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Chapter 26 Origins of the Cold War

Terms in this set (39)

Cold war
A conflict that was between the US and the Soviet Union. The nations never directly confronted eachother on the battlefield but deadly threats went on for years.
United Nations
an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security
Satellite Nation
nation that is dominated politically and economically by a more powerful nation
Containment
American policy of resisting further expansion of communism around the world
Iron Curtain
a political barrier that isolated the peoples of Eatern Europe after WWII, restricting their ability to travel outside the region
Chiang Kai-Shek
General and leader of Nationalist China after 1925. Although he succeeded Sun Yat-sen as head of the Guomindang, he became a military dictator whose major goal was to crush the communist movement led by Mao Zedong. (p. 788)
38th Parallel
line of latitude that separated North and South Korea
HUAC
The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC) was an investigating committee which investigated what it considered un-American propaganda
Blacklist
list that circulated among employers, beginning in 1947, containing the names of persons who should not be hired (So called communists)
McCarthyism
unscrupulously accusing people of disloyalty (as by saying they were Communists)
H-Bomb
hydrogen bomb invented in 1950's, MORE powerful than atomic bomb, example of Cold War arms race
Brinksmanship
The principle of not backing down in a crisis, even if it meant taking the country to the brink of war. Policy of both the U.S. and U.S.S.R. during the Cold War.
Eisenhower Doctrine
Policy of the US that it would defend the Middle East against attack by any Communist country
Nikita Khrushchev
Stalin's successor, wanted peaceful coexistence with the U.S. Eisenhower agreed to a summit conference with Khrushchev, France and Great Britain in Geneva, Switzerland in July, 1955 to discuss how peaceful coexistence could be achieved.
Francis Gary powers
American pilot shot down in his U-2 spy plane, captured and convicted of spying
U-2 Incident
The incident when an American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. The U.S. denied the true purpose of the plane at first, but was forced to when the U.S.S.R. produced the living pilot and the largely intact plane to validate their claim of being spied on aerially. The incident worsened East-West relations during the Cold War and was a great embarrassment for the United States.
United Nations (UN)
Organization of independent countries formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security, and prevent a future world war. Had its own military force.
Marshall Plan
U.S. program of economic aid for the reconstruction of Europe (1948-1952) initiated by SecState George Marshall.
NATO
North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an alliance made to defend one another if they were attacked by any other country; US, England, France, Canada, Western European countries
Warsaw Pact
Treaty signed in 1945 that formed an alliance of the Eastern European countries behind the Iron Curtain; USSR, Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania
Berlin Airlift
U.S. Airlift in 1948 that supplied food and fuel to citizens of West Berlin when the Soviets closed off land access to Berlin
Truman Doctrine
President Truman's policy of providing economic and military aid to any country threatened by communism.
Korean war
The conflict between Communist North Korea and Non-Communist South Korea which ended in a stalemate. The United Nations (led by the United States) helped South Korea.
Hollywood 10
Ten movie writers, directors, etc. that were accused of being a spies for the communists but refused to testify and were sent to prison
McCarran Act
Required all communist organizations to register with the government and to provide lists of members
Alger Hiss
Accused by a former Communist spy, Whittaker Chambers, of spying for the Soviet Union.
Ethel and Julius Rosenburg
Gave the Soviet Union important information on a top secret atomic bomb being built in the U.S.
Joseph McCarthy
United States politician who unscrupulously accused many citizens of being Communists (1908-1957)
Dwight D. Eisenhower
President during Cold War elected in 1952. Agreed with the strategy of "Massive Retaliation".
Brinksmanship
The principle of not backing down in a crisis, even if it meant taking the country to the brink of war. Policy of both the U.S. and U.S.S.R. during the Cold War.
CIA
an independent agency of the United States government responsible for collecting and coordinating intelligence and counterintelligence activities abroad in the national interest
Yalta conference
meeting in 1945 in Soviet Union with Churchill, FDR, and Stalin, planning the final stages of WW2 and agreed on the territorial division of Europe
Big Three
Winston Churchill, FDR, and Stalin
Mao Zedong
Communist leader of China who took control in 1949.
Fair Deal
Truman's domestic reforms aimed at solving America's economic problems.
Taft-Hartley Act
Law that limited the actions workers could take against employers. Banned the "closed shop."
Douglas McArthur
American General and leader of UN forces during the Korean War.
Stalemate
A situation in war when neither side gains an advantage.
Arms Race
Competition for military superiority between U.S. and Soviet Union.
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