Some Characteristics of the Cold War Were the use of nuclear weapons, indirect conflicts and the division of the world into two blocks.
There are warlike conflicts that last for decades, leave thousands of victims, and set the whole world on fire. This is the case of the Cold War.
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This is the ideological, political and military conflict that developed since the mid-twentieth century, whose protagonists were opposed States: United States vs Soviet Union.
Both nations represented the western-capitalist (US) and Eastern-communist (USSR) blocs. The imposition of one system on the other was the main objective of this war, which lasted almost 50 years.
10 relevant characteristics of the Cold War
1- Nuclear weapons
One of the features of the Cold War was that the US Planted nuclear weapons In allied countries of Europe, in order to put in check the USSR. The ideal was to deter his enemy with this arms race.
Both states knew that they could annihilate whole cities with the push of a button to launch the atomic bomb, as had happened with Hiroshima and Nagasaki and trigger a psychosocial trauma like the one left in humanity, the Second World War .
A detonation of this weapon was a perilous threat and endangered not only the USSR, but the rest of the planet, even more so if the counterattack were in the same currency.
"The Cold War... is the first in which the domination of the entire world and even of the surrounding space has been brought into play, the first that has confronted, over interests and passions, two recipes of an automatic and universal goodness "Comments André Fontaine, in his book"History of the Cold War".
2- Crisis of the Cuban Missiles
During this conflict, the so-called"Cuban Missile Crisis"took place in 1962. In Russia, it is called the"Caribbean crisis"and in Cuba,"October crisis".
This episode was generated due to the discovery by the United States of bases of Soviet nuclear missiles of average reach in Cuban territory. Perhaps, it was the situation that nearer left a possible nuclear war.
It all started when the US U2 spy plane. Recorded images of Soviet ballistic missiles on Cuban soil, capable of carrying nuclear charges.
Over the years, it was learned that the USSR sent Cuba 42 medium-range and 24 intermediate-range missiles. Given this, the American country threatened to invade the Caribbean country. Due to such pressure, the government of Fidel Castro ceded and retired the arms.
3- Germany divided
During the Cold War and after World War II, Germany was divided into two, with a border surrounded by the so-called Berlin Wall. On May 8, 1949, the constitutional text confirming the establishment of the Federal Republic of Germany, with capital in Bonn, was approved in West Germany.
In this territory, the major parties were the Christian Democrat and the Social Democrat, representing the German West-capitalist wing.
That same year, but in the east, in the zone of Soviet occupation, the German Democratic Republic (RDA) was created, where it was governed by means of a dictatorship of single party and Marxist-Leninist sign. Its capital was Pankow; Later he would move to Berlin.
In 1989, with the fall of the Berlin Wall, war and communism Is weakening globally. The capitalism .
4- Mass consciousness
According to the writer Juan Pereira, the Cold War was an aggressive attempt to impose a political system, but also economic and even psychological.
Especially the USSR, which used all its propaganda and armament arsenal to influence Western countries to incorporate communism in the way they organize.
In this sense, for Pereira, communism wants to dominate the so-called"mass consciousness", to expand its field of influence.
As a result, the Soviets sought to have their vision penetrated into all spheres of society in non-communist states.
"Non-military means are preferably used for this purpose. However, from time to time military resources may also be used. Communist successes in the Cold War can lead to revolutionary situations"(Pereira, Juan, 1963: 13).
5. Indirect conflicts
Halfway through the confrontation, there were indirect conflicts. That is to say, wars isolated, but with general repercussions. This is the case of the Vietnam and Korean wars.
The first is known as the biggest American failure. It was a warlike conflict developed between 1958 and 1975 in the Indochina peninsula.
"They faced the USA. And the government of South Vietnam against North Vietnam and the communist guerrillas. It triggered social movements in rejection of the numbers of dead and wounded that propitiated this confrontation war", counts specialized blog of the subject.
On the other hand, the Korean War originated due to the aftermath of World War II. The Korean peninsula, Japanese possession, had been occupied by the USSR and the United States. In 1945.
When the Cold War broke out, this country was divided into two states: North Korea, where a Communist dictatorship led by Kim Il Sung , In 1948; And South Korea, where that same year Syngman Rhee Formed a pro-American dictatorship.
6- Financing of arms
Among the events of the Cold War, it is pointed out in General History, that the USSR. Invaded Afghanistan in 1980. The American reaction did not wait and this country with its allies boycotted the Moscow Olympic Games in that year.
In retaliation, the Soviets boycotted the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 1984. The American president, Ronald Reagan, in 1980, defined the Soviet Union as an evil empire, so he announced an accumulation of weapons in a period when the USSR. Economic recession.
Another situation that occurred was that the Americans financed with arms the Afghan guerrilla to fight against the Soviet military. Conflict that was key to the defeat of the USSR.
7- conciliatory attitude
From the 80's, on the other hand, the main powers in the conflict sought to establish more diplomatic ties. The idea was to find meeting points between the presidents of both nations (they even phoned directly).
In 1985 Mikhail Gorbachev became the leader of the Soviet Union. This politician signals to have a more conciliatory attitude with his enemy, adhering to sign arms reduction agreements.
Four years later the USSR, retires of Afghanistan and is signed the reunification of Germany, being Gorbachov important figure. The collapse of the USSR in 1991 led to the end of the Cold War.
8- World Bipolarity
During the Cold War, a bipolarity of socio-political systems took shape in the world. Visions were polarized and two blocks of countries that wanted to dominate one over the other. This eagerness was commanded by the United States and USSR.
After World War II, the United Kingdom was losing strength and the process of decolonization reduced its influence. USA Began to supervigilar countries of Latin America and Europe, lest they fall into the"scourge of Marxism."
Each of these powers wanted a constant reaffirmation of their leadership, they were forced to align themselves with the other nations, in addition to the continuous ideological military rearmament. In this way they looked for the balance in the world, raises the site General History.
9- Risk policy
Both blocks assume risks, but calculated. This was intended, at first, to hinder the advance of the enemy. Then, as a deterrent to any hostile action, with the latent nuclear threat, but avoiding to provoke a world conflict.
This way of doing politics resulted in the repeated appearance of zones called"hot spots"(Berlin, Korea, Cuba, etc.), places where the US And the USSR measured forces.
However, both nations were always willing to re-establish diplomacy when those risks were excessive for both.
The ignorance of the intentions and capacity of resistance of the opponent, made each side potentiate its offensive capacity. Ultimately, the greatest risk was that a Third World War would be reached.
10- The role of the UN
The rest of the world observed how the two powers (USA and USSR) tried to impose their ideology on the countries in which they did not have dominion.
In such a scenario, the United Nations (UN), as the world representative of the countries and a forum for discussion among the blocs, played a fundamental role in bringing the war to an end.
It was a recurring resource that representatives of both sides discussed in the periodic meetings of the world body.
"The World Directory represented by the permanent members of the Security Council and the role of the General Assembly and the Secretary, transformed the UN into a platform for international dialogue and diplomacy in a warlike era,"according to Historia1.
History of the Cold War
In Paxala site they point to the following causes of the conflict:
- The intention of the Soviet Union was to spread and expand its communist ideology around the world. This set off alarms in the United States, which opposed that political system.
- The fact that the United States acquired atomic weapons provoked the anger of the Soviets, and impelled them to begin the confrontation.
- There was a dense atmosphere, in which both countries feared the attack of one or the other.
- US President Dwight David Eisenhower had a personal aversion against Soviet President Josef Stalin.
- The fear of the Soviet Union was that the Americans attacked it, through the countries of Western Europe.
Effects of the Cold War
The General History site mentions the consequences of the conflict:
- Large arsenals of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles accumulated the United States and Russia, after the conflict.
- In the wake of the war, the NATO military blocs and the Warsaw Pact were formed.
- The conflict led to wars in Vietnam and Korea.
- In 1989 the Berlin Wall was demolished and the Warsaw Pact was broken.
- The Soviet Union ceased to exist and that country became the present Russia.
- Alumni former Soviet republics and other states of the Baltic reached their independence.
- The United States is transformed into a superpower and its capitalist model reigns as a way of commercializing around the world.
- With the fall of the Berlin Wall, the conflict is over and communism is weakening globally. Capitalism is imposed.
References
- Book:"History of the Cold War"(1970). André, Fontaine. Editorial Luis Caralt, Barcelona, Spain.
- Essay:"The Cold War from the perspective of international relations"(2002). Zurita, Delicia María. National University of La Plata, Argentina.
- Book:"The CIA and the Cold War cultural"(1996). Saunders, Frances Stonor. Editorial Encounter. London England.
- What happened to the Cold War? Recovered from: quepaso.info.
- Characteristics of the Cold War. Retrieved from: sites.google.com/site/theworldactualhistory4to.
- Breval, J. The Cold War, causes and consequences (2009). Recovered from historiageneral.com.
- Cold War: 8 definitions (2007) Recovered from: historia1imagen.cl.
- The Cold War. Retrieved from paxala.com.
- Presidents of the United States and USSR during the Cold War. Retrieved from: timetoast.com.
- Division of Germany during the Cold War. Retrieved from: dw.com.