The Cold War and the Fall of the Soviet Union - Essay Example

QUESTION 6 End of cold war Michael, the army general of the Soviet Union, reduced tension in 1985. In this, he aimed to harmonize the communist administrations and enable people to converse honestly. The era also marked the beginning of the fall of the Soviet Union. Therefore, Michael began to withdraw Soviet troops from nations that empowered people to maneuver the system enabling its collapse within two years. The developments enabled the unity of East and West Germany to form one nation. In 1991, the Russian state also declared itself a country thus ending the war. Several factors facilitated the ceasefire. Notably, the need for sovereignty and the existence of a nation emerged as the prominent reasons. The collapse of the military system also enabled the rise to peace. The representatives from the eleven Soviet republics including Ukraine, Belarus, the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan and others met in the Kazakh city. They made resolutions to terminate their membership in the Soviet Union. Instead, the countries agreed to form a commonwealth of independent states like the Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia Baltic republics that declared their disinterest from the USSR. Implementation of the numerous reforms by the Soviet leader Gorbachev during his rule also facilitated the fall of Soviet Union. He later expressed dissatisfaction in the dissolution of his nation making him leave the job on 25 December. (Maxwell, 2014) QUESTION 7 The Cold War occurred in three categories namely the West, East, and Non-aligned groups. The United States commanded the West. It comprised of countries with democratic political systems. Likewise, the Soviet Union led the East comprising of countries with communist political organizations. The non-aligned group never sided with either the East or West. Meanwhile, Harry Truman was the first American leader to fight the Cold War. He applied various policies including the Truman Doctrine. In this, he authorized a plan to provide money and military support to countries threatened by communism. The success of the system evidenced when it helped stop the communists from taking control of Turkey and Greece (Paul, 2013).The Marshall Plan policy also helped to avert the challenges of communists. It supported the governments and economies of Western Europe countries thus limiting the success of communism. “The Berlin Airlift was a remarkable event in the Cold War. After World War Two, the United States and its Allies divided Germany making Berlin a part of communist East Germany. Berlin city was further divided into east and west. In June 1948, the Soviet army blocked all railways, roads, and limited access to the western part of Berlin. In response, President Truman swiftly ordered military airplanes to fly food, coal, and medicine to the city. The task more than a year. The Britain and France added their support for America. Together, these nations airlifted approximately two and one-half million tons of deliveries on almost two hundred eighty thousand flights.” (Paul, 2013) Another event included the Barbed wire bars passage across the Brandenburg Gate at the East-West border in Berlin in 1961. The consequences led to widespread unrest in Eastern Europe by 1989. Nonetheless, Gorbachev never intervened, even though, one Eastern European country after another limited ties with the Soviet Union. Afterward, the Berlin Wall that symbolized communist oppression was removed in November of the same year. East and West Germany formed one nation in less than a year. Warsaw Pact countries ended the alliance and ended the Cold War after a few months. QUESTION 8 America facilitated the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949 of which NATO military group aimed to defend Soviet forces in Europe. NATO entailed military personnel from the Soviet Union and other European friends from the east. In 1953, President Eisenhower took over the leadership after the death of Stalin, who was Soviet. In July 1955, Eisenhower proposed the inspection of the military base by Americans and Soviets. However, the Soviets rejected the proposal and increased Cold War tensions. The rejection arose because both sides tried to pressure economic and political developments across the globe. America started offering military personel to support South Vietnam in 1950 to safeguard itself from the North Vietnam that was a communist nation. The American aid later led into a long and bloody period of American engrossment in Vietnam. “The Middle Eat also suffered from the Cold War. In the 1950s, both East and West helped Egypt with aid for the construction of the Aswan High Dam along the River Nile. The West annulled their assistance. However, after Egypt acquired weaponry from the communist in Czechoslovakia. The Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser later captured the company that managed the Suez Canal. The action triggered Israel to attack Egypt. Britain and France later joined the assault and for once, the American government and the Soviet Union jointly agreed on a major concern. They shared a United Nations resolve for an immediate ceasefire.” (Anonymous, 2010). The cold war tensions eased in 1959 and the new Soviet leader, Khrushchev, visited Eisenhower in America. The Soviet Union shot down an American U-2 reconnaissance. They then captured the plane and its pilot, Francis Gary Powers. Eisenhower later disclosed that the planes were on a spying mission on the Soviets for the past four years. The remarks angered Khrushchev to the extent that he hit the table with his shoes. Later on, Kennedy took over from the presidency from Eisenhower in 1961. Cuban exiles attacked Cuba during first days in office. They purposed to overthrow the Communist government led by Fidel Castro.” (Anonymous, 2010) It emerged that the Americas Central Intelligence Agency had provided preparation for the expatriates. However, they failed to send military planes to for backup during the invasion. As a result, the Cuban forces that were supported and trained by the Soviet Union and allies killed most of them and took others as prisoners. At the same time in Europe, several people from East Germans fled to the West. East Germanys government built a wall separating the eastern and western parts of the city of Berlin to stop them. The guards also shot at who attempted to escape by climbing over the wall.” (Paul, 2013) QUESTION 9 Genocide characterized the post-war era. The event enabled nations to kill groups of people based on culture and religion. UN actions were complicated, and entailed permanent council constituted by Britain, France, Russia, and America that had Vito power. However, the UN showed effectiveness after Second World War in regards to the innumerable storms. In rejoinder, the UN interposed Saddam Hussein’s killing of the Kurd. On the other hand, Africa tribes and clubs began to fight one another and fuelled mistrust. The Somali nation emerged as a scene of war. In addition, the Cuban troops developed distrust for the US. In the end, these countries took weapons in Somali and left after the cold war. Mohammed, who enjoyed the support of the biggest clan, rose to power. He seized Red Cross services, and immediately the US sent tasked delta force to bring order but caused a fight. In the same period, the Rwandan genocide of 1994 claimed many lives. It was an inter-tribal between the main communities. Hence, it was hard for US to enter and intervene. In addition, 18 fought for the control of Mogadishu in 1990s attracting a prompt response of the American Marines to restore order. QUESTION 10 The Cuban missile had the potentials to escalate to a nuclear war. Therefore, the Americans feared the Cuban missiles. Khrushchev accepted to get rid of them on condition that America could not frustrate the efforts. The rival parties then agreed to tests of nuclear armaments in 1963. They also formed a cellular phone link for President House and the Kremlin. Richard’s tenure enhanced relations between the East and West. He met with Brezhnev several times oversaw several agreements. During his presidency, they agreed to the reduction of the number of missiles and ineligible the tests and use of the weapons for five years. The year 1985 marked the breakthrough in the Cold War took place in 1985. The incoming leader of the Soviet Union met with President Ronald Reagan four times. He withdrew the Soviet forces from Afghanistan and signed a consensus with America to destroy all Middle and short-distance nuclear missiles. (Paul, 2013) References Anonymous. (2010). World War II. Retrieved 2015 from http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/history/world-war-ii-causes-outbreak.html Maxwell, K. (2014). The fall of the soviet union. Retrieved 2015 from http://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/fall-of-soviet-union Paul, N. (2013). Cold war. Retrieved 2015 from http://www.sparknotes.com/history/american/coldwar/summary.html Read More