The End of the Cold War Flashcards
All 24 cards in this deck
What is meant by 'détente'?
An easing or relaxing of tension between the superpowers, especially in the 1970s.
What was the Apollo–Soyuz mission of 1975?
A joint US–Soviet space mission in which US astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts linked up in space, showing increased cooperation under détente.
What was SALT 1 (1972)?
An arms-limitation treaty signed by Nixon and Brezhnev — the first time the superpowers agreed limits on the number of nuclear weapons they held.
What did the superpowers agree at the Helsinki Conference (1975)?
To accept the existing borders of countries in the Eastern bloc, to respect human rights such as freedom of speech and religion, and to promote links and exchanges.
True or false? SALT 2 was ratified by the USA.
False. Carter and Brezhnev signed SALT 2 in 1979, setting further limits on long-range nuclear missiles and bombers, but the US Senate never ratified it after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.
What happened in Afghanistan in 1979, and what was its effect on détente?
The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan; this ended détente, causing renewed East–West tension, the Carter Doctrine and the US failure to ratify SALT 2.
What was the Carter Doctrine (1980)?
A US statement that military force would be used to defend US interests in the Persian Gulf, taking a tougher line against the USSR after the invasion of Afghanistan.
True or false? Both superpowers boycotted Olympic Games in the 1980s.
True. The USA led a boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics, and the USSR led a boycott of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics by communist countries.
How did Reagan change US defence policy after becoming President in 1981?
He greatly increased defence spending, including new stealth bombers, Trident nuclear submarines and the development of the neutron bomb.
What was the Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI)?
Reagan's 'Star Wars' plan for a satellite-based system to destroy incoming Soviet missiles; the USSR could not afford to match such technology.
Give one way Gorbachev acted to reduce superpower tensions in the 1980s.
He announced reductions in Soviet defence spending, because the USSR could not keep up with the arms race (he also withdrew from Afghanistan and ended the Brezhnev Doctrine).
What was Gorbachev's 'new thinking' and its effect on Eastern Europe from 1985?
A new approach that sought to end confrontation with the West and cut spending, including on Soviet forces abroad; the USSR would no longer use force to keep control of Eastern Europe, and began withdrawing troops.
What did Gorbachev's rejection of the Brezhnev Doctrine in 1988 mean for Eastern Europe?
Warsaw Pact members could make changes in their own countries without expecting interference from Moscow.
Give one reform in Eastern Europe in 1989 that the USSR did not prevent.
The election of a non-communist government in Poland (Hungary also opened its border with Austria).
When and how did the Berlin Wall fall?
In November 1989, after large protests the East German government announced the opening of the Wall and thousands of Germans began attacking the Wall itself.
What happened to Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall?
Elections in March 1990 supported reunification, and the reunited FRG and GDR became a single Germany that was a member of NATO.
When was the Warsaw Pact dissolved, and what did this mean?
1991 — it ended military cooperation between members, leaving Eastern European states entirely independent, no longer directed by Moscow.
Give two reasons why the superpowers pursued détente in the early 1970s.
Any two of: the crises of the 1960s, above all Cuba, showed how close they had come to nuclear war; the arms race was hugely expensive; arms spending was hurting living standards, especially in the USSR and Eastern Europe.
Which weapons did SALT 1 (1972) limit?
Anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems, which each side could have only a small number of, and, for five years, intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).
How did the USSR's human rights record after the Helsinki Accords (1975) affect relations with the USA?
The USSR did not keep its promises on rights such as free speech and freedom to travel, and dissidents were persecuted. Western governments criticised this, and US distrust of the USSR grew.
Why did the USSR invade Afghanistan in December 1979?
To prop up Afghanistan's communist government, a Soviet ally on its southern border, which was losing a civil war against Muslim rebels. The USSR used the Brezhnev Doctrine to justify the invasion.
How did Reagan's approach to the USSR change after Gorbachev came to power in 1985?
Reagan judged Gorbachev to be a new kind of Soviet leader and moved from confrontation to negotiation. They met at Geneva in 1985, got on well, and held several further summits.
What happened in the attempted coup in the USSR in August 1991?
Hardline communists, fearing Gorbachev's reforms would break up the USSR, held him under arrest and sent tanks into Moscow. Boris Yeltsin led mass public resistance and the coup collapsed within days, weakening Gorbachev and the Communist Party further.
When was the Soviet Union dissolved?
In December 1991. Gorbachev resigned on 25 December and the USSR formally ceased to exist the next day; its 15 republics, the largest being Russia, became independent states.