Increased tension between East and West Flashcards

All 8 cards in this deck

What was Khrushchev's Berlin ultimatum (1958)?

A demand that the West withdraw its troops from Berlin within six months, accusing the West of breaking the Potsdam agreements.

True or false? The summit meetings of 1959–61 solved the 'Berlin problem'.

False. The final summit, at Vienna in 1961, ended without agreement — Khrushchev restated the 1958 Berlin ultimatum to Kennedy.

How did the Cuban Revolution change Cuba's relations with the USA and the USSR?

The USA refused to recognise Castro's government and stopped imports of Cuban sugar after he took over US businesses; Castro turned to the USSR, which sent economic aid, military equipment and technical advisors.

What was the Bay of Pigs incident (April 1961)?

A failed invasion of Cuba by US-backed Cuban exiles trying to overthrow Castro. Its failure humiliated the USA and pushed Cuba and the USSR closer together.

What was the Prague Spring (1968)?

Dubček's reforms in Czechoslovakia that loosened communist control; they encouraged further opposition, such as the forming of the Social Democrat party demanding even more reform.

What was significant about Khrushchev's visit to the USA in 1959?

He was the first Soviet leader to visit the USA. At talks with Eisenhower at Camp David he dropped the deadline of his Berlin ultimatum, and they agreed to discuss Berlin further at a summit in Paris in 1960.

Why did the Paris Summit (May 1960) collapse?

Shortly before it, the USSR shot down an American U-2 spy plane and captured its pilot. Eisenhower refused to apologise, so Khrushchev walked out and no agreement on Berlin was reached.

Give two of Dubček's reforms in Czechoslovakia in 1968.

Any two of: relaxed censorship and freer speech; freedom to travel to the West; less central control of the economy; more power for trade unions. Dubček still promised Czechoslovakia would stay in the Warsaw Pact.