Lecture Notes: The Cold War and Its Global Impact

Introduction to the Cold War

• Post-World War II tension between the USA and the USSR.
• Ideological conflict: Capitalism vs. Communism.
• No direct warfare; characterized by proxy wars, nuclear arms race, propaganda, and espionage.

Historical Background

Industrial Revolution and Marxism

• Industrial Revolution led to economic disparity.
• Karl Marx proposed communism as a solution to economic inequality.
• Marxism inspired the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, leading to the USSR's formation under Lenin.

Communism vs. Capitalism

• Communism established in the USSR; capitalism challenged in the West.
• American efforts (League of Nations, economic liberalization) failed post-WWI.
• USSR appeared successful post-WWI under Stalin but at great human cost.

Wartime and Post-War Relations

World War II Alliances

• USSR allied with the UK and the USA against Axis powers.
• USSR’s significant wartime losses led to post-war security concerns.
• USA’s economic boom and decreased isolationism.

Post-War Security and Division

• Establishment of United Nations.
• Division of Germany; creation of NATO.
• Rising tensions led to the Cold War.

The Cold War Develops

Truman Doctrine and Containment

• US military aid to Greece and Turkey.
• Policy of containment to prevent Soviet expansion.

McCarthyism and Anti-Communist Sentiment in the USA

• Rise of communism in Western countries.
• McCarthyism targeted alleged communists in the US government.

Cold War Conflicts and Proxy Wars

European Economic Measures

• Marshall Plan: US financial aid to prevent communism in Europe.
• Division of Germany into East and West.

Korea and Southeast Asia

• Korean War as a proxy conflict; led to stalemate and armistice.
• Vietnam War; US involvement and eventual withdrawal.

Middle East and Latin America

• CIA interventions in Iran and Guatemala.
• US-Soviet tensions in Egypt (Suez Canal Crisis).

Nuclear Arms Race and Space Race

Nuclear Developments

• USA’s initial nuclear monopoly.
• USSR’s development of nuclear weapons.

Space Race

• Launch of Sputnik by USSR.
• USA’s response with NASA and lunar landing.

Detente and Renewal of Tensions

Detente

• Efforts to ease tensions with treaties (SALT I and II).

End of Detente

• Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
• US response with the Carter Doctrine.

The Cold War Escalates

Reagan and the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)

• "Star Wars" initiative to push USSR economically.

Soviet Leadership and Internal Struggles

• Leadership changes and economic stagnation.
• Rise of Gorbachev and reforms (Perestroika and Glasnost).

Collapse of the Soviet Union

Gorbachev’s Reforms

• Attempts at reform lead to democratization and loss of control.

End of the Cold War

• Fall of the Berlin Wall and collapse of communist regimes in Eastern Europe.
• Dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Conclusion

• The Cold War's impact on international relations and global power dynamics for over four decades.