 1945, that plan came into action -> Representatives from 50 countries came to San Francisco to officially organize the United Nations • The representatives designed the UN Charter • The charter was the “Constitution” of the UN • A Security Council was also created – responsible for international peace and security

The End of WWII • The Allies also wanted to punish Germany for WWII -> Britain, France, the United States and the Soviet Union created the International Military Tribunal -> At the Nuremberg Trials, the IMT tried German leaders suspected of committing war crimes • War crimes are crimes against humanity that go ‘above and beyond’ what is appropriate in a time of war • Twenty-two Nazi leaders were tried – three were acquitted, 7 went to prison,the other 12 were hanged.

The End of WWII • Lower ranking Nazi officials were also put on trial at Nuremberg. This led to an additional 24 executions and 107 sent to prison. -> Similar trials were held in Tokyo for the leaders of wartime Japan. • The Allies tried 25 Japanese leaders with war crimes. -> However, the Allies did not put Emperor Hirohito on trial. Most of the Allies blamed Hirohito for Japan’s actions during the war. Why wasn’t he put on trial?

Roots of the Cold War • Even before WWII ended, the wartime alliance between the US and USSR was strained. -> There was a difference in ideology • > Ideology – a system of social beliefs and values -> The USSR was Communist -> The United States was Democratic and capitalist • When the two nations had a common enemy, things were okay, but with the end of WWII these differences began causing problems

Soviet Security Concerns -> As WWII ended, the US and USSR had different goals. The USSR was concerned about security. • Germany had invaded the USSR twice in less than 30 years • > The Soviets wanted to keep Germany weak • > They also wanted to make sure the countries between Germany and the USSR were under Soviet control. -> Soviet leaders were also Communist • They believed communism was a superior economic system, and the USSR should encourage communism in other countries • Many Soviet leaders also believed that capitalist countries would try to destroy communism. • This made them suspicious of capitalist countries

American Economic Concerns -> The United States’ concern was more economic -> Many believed that the global Depression had caused WWII • American advisers thought that the Depression had gotten so bad because countries had cut down on trade -> Because of this, the USA promoted economic growth, world trade, and free enterprise • These capitalist ideas made the USA suspicious of communist countries.

The Yalta Conference -> February 1945 – WWII is almost over. The Big Three meet at Yalta, a Soviet resort on the Black Sea. • The three main issues discussed would later come into play during the Cold War: -> Poland -> Declaration of Liberated Europe -> Dividing Germany

Plans for Poland The Yalta Conference • After the German invasion of Poland, most of the Polish leaders had fled to Britain • In 1944, when the Soviets liberated Poland, they encouraged Polish Communists to set up a new government -> In 1945, there were two competing Polish governments – one Communist, one not. • Stalin argued that the Polish gov’t needed to be friendly to the USSR, and should be Communist • Churchill and Roosevelt said that a free Poland was what the Allies had been fighting for -> Compromise: the Communist gov’t would stay in place, but some of the old Polish officials would be put in gov’t positions.

Declaration of Liberated Europe The Yalta Conference • After reaching a decision about Poland, the Big Three created a Declaration -> The Declaration of Liberated Europe • > Asserted the “right of all people to choose the form of government under which they will live” • The Allies agreed the people of Europe would be allowed to hold elections as needed, and that the Allies would help them set up temporary governments.

Dividing Germany The Yalta Conference -> Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin agreed to divide Germany into four zones. • Each zone would be controlled by one of the Allies – France, Britain, the USA and the USSR • Berlin (the capital) would also be divided into four zones, even though the city was in the Soviet zone of Germany.

Dividing Germany The Yalta Conference • Stalin also wanted to weaken Germany economically. -> Stalin demanded Germany pay reparations for the war damage -> Roosevelt agreed, but suggested: • >Reparations be based on what Germany could pay • > They could be paid with trade goods • Further, the Allies agreed to remove industrial machinery, railroad cars, and other equipment from Germany. • Though the Allies reached an agreement, tensions over reparations would become one of the major causes of the Cold War.

Rising Tensions • Two weeks after the Yalta conference, the USSR pressured the King of Romania into appointing a Communist government. • Soon after, the Soviets refused to allow more than 3 non-Communists in the Polish government. • Roosevelt said this was “unacceptable”, but died before he could take action. -> President Truman met with Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov, and demanded Stalin allow the Poles to have free elections. -> This meeting marked an important shift in US- Soviet relations. It showed the US would stand up to the Soviets.

Potsdam Conference -> In July 1945, with the US still at war with Japan, Truman met with Stalin at Potsdam, in occupied Germany. • The economy of the USSR had suffered during the war – Stalin wanted Germanyto pay reparations. • Truman thought that, if Germany’s economywasn’t allowed to recover, it might lead to a Depression, or a third World War.

Potsdam Conference -> Truman found a solution: • >The Soviets would take reparations from only the Soviet-controlled zone of Germany • Those areas controlled by France, Britain, and the USA would be able to recover. -> Stalin was against this idea • > The Soviet zone of Germany was mostly agricultural • > Stalin thought the USA was trying to intimidate him – Truman told him about the A-Bomb • Even though he didn’t like it, Stalin agreed. It was the only way the USSR could get any reparations.

Potsdam Conference • Although Truman won on the reparations issue, the Soviets refused to negotiate on other points. • The Soviets refused to commit to uphold the Declaration of Liberated Europe • >The presence of the Soviet army in Eastern Europe meant pro-Soviet Communist governments would be established. -> Soon after, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia all established Communist governments.

The Iron Curtain ->The Communist countries in Eastern Europe were called satellite nations. -> They were not under direct Soviet control, but they were pressured to be Communist, andremain friendly to the USSR. • Churchill watched this Communist takeover in Eastern Europe, and said: “From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent.”

American Policies • Your assignment for this period… • Read the article about “American Policies toward Communism” • Fill out the accompanying chart. You will be filling out information about: • Stalin, Truman, Kennan, Marshall and Vandeburg • The Long Telegram • Truman Doctrine • Marshall Plan • North Atlantic Treaty • You should be able to finish this in class today! You must work solo.

West Germany • By 1948, US officials realized that the USSR was trying to undermine the German economy. -> The United States, Great Britain, and France announced they were merging their zonesinto one. • They called the new zone Federal Republic of Germany, however, everyone called it West Germany. • > The new merged zone became West Germany. -> East Germanywas controlled by the Soviet Union.

East v. West Germany • West Germany’s economy was completely separate from East Germany’s. -> Over the next few years, West Germany gained more and more independence. -> West Germany was not allowed a military -> The U.S.; Britain; and France maintained a presence in West Germany -> Otherwise, however, the West Germans had a lot of freedom. • East Germany was another story. • East Germany was controlled by the USSR, and Germany’s capital, Berlin, was in East Germany.

Berlin Blockade -> June: 1948 – Soviet troops cut all road and rail traffic into West Berlin. • Like Germany itself, Berlinwas now in two pieces – East Berlin was controlledby the Soviets, West by the USA -> The Soviets created a blockade – it was designed to put West Berlin under Soviet control. • The challenge was – how could the US and their allies keep West Berlin alive without provoking war with the USSR?

The Berlin Airlift • The USA needed to help West Berlin without invading Soviet-Controlled Germany. -> Truman ordered the Berlin airlift to begin. -> For 11 months, cargo planes supplied the Berliners with food, medicine, and coal. • The airlift continued through the spring of 1949, bringing in over 2 million tons of supplies. -> Stalin (USSR) finally lifted the blockade on May 12, 1949.

NATO • After the Soviets began the Berlin blockade, the US people wanted to create a military alliance with Western Europe. -> April 1949: NATO is created • > NATO stands for: North Atlantic Treaty Organization -> The NATO nations agreed to come to the aid of any country that was attacked. • NATO originally included 12 countries – the US, Canada, Britain, France, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Portugal, the Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg and Iceland. -> Eventually, the NATO members allowed West Germany to join. -> In response, the Soviet leaders would createtheir own alliances – the Warsaw Pact

Cold War in China • Communist forces had been fighting to overthrow the Nationalist gov’t of China since the 1920s. -> Communists led by Mao Zedong -> Nationalists led by Chiang Kai-shek • The United States wanted to prevent a Communist revolution, and sent the Nationalist gov’t $2 billion. • By 1949, the Communists had gained support and captured Beijing. -> By October, 1949, China was a Communist country, led by Mao Zedong.

Cold War in China • 1950 – China signs a treaty of friendship and alliance with the Soviet Union. • Soon after, the USSR announced that it had atomic weapons • This leads to a growing fear of Communism, not just in Europe, but on a global scale.

Cold War in China -> US response to Communism in China: • > Only supports Nationalist government (now isolated to Taiwan) • > Encourages the recovery of Japan (because the US needs an ally in Asia) • The USA was worried that, if China became Communist, there would be a domino effect and other countries would soon follow.

The Korean War -> At the end of WWII, the USA and USSR had invaded Korea. • In order to drive Japanese troops out of Korea, the Allies divided the country. • The USA would help the south, and the USSR would help the North. -> Once WWII was over, this became a problem – the USSR supported the Communist government of North Korea. The USA supported the democratic South Korea. -> This led to the Korean War (1950-1953)

The Korean War • Now: Korean War Video • Homework: Korean War reading and response • Diving Deeper: Research US-North Korean relations today. We will create a whole-class graphic organizer next class.

The Red Scare • In September, 1945, a clerk named Igor Gouzenko walked out of the Soviet Embassy in Ottowa, Canada and defected. • Defecting: Changing loyalty from one country to another -> Gouzenko carried with him documents that revealed a massive Soviet effort to infiltrate government agencies in Canada and the United States. • These documents also showed the Soviets were trying to find out more information about the US atomic bomb. -> This case stunned and terrified Americans – it implied that there could be Soviet spiesanywhere.

The Red Scare • American fear of Soviet influence escalated. -> This period of time is called the Red Scare - fear that the Soviets “Reds” had infiltrated parts of American society. -> Americans feared subversion. • >Subversion: the effort to secretlyweaken a society and overthrow its government. • In early 1947, just nine days after his speech announcing the Truman Doctrine, President Truman made another speech. • The president established a loyalty review program to screen for Communists.

The Red Scare • Between 1947 and 1951, over 6 million federal employees were screened for loyalty. • Things that could throw your loyalty into question: • Reading certain books • Belonging to ‘liberal’ groups • Traveling overseas • Watching foreign films • J. Edgar Hoover – director of the FBI – was not satisfied. He went to HUAC to discuss options. • > HUAC – House Un-American Activities Committee -> J. Edgar Hoover urged HUAC to hold public hearings for suspected Communists. • Hoover aimed to expose Communists and “Communist sympathizers” • The FBI sent agents to infiltrate suspected groups, and began wiretapping telephones.

The Rosenbergs The Red Scare -> In 1950, the FBI was trying to find out how the USSR gained atomic bomb technology. • Many did not believe the USSR could have come up with the technology on their own – they suspected American Communists. • The hunt led to Klaus Fuchs, a British scientist. • Fuchs admitted sending info to the USSR, claiming it came from American Communists -> The FBI then arrested Julius and Ethel Rosenberg – a New York couple. • > The Rosenbergs were members of the Communist Party. The governmentcharged them with heading a Soviet spy ring. -> The Rosenbergs claimed innocence, but were sentenced to death for espionage.

The Red Scare • The guilt or innocence of people like the Rosenbergs was hotly debated. • Many Americans thought that the Rosenbergs and others had been falsely accused. • However, there was solid evidence of Soviet espionage as well. -> Messages decoded by Project Verona revealed extensive Soviet espionage. -> Project Verona was able to crack one of the Soviet spy codes, and intercept messages to Moscow.

The Red Scare Spreads • Following the example set by the government, the Red Scare spread even further. • Universities, businesses, even churches began searching to find Communists. • The University of California required 11,000 faculty members to take loyalty oaths, and fired 157 when they refused to. -> The Taft-Hartley Act required leaders of labor unions to take oaths that they were not Communists. • All over the United States, businesses aimed to purge Communists.

Hollywood on Trial -> HUAC – (House Un-American Activities Committee) even put celebrities on trial. -> The FBI and HUAC believed the film industrywas a powerful force, which could changepeoples opinions. • Actors, producers, writers were all interviewed to see if they had Communist tendencies. • Those who were suspected Communists were put on Blacklists and would not be hired. • People in the industry could be blacklisted for things as small as knowing a Communist, or for criticizing HUAC.

McCarthyism “While I cannot take the time to name all the men in the State Department who have been named as members of the Communist party, and members of a spy ring, I have here in my hand a list of 205 that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party, and who nevertheless are still working and shaping the policy of the State Department.” • In February 1950, Wisconsin SenatorJoseph McCarthy made a speech thatincluded the following: • Three Minute Mini Essay - Imagine you are in the crowd, and you hear this statement. How would you feel? How would you respond?

McCarthyism • The day after McCarthy made his speech the Associated Press had picked up the statement. By the time McCarthy’s plane landed in Denver, he was swamped by reporters, asking to see the list of Communists. • McCarthy said it was in his bag, but ultimately never produced it. • However, this didn’t stop him from making charges against “Communists” in the U.S. government. • McCarthy had won his election to Senator based in part on accusing his opponent of being “Communistically inclined”

McCarthyism -> As a senator, McCarthy claimed that Communists were a danger at home and abroad. -> He distributed a booklet called “The Party of Betrayal” which accused the Democratic Party of protecting Communists. • Some of McCarthy’s targets included the Secretary of State Dean Acheson and George C. Marshall (author of the Marshall Plan). -> McCarthy gained political power and support – so many people were afraid of Communism,

McCarthyism • The US Congress was also afraid of Communism. -> In 1950, Congress passed the McCarran Act. • > The McCarran Act made it illegal to “combine, conspire or agree with any other person to perform any act which would…contribute to…the establishment of a totalitarian government.” • The McCarran Act targeted Communist Party and “Communist-front” organizations, such as labor unions. • > It also allowed the arrest and detention of suspected Communists and sympathizers. • Truman knew that the Act violated the First Amendment and vetoed it. • However, Congress passed the law anyway, with a 2/3rds vote.

McCarthyism -> 1952: Republicans control Congress. • Joe McCarthy is now chairman of the Senate subcommittee on investigations. -> McCarthy used his power to force government officials to testify about alleged Communist influences. -> McCarthy turned the investigation into a “witch hunt” • McCarthy’s searches were based on flimsy evidence and irrational fears. People were also afraid to question McCarthy – for fear they’d be accused of being Communists themselves. -> This paranoia of Communism, and persecution with little evidence became known as McCarthyism.

McCarthyism -> McCarthy eventually lost popularity when he started looking for Soviet spies in the U.S. Army. • The Army conducted its own internal investigation – found no spies or espionage. • McCarthy didn’t accept this answer, and took the investigation on TV. -> The televised Army-McCarthy Hearings (1954) showed McCarthy bullying witnesses -> These hearings made McCarthy LOSE support. • His opponent, army lawyer Joseph Welch said, “Have you no sense of decency?” This line was repeated in newspaper headlines. -> In 1954, the Senate passed a vote of censure (formaldisproval) against McCarthy. • McCarthy faded from public view, and died in 1957.

McCarthyism Homework Assignment: Read the article about “Life during the Cold War” Answer the questions.

In Class Mini Project Fallout Shelter Project • In-Class Mini Project – Fallout Shelter! • Make groups of 3 or 4. You and your group-mates are members of a government agency. • The USSR has fired nuclearweapons. However, there is an issue with one of the fallout shelters – there are 10 people, but only room for 6. • You and your group must decide which 6 people you will allow in the shelter. • You have 30 minutes, then a member of your group must present, and explain your group’s decision.

Eisenhower • By the end of 1952, many Americans thought that Truman’s foreign policy wasn’t working. • The Soviet Union had gotten the A-Bomb, and communism had spread through Eastern Europe and into Asia. Also, many blamed Truman for getting the U.S. involved in Korea – a war that ended in stalemate. • Truman decided not to run for President again. • Dwight D. Eisenhower (famed general of WWII) was elected President.

Eisenhower -> Eisenhower was popular because of his success during WWII. • People wanted a president who could fight communism in other countries, and Eisenhower fit the bill. -> Eisenhower believed that the key to winning the cold war was two-fold. • > Increase the military might of the USA • > Ensure a strong economy

Eisenhower • Eisenhower realized that a conventional war would cost too much money. -> He focused instead on developing nuclear technology. • Eisenhower said the nation, “must be prepared to use atomic weapons in all forms.” • The Korean War convinced many Americans that small battles would just lead to loss of life. -> Eisenhower developed a “New Look” in defense policy. • > If the USA threatened to use nuclear weapons, Communist countries would be too scared to seize territory by force. • > This policy became known as massive retaliation

Eisenhower • The massive retaliation policy meant Eisenhower could cut military spending. • > In his first term, Eisenhower cut the budget of the U.S. military from $50 billion to $34 billion. -> Eisenhower also increased America’s nuclear arsenal from 1,000 bombs (1953) to 18,000 (1961) • This increase in nuclear weapons meant the USA needed better ways to deliver them • > The B- 52 bomber was developed • Designed to fly across whole continents, and deliver nuclear bombs anywhere. • Eisenhower also began work on ICBMs – intercontinental ballistic missiles, as well as nuclear submarines.

Sputnik Crisis • The U.S. gov’t was stunned to discover that, while they were developing their nuclear arsenal, the USSR had already developed their own. -> October 4, 1957 – the Soviets launched Sputnik • > Sputnik was the first man-made satellite to orbit the earth. • It was a huge success for science, but it made the Americans nervous • The concern was – if the USSR could put a satellite in space, what else could they do? -> 1958: Congress creates the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). • > The goal of NASA was to develop rocket science, and space exploration.

Brinkmanship - > Not everyone approved of Eisenhower’s massive retaliation policy. -> Critics called it brinkmanship • > Brinkmanship – the willingness to go to the brink of war to force the other side to back down. • Many thought it was too dangerous. • However, Eisenhower threatened to use nuclear weapons several times to end international crises.

Brinkmanship in Action Brinkmanship • Korea • Korea: In order to end the conflict in Korea, Eisenhower threatened to use nuclear weapons. • Eisenhower told the Chinese (who were supporting North Korea) the USA would stay in the war “under circumstances of our own choosing.” • This was a threat that if the war didn’t come to an end, the USA would use nuclear weapons. • The threat seemed to work – in July 1953, negotiators signed an armistice – not a truce, but a cease fire. • That armistice is still in effect today.

The Cold War & The Space Race