The Cold W ar

1. The Cold War

3. Germany & Japan Transformed • Both Germany and Japan had been physically and socially devastated by World War II. • The victorious Allied powers occupied the two countries, establishing democratic governments. • Germany was deeply shaken by the experience of the Holocaust. • Today, Germany’s relationship with the nation of Israel is very friendly-both share strong diplomatic, economic, and cultural ties. • There has also been an attempt to compensate financially some of the victims of the Holocaust.

4. The Beginning of the Cold War: Germany 1948-1949 The Cold War

5. At the end of WWII, Germany was divided into four zones of occupation controlled by England, France, the Soviet Union, and the United States. • Berlin, the German capital, was located in the Russian sector and also divided into four sectors, each occupied by one of the four Allies.

10. Disagreements during this period of occupation marked the beginning of the Cold War. • TheCold War was a period of tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. • This tension would ultimately last from the end of World War II to 1990. VS

12. WRONG COLD! • This tension between the Soviet Union and the United States was a result of differences in political and economic thinking. • In particular, the democratic, capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union. • It was a “cold” war because armed battle between the superpowers did not occur.

13. The western powers feared the spread of communism. • Stalin had forced pro-communist governments in Poland, Czechoslovakia, and elsewhere. • When Stalin began to put pressure on Greece and Turkey, the United States took action.

14. Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” Speech The Cold War

15. In his 1946 speech at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, Prime Minister Winston Churchill of Great Britain cautioned the world about the threat of communist expansion. • Churchill’s phrase “Iron Curtain” was in reference to the recognizable division between the free Western Europe and the communist Eastern Europe.

16. The Truman Doctrine The Cold War

17. In March of 1947, United States President Harry S. Truman established a policy known as the Truman Doctrine. • This was an economic and military program designed to strengthen democratic governments and lesson the appeal of communism.

18. It was based on the theory of containment, which involved limiting communism to areas already under Soviet control. • The United States pledged to resist Soviet expansion anywhere in the world. • Truman sent military and economic aid to Greece and Turkey so that they could resist the threat of communism.

19. The Marshall Plan The Cold War

20. The Marshall Plan, also proposed in 1947, was a massive economic aid package designed to strengthen democratic governments and lesson the appeal of communism. • Billions of American dollars helped Western European countries recover from World War II.

21. Although the United States also offered this aid to Eastern Europe, Stalin forbade these countries to accept it.

22. The Berlin Airlift The Cold War

23. The division of Germany into four zones after World War II was supposed to be temporary. • Soon Britain, France, and the United States had combined their democratically ruled zones. • Tension grew between democratic western Germany and Soviet-controlled eastern Germany.

24. Germany became a major focus of Cold War tension. • The Allies were trying to rebuild the German economy, but Stalin (Soviet Union) feared a strong, united Germany.

25. Berlin, the divided capital, was located entirely in East Germany.

26. In 1948, Stalin hoped to force the Allies out of Berlinby closing all land routes for bringing essential supplies (food, medicine, etc.) to West Berlin. • In response to the crisis, the western powers mounted a successful airlift.

27. For almost a year, food and supplies were flown into West Berlin. • Finally, the Soviets ended the blockade.

28. A Divided Germany The Cold War

30. This incident, however, led to the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) in 1949. • Germany, like the rest of Europe, remained divided.

31. In 1961, the East German government built a wall that separated East Berlin from West Berlin; known as the Berlin Wall. • East German soldiers shot anyone who tried to escape from East Germany.

32. Berlin Wall Diagram

36. Economic Recovery & Cooperation in Europe

37. With aid from the Marshall Plan, Western European countries recovered quickly from World War II. • The countries promoted their own prosperity through cooperation. • The Common Market-In 1957, France, West Germany, Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, and Luxemburg formed the European Community (EC) or Common Market to expand free trade. • European Union-The EC expanded further and became the European Union (EU) with 25 member states by 2004, introducing the new currency, the euro.

38. Japan becomes an Economic Superpower

39. As the Cold War intensified Japan rebounded rapidly from the economic devastation that followed World War II. • Japan sent many manufactured items to other countries, building a favorable balance of trade. • A country that has a favorable balance of trade-exports more goods than it imports. • As Japanese industry prospered, the nation engaged in increased trade with the United States.

40. Why do I need to know this? Because…

41. The Great Wall of the United States?

42. A once-radical idea to build a 2,000-mile steel-and-wire fence on the U.S.-Mexican border is gaining momentum amid warnings that terrorists can easily sneak into the country.

44. Fencing the border was originally proposed as an effort to stem the flow of illegal migrants and drug runners. • Currently, the fence proposal is meeting extensive opposition within Congress and by environmentalists and human-rights activists.

45. How Would This Affect You Directly?

46. Aside from having our own “Great Wall” it is estimated that this proposal would end up costing U.S. taxpayers between $8 to $12 billion.

47. Opposing Military Alliances The Cold War

48. North Atlantic Treaty Organization, NATO • After the Berlin airlift and the division of West Germany from East Germany, Western European countries formed a military alliance. • This alliance was called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO.

49. Members of NATO pledged to support each other if any member nation was ever attacked.

50. The Warsaw Pact • In 1955, the Soviet Union formed the Warsaw Pact. • It included the Soviet Union and seven of its satellites (Soviet controlled countries) in Eastern Europe. • This was also a defensive alliance, promising mutual military cooperation.