The Cold War Heats Up

 

Thaw & Freeze

 

In 1953 Nikita _________________ became the new dictator of the USSR after Stalin’s death, and shocked the people when he publicly called Stalin a ______. 

 

Khrushchev’s __________________ program eased censorship and in 1959 US Vice-President Richard Nixon toured the USSR and engaged in the “________ Debates” with Khrushchev.  This thaw ended when a US ____ spy plane was shot down over the USSR in 1960, and with the building of the Berlin Wall in 1961.

 

Cuban Missile Crisis

In 1959 _________________ overthrew the oppressive Cuban government and made Cuba a communist dictatorship.  Castro became allies with the Soviet Union, and friends with Khrushchev. 

 

Seeking to overthrow Castro, President Kennedy funded a secret invasion of Cuban exiles at the ___________________ in 1961.  Castro repelled the disorganized invasion, so the US imposed a trade _______________ on Cuba. 

 

In retaliation Castro allowed the USSR to build nuclear missile bases in Cuba, just 90 miles from Florida.  Kennedy responded with a naval _______________ of Cuba and demanded Khrushchev remove the missiles.

 

On the brink of nuclear war, Khrushchev backed down and removed the missiles, but he won a secret pledge from Kennedy not to ______________ Cuba, and also to _____________ US missiles from Turkey.

 

Soviet Oppression

 

Hungary

In 1956 Hungarian nationalists ______________ against Soviet rule.  The Hungarians ended one-party rule, withdrew from the Warsaw Pact, and repelled Soviet troops.  In response, Khrushchev sent troops and _________ to crush the revolt, killing thousands.

Czechoslovakia

In the spring of 1968 the Czechoslovakian government called for __________ and less Soviet control.  In response the USSR sent thousands of troops to occupy Prague, overturn the government, and restore a communist ___________________.  

 

US Proxy Wars

 

Due to the belief in the _____________ theory the US engaged in __________ wars in Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan during the Cold War.

 

 

Domino Theory – if one country falls to communism its neighbors will soon follow, eventually reaching the US.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proxy War – when two powers use a third party as a substitute for fighting each other directly.

 

The Korean War

After defeating Japan in WWII the US and the USSR ______________ Korea into a communist North and a capitalist South.  In 1950 the North invaded the South seeking to spread communism.

 

The ____ pledged to defend South Korea and sent ground, air, and naval forces.  After narrowly avoiding defeat, _______________ forces repelled the North.

 

To help the North Koreans the Communist ________________ intervened and inflicted heavy losses on UN forces, driving them back out of North Korea.  A stalemate led to peace talks, and by 1953 an ______________ was signed that divided the Koreas again.

 

The Vietnam War

The _____________ colony of Vietnam was taken by Japan during WWII.  After the war the French hoped to regain the colony but faced stiff resistance from communist leader ___________________ and his Viet Cong guerilla fighters.

The Viet Cong finally defeated the French in 1954 at the battle of __________ ___________.  The peace settlement split Vietnam into a communist North and a capitalist South.  Civil war soon broke out, so the ____ joined forces with South Vietnam to stop the spread of communism.   

 

By 1969 a half ____________ US troops were serving in Vietnam, but even with this help the South Vietnamese could not defeat the tough Vietcong, who received aid and supplies from the ______ and Communist _______.

 

Growing ____________ sentiment in the US forced President Nixon to withdraw American forces.  With the US gone, in 1975 _____________, the capital of South Vietnam, fell to the North Vietnamese communists, who soon reunited the country under their total control.

 

Easing Tensions

 

A terrible Soviet _______________ forced Khrushchev to step down in 1964, and Leonid ______________ took control.  Seeking to improve living conditions within the USSR, Brezhnev cut military spending and began a policy of ___________ with the US that lasted until 1979.

 

Détente – period in the 1970s during which there was an easing of tensions between the US and the USSR.

 

With détente President Nixon and Brezhnev promoted cultural exchange, __________, and signed the ___________ (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty) agreement in 1972, which slowed the arms race by limiting the number of nuclear weapons each superpower possessed.