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SECTION THREE: The Global War, 1955-1963 - Coggle Diagram

- - - - 24th October 1956, Nagy was appointed prime minister.
        
        He met with Soviet delegation to convince them that USSR military intervention was not necessary.
        
        Nagy argued that the revolt could be calmed, and assured Moscow of Hungary’s loyalty.
      - 28th October – Khrushchev agreed to withdraw Soviet forces from Budapest.
        -During the next 2 days the USSR appeared to take a conciliatory stance. Red army forces began to withdraw from Budapest and declared they would withdraw from Hungary as a whole. This was partly due to pressure from China.
      - Was clear that the USSR didn't want to engage in further military action in Hungary, but there was no question that the communist regime in Hungary would be allowed to be fundamentally undermined or that the integrity of the Soviet Bloc in Eastern Europe would be compromised by these events.
      - Communism would not be replaced by capitalism. On 31 OCT, Moscow reversed its decision.
    - - USSR shifted its position because it feared the collapse of communism in Hungary, the introduction of a multi-party political system, the dissolution of the secret police and unacceptable moves towards freedom of the press.
      - 1 NOV, Nagy announced that Hungary had withdrawn from the Warsaw pact.
      - Rising was crushed within a few days. New gov led by Kazar was installed. Normality had resumed in Eastern Europe.
      - 4,000 Hungarian citizens dead and 200,000 exiled.
      - Political impact was limited.
      - Rising DID show that there was a need for social and political reform in E. Europe, and this reality was not entirely lost on either the USSR or national communist movements across the region.
    - - 22nd OCT: students in Budapest demonstrated and listed 16 demands. This included the appointment of Imre Nagy as prime minister, the withdrawal of troops from Hungary, freedom of speech + a free press and multi-part elections.
      - By the next day, the situation had escalated into an armed revolts the demonstrations were fired on by the Hungarian secret police. Events moved quickly as workers groups joined the students and seized power from communist local authorities.
  - - - Poznań Riots, (June 1956), uprising of Polish industrial workers that caused a crisis among the Polish communist leadership as well as in the Soviet bloc and resulted in the establishment of a new Polish regime headed by Władysław Gomułka.
    - - Many Poles supported Gomulka as they believed he had preserved a Polish path to socialism rather than the Soviet version
        
        Gomulka skilfully balanced the need for Polish security with the presence of Soviet troops in Poland, in order to placate Moscow. The USSR would protect Poland from any revanchism (French word for revenge – based on idea that those in W. Germany may wish to restore lost territories and threaten Polish security) from West Germany
        
        The Polish Rising showed that Moscow would allow its satellites a measure of national independence if led by trusted men
        
        Khrushchev’s instinct had been to use force but he did not, primarily because of China’s opposition = example of the increasing role in international communism played by China.
    - - The Polish communist leader, Boleslaw Beirut, died unexpectedly in 1956. Khrushchev nominated his successor, Edward Ochab, to implement de-Stalinization in Poland.
      - After the Secret Speech, many Poles demanded more political freedom and national sovereignty. On 28 June 1956, workers were on strike in protest at wage cuts and poor working conditions. This led to an anti-communist armed uprising.
      - In October, the once discredited Wladyslaw Gomulka was elected as First Secretary of the Polish United Workers’ Party (Polish Communist Party).
      - Khrushchev met Gomulka and threatened military intervention if he refused to cooperate. The stand-off was resolved when Khrushchev agreed that Gomulka could be appointed First Secretary if he agreed not to carry out reforms that might threaten communist rule. Poland would remain in the Warsaw Pact. Force was not used, primarily, because of the support shown from Beijing towards the Polish Communist Party.
  - - - Soviet policy towards Austria was closely linked to the policy towards Germany. Austria had been divided into occupation zones and the USSR had ensured their zone forwarded economic aid. Potentially Austria was as dangerous an issue as Germany.
        
        By May 1955 the four occupying powers had reached agreement in the Austrian State Treaty which led to:
        1)The withdrawal of all occupying powers.
        2)The declaration that Austria would be a neutral state (same as Finland & Yugoslavia)
      - *Consequences of the Treaty:
        1) Removed a major source of potential conflict
        2)Showed a serious intent towards mutual cooperation
        3)Eased the path towards further cooperation
        4)The western Powers removed their forces from West Germany
        5)This was the essence of peaceful coexistence.
  - - - The next significant step in peaceful coexistence was to resume summit diplomacy ( high level international meetings of leaders).
        
        Khrushchev was also a pragmatist accepted the need to be flexible he had real incentive to slow down the arms race :
        1) Russia needed extensive conventional forces to control and keep secure the Eastern Bloc states
        2)He needed to promote internal economic development in USSR
        3) In May 1955 the FRG was admitted to NATO, and rearmament began. To reassure the French against any resurgence of German militarism the USA agreed to keep a large and permanent force in Europe. This concerned Khrushchev and increased the urgency of organising a summit.
        
        No satisfactory outcome was reached for the two major issues discussed:
        
        Eisenhower’s ‘Open Skies’ proposal. - This was Eisenhower’s attempt to end the deadlock over the issue of the superpowers inspecting each other’s nuclear arsenals, and so taking a step towards disarmament . He called for each side to provide details of military installations and allow aerial reconnaissance. REJECTED by Khrushchev.
        
        The future of Germany - Eisenhower proposed a reunified Germany, free elections and Germany’s freedom to ensure its own security ( effectively meant it would become part of NATO). Khrushchev would only contemplate reunification if a future Germany was demilitarised and neutral. He also refused to discuss the future of the Eastern Bloc states.
        
        The summit agreed on the principle of free elections, but no procedures were set up to make this become a reality.
        
        The summit’s value lay not in its practical outcomes but in the fact it appeared to mark the beginning of a dialogue between the superpowers.
        
        It suggested the foundations of peaceful coexistence were firmly in place.
        
        BUT following the summit the crises in POLAND and HUNGARY placed peaceful coexistence under huge strain.
    - - Khrushchev faced opposition from China and many in the Soviet hierarchy. He wanted:
        
        a deal over Berlin
        
        a ban of nuclear weapons in Germany
        
        to prohibit nuclear weapons in the Pacific.
        -But China objected and said it would not be bound by any agreement it had not been involved in. Also China’s nuclear arsenal was close to completion by 1960.
      - Summit collapsed due to U2 spy plane incident: 1 May 1960.
      - After the crash of the U2 spy plane on May 1 1960, Russian leader Nikita Khrushchev lashes out at the United States and President Dwight D. Eisenhower at a Paris summit meeting between the two heads of state.
        
        Krushchev’s outburst angered Eisenhower and ruined any chances of successful talks or negotiations at the summit.
        
        May 1 1960, U2 spy plane incident. US issued public denials that the aircraft was being used for espionage, and claimed instead that it was a weather plane. he incident was a public relations fiasco for Eisenhower, who was forced to admit that the plane had indeed been spying on Russia.
        
        Tensions from this incident between Krushchev and Eisenhower were still high at the Paris Summit meeting on May 16. Krushchev then declared that Eisenhower would not be welcome into Russia during his scheduled visit to the Soviet Union in June. He condemned the “inadmissible, provocative actions” of the United States and demanded that Eisenhower ban future flights and punish those responsible for this “deliberate violation of the Soviet Union.” When Eisenhower agreed only to a “suspension” of the spy plane flights, Khrushchev left the meeting in a huff. According to U.S. officials, the president was “furious” at Khrushchev for his public dressing-down of the United States.
        
        Then there were no further meetings between the two. Eisenhower’s planned trip to Moscow in June was scrapped.
        
        The collapse of the May 1960 summit meeting was a crushing blow to those in the Soviet Union and the United States who believed that a period of “peaceful coexistence” between the two superpowers was on the horizon. During the previous few years, both Eisenhower and Khrushchev had publicly indicated their desire for an easing of Cold War tensions, but the spy plane incident put an end to such talk, at least for a while.
- - - - According to this doctrine, the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) had exclusive right to represent the entire German nation. Except for the Soviet Union, the FRG government refused to maintain diplomatic relations with states that recognized the German Democratic Republic (East Germany).
        
        The FRG would regard the recognition of the GDR, by any state other than the USSR, as an unfriendly act and would therefore end diplomatic relations with such states.
      - Why might this doctrine be problematic in terms of the Berlin Crisis?
        
        the GDR became increasingly concerned at the numbers of skilled young workers leaving. They can't communicate their concerns or engage with the west to resolve this issue.
        
        Therefore, the GDR and gonna have to turn to the USSR to resolve this issue. USSR will resolve but they have to talk to the USA to try to resolve this.
  - - - After Stalin's death, Soviet foreign policy was somewhat contradictory.
        -On one side was summit diplomacy and peaceful coexistence.
        -On the other side was support for revolutionary regimes, the launch of Sputnik and stockpiling of weapons.
        
        Part of the reason for this was Mao Zedong's challenge to Khrushchev's claim on leadership of the communist world.
      - US foreign policy was also contradictory: -On one side Eisenhower criticised the 'military industrial complex'.
        -On the other side, he supported the development of new weapons and more of them. Kennedy continued this.
      - Arms race timeline: 1948, The USA created the Strategic Air Command headed by General Curtis LeMay (organisation set up to serve as a primary defence system for USA in response to an external nuclear threat) -> March 1954, US tested a lithium-based H-bomb (1500 times more powerful than Hiroshima) ->Sept 1954, USSR had similar technology -> by 1955, the USSR had tested an airborne H-bomb 100 times more powerful than their first attempts -> By 1957, the USSR was able to develop missile delivery systems for nuclear warheads -> Nov. 1957 Eisenhower commissioned the GAITHER REPORT to investigate the state of US-Soviet nuclear capacity. The popular view was that the USSR was catching up the USA. (referred to USA as becoming a 2nd class power) Eisenhower’s purpose was to calm popular fears by showing US superiority – BUT the Gaither Report said something else!-> Summer 1957 the USSR tests the first ICBM(inter-continental ballistic missile) Also, Missile gap= difference in numbers of missiles on opposing sides. -> Oct. 1957: USSR puts first satellite into orbit ->1959: the next generation of nuclear missile systems was developed including the SLBM Polaris, the Thor and the Minuteman (ICBM) systems. The USSR updated its systems with the SS-7 system.
      - U2 incident: 1st May 1960: - The soviet union brought down a spy plane which US pilot Gary Powers in it. - despite the gaither report, the data from the U2 flights confirmed that Khrushchev was exaggerating soviet nuclear capacity. The missile gap was very much in the USA's favour. - After the first report, Khrushchev purposefully did not say that Powers was alive so that he could catch Eisenhower out. However, later the USSR put powers on TV. - The USA weather excuse now looked bad and they had to admit to spying. - Khrushchev walked out of the Paris peace summit after USA's confession.
        
        Effects of the U2 incident
        
        The Paris meeting collapsed and there was no Test Ban Treaty.
        
        There was no discussion about the problem of Berlin which, ultimately, led to the Berlin Wall.
- - - - -Embarassing for JFK. Made him seem even more weak to the USSR. - April 17, 1961, 1,400 Cuban exiles launched what became a botched invasion at the Bay of Pigs on the south coast of Cuba. In 1959, Fidel Castro came to power in an armed revolt that overthrew Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista.
        
        The invasion was financed and directed by the U.S. government.
        
        The invasion is considered part of the Cold War because the United States was trying to prevent communism from taking hold in the Americas. Fidel Castro helped to lead the Cuban Revolution in overthrowing the existing government of Cuba in 1959. He was an ardent communist and was allied with the Soviet Union.
        
        Due to Americas power and military strength it should have been a W for USA.