What was the impact of the "fall" of China?
Containment had failed despite American aid to Chiang and his KMT
The US decided to give up on the Asian continent and let USSR take over
The entire Asian containment was not potentially vulnerable to the communist menace
It potentially allowed the US to negotiate from position of strength, and served to offset Soviet superiority in conventional forces in Europe
What happened during the Era of McCarthyism?
THe people hailed McCarthy as the next President and supported his efforts to eradicate all the communists int he world
The US was in a mess as McCarthy pointed out all the communists in the US government and decided to work with them to overthrow Truman
There was a climate of certainty as McCarthy pointed out all the communists and after the communists were purged from government, people were more reassured
There was a climate of uncertainty as McCarthy accused the Democrats of not being firm enough in containing communism and alleged that there were actually communists in the US State Depeartment
What was the significance of NSC-68?
A response to America's loss of its atomic monopoly as well as the communist takeover in China
Continuity: Reaffirming the objectives of containment
It brought about a change in US mindset as they decided to shift from containment to eradicating the USSR
Change: a departure from previous strategies and shift towards military buildup
Emergence as the controversial blueprint of global containment
How did decolonization set the stage for the Cold War to expand beyond Europe?
Because of decolonization, the countries decided not to follow communism or democracy and formed their own non-aligned movement
Decolonization set the stage for the expansion of the Cold War by introducing new venues for nuclear warfare to be conducted
Conflict in Europe had stalemated, and it was evidently dangerous for competition to take place in a region where superpower forces were in close proximity
The contest of ideas/value systems as well as quest for dominance could thus be conveniently carried out in other regions where proxy wars could be means of indirect competition
What were the initial roots of the Korean War?
The initial roots of the war lay in the superpower conflict as the US and USSR simply used Korea as a proxy to further their own agendas
The Korean War was initially a regional conflict between China and the US and the USSR simply interfered in this conflict
The Korean War was initially a regional conflict between China and the USSR
The initial stages of the conflict can be explained bu the clash of opposing nationalist visions and this was evident in the violence existing before the superpowers entered the scene
The full outbreak of the Korean War can be explained by external intervention:
Stalin sent troops to invade Korea when war broke out
Stalin's abetting of the North Korean invasion
US sent over their nuclear weapons to aid South Korea in their fight for independence
America's military intervention through the leadership of a UN coalition
China's disgust at the extent of North Korean losses and eventual intervention
What were Kim Il Sung's aims?
Kim was a nationalist who wanted to unify the Korean peninsula under communist rule
Kim wanted USSR to take over Korea and turn unified Korea into a satellite state in Asia
Kim wanted China to offer protection and aid to Korea when the US invaded Korea
Kim wanted reunification of the Korean peninsula and to rule Korea together with Syngman Rhee
Why did Stalin change his mind in agreeing to Kim's invasion in 1950?
A more favourable international environment was in place by 1950 with the communist victory in China
Stalin changed his mind because he wanted a war with the US and Korea was the perfect opportunity
The Soviets had achieved nuclear parity with the US
Dean Acheson's Defence Perimeter Speech excluded territories on mainland Asia, this meant that South Korea was not included
Stalin saw that the US was determined to fight to the end for Korea and decided to take the change to eliminate its enemy
On 25 June 1950,
5000 North Korean soldiers, battle-hardened by their experience in the Chinese civil war & spearheaded by 50 T-34 tanks, smashed through South Korea's border defenses
90,000 North Korean soldiers, battle-hardened by their experience in the Chinese civil war & spearheaded by 150 T-34 tanks, smashed through South Korea's border defenses
150,000 North Korean soldiers, battle-hardened by their experience in the Chinese civil war & spearheaded by 500 T-34 tanks, smashed through South Korea's border defenses
90,000 North Korean soldiers, battle-hardened by their experience in the Vietnam war & spearheaded by 500 T-34 tanks, smashed through South Korea's border defenses
How did Truman use the domino theory to justify American intervention?
"If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one piece of Africa after another. If we were to let Korea go, the Third World would collapse and there's no telling what would happen in Europe."
"If we let Korea down, the Soviets will stop after they have Asia. If we were to let Asia go, the USSR would be satisfied but there's no telling what would happen in Europe."
"If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one piece of Asia after another. If we were to let Korea go, the Near East would collapse and there's no telling what would happen in Europe."
"If we let Korea down, the Soviets will keep right on going and swallow up one piece of Asia after another. If we were to let Korea go, Asia would be peaceful but there's no telling what would happen in Europe."
Why did the USSR not veto the 27 June 1950 UNSC resolution calling for military action against North Korea?
USSR was boycotting meetings of the Security Council to protest against American refusal to accept newly communist China as a permanent member of the Council
USSR was boycotting meetings of the Security Council to protest against American refusal to accept newly communist North Korea as a permanent member of the Council
USSR was boycotting meetings of the Security Council to protest against American refusal to accept newly communist Africa as a permanent member of the Council
USSR was boycotting meetings of the Security Council to protest against American refusal to accept newly communist Germany as a permanent member of the Council
Why were the Chinese willing to intervene on the side of the Koreans?
The Chinese felt that they could pressure USSR to send troops to Korea
Chinese national security was threatened
The Chinese were also concerned that Chiang and the KMT might launch a counter-revolution within China with the support of the US forces in Korea
Mao saw this as an opportunity to invade Korea and take control over the peninsula
Mao saw this intervention as his responsibility to promote international revolution
What consequences did the Korean War bring for development of the Cold War?
Implementation of NSC-68 - militarisation of containment
Strengthening regional alliances
It led to the Cuban missile Crisis
Strengthening key bastions of containment
Globalisation of containment: Renewed focus on Asia
Why did the CIA launch the By of Pigs invasion instead of just invading Cuba?
US did not have enough troops to send to Cuba as they already sent too many to Korea/Vietnam
This was to be done without direct US involvement as the US could not be seen to be intervening in the domestic sovereignty of an independent state
US did not have enough money to carry out a war in Cuba
The CIA operatives should be enough to squash a puny bug like Castro
What was the objective of Operation Mongoose?
To ally with Castro secretly and turn the tables on the USSR
The ending of the conflict by signing a pact with Castro to make him promise not to be friendly with Khrushchev anymore
To scare Castro so that he would quietly return under the control of the US
The destabilisation of Castro's communist regime by a programme of covert action, economic and diplomatic isolation, and military pressure
By late 1962, the USSR had already:
Placed 42, 000 Russian troops on Cuba, equipped with short-range tactical nuclear weapons
Placed 100.000 Russian troops on Cuban soil and was all ready to invade the US
Placed 1000,000 ballistic missiles on Cuba and was ready to launch them
Placed 42,000 tanks on Cuba and was ready to fight their way to the US
Why did Khrushchev place MRBMs and IRBMs on Cuba?
He was desperate after the Berlin Crisis of 1961 which was widely perceived as an indicator of Soviet weakness
Khrushchev wanted to eliminate the US and start nuclear war
USSR's inability to match the US in strategic nuclear arsenals meant that he had to find a way to gain an advantage
The Chinese were increasingly harping on alleged Soviet weakness and hardliners in USSR were constantly pressing Khrushchev to stand up to the US in a more aggressive manner
On 22 October, Kennedy went on national teleision to explain the American position on the CMC in public:
He told them that everything was fine and they had nothing to worry about
He ordered a strict quarantine of Cuban waters, since technically a naval blockade was a declaration of war
He warned China not to interfere with the Cuban Missile Crisis
He warned Khrushchev that the US would regard any nuclear missile launched on Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack by the Soviets on the US
He demanded the removal of Soviet offensive weapons from Cuba
What was the difference between Khrushchev's first and second telegram?
The first telegram was more polite and friendly
The second telegram wanted the US to withdraw American Jupiter missiles from Turkey and give them to the USSR
The second telegram wanted the US not only to agree to a non-invasion pledge , but also to remove tAmerican Jupiter missiles from Greece
The second telegram wanted the US not only to agree to a non-invasion pledge , but also to remove tAmerican Jupiter missiles from Turkey
Did the CMC massively escalate the strategic nuclear threat to the US?
Yes, Soviet actions of placing nuclear warheads 90 miles off the coast of Florida escalated the strategic nuclear threat to the US
Yes, Soviet nuclear warheads had never been within striking range before the CMC
No, the Soviets already possessed more nuclear missiles than the US and this incident did not significantly alter or add to the existing Soviet nuclear threat
No, the Soviets already possessed missiles of striking range even before placing missiles in Cuba and did not significantly alter or add to the existing Soviet nuclear threat
