Thawing and End of The Cold War
Thawing:
Following Stalin's death in 1953, Communist leaders Georgi Malenkov and Nikita Khrushchev wanted to improve western relations by creating a "peaceful coexistence." To achieve this goal, Khrushchev negotiated an end to the allied occupation of Austria, and allowed the creation of a neutral country. In the late 1950's, the United States and Soviet Union agreed to create a cultural exchange. This included the playing of Soviet films in the U.S., and U.S. films in Moscow. In an attempt to distance himself and the country from Stalin and his ideas, Khrushchev weakened the Soviet secret police and began to open up the country to foreigners. He also thought that dismantling colonial regimes would serve as an advantage for the Soviet Union. Thus, Khrushchev initiated alliances with Indonesia, Egypt, India, and Cuba. The alliance he created with Cuba played a large role in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Controversy arose when the United States found that the Soviet Union had been hiding missiles in Cuba. After a 13-day standoff which put the world on the brink of nuclear war, Khrushchev agreed to remove Soviet missiles from Cuba. Khrushchev also endorsed the building of the Berlin Wall, which was meant to keep East Germans from fleeing the communist state. The wall only worsened tensions in Europe and the Soviet Union.
One of Khrushchev's goals of the "peaceful coexistence' was to cut off Moscow's ties with China. Following Stalin's death, relations with China began to deteriorate. In addition, the Soviets were modernizing, and China was radicalizing. Disputes between the two countries arose which involved territories, economic assistance, ideology, and the Cold War. As a result of the Soviet's successes in the space race, China believed in the socialists technological superiority to the capitalists. To even worsen the Sino-Soviet relations, in 1960, the Soviet Union removed its advisers from China. On March 2 and 15, 1969, Chinese and Soviet border guards opened fire on each other. These shootings resulted in numerous casualties and continued throughout the next couple of months. Finally the disputes were put to an end when Alexei Kosygin flew to Beijing for a meeting with Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. China eventually decided to back down and joined the American's side. This strengthened the Americans and helped change the tides of the war.
After the resignation of Nikita Khrushchev in 1964, the Soviet government, led by Alexei Kosygin and Leonid Brezhnev, continued its peaceful coexistence with the West. The United States' policy of brinkmanship began to shift into a policy of détente. This helped reduce tensions between the two sides. The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM Treaty), signed in 1972, limited the size of either country's ABM systems. This agreement made it unlikely for either side to win in the event of a nuclear exchange. It also created a policy of equivalence, meaning there was a roughly equal power balance between the two sides. In addition, the Helsinki Agreement was signed, formally recognizing all the borders established since World War II. It also acknowledged the Soviet sphere of influence in the East. This agreement even further improved the tension between the United States and Soviet Union.
End of the war:
In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev took control of the Soviet Union following the death of Konstantin Chernenko. Gorbachev wanted to reform the Soviet Union, and put in place his reform movement called perestoika, or "restructuring." In an attempt to restructure the economy, Gorbachev created a market economy with limited free enterprise and allowed private businesses to operate. He also promoted glasnost, "openness," and modernization. He encouraged citizens and officials to openly discuss the problems and successes of the Soviet Union, many of which were presented in the communist newspaper Pravda. Gorbachev promoted his citizens to travel and use new advancements like computers and other technology. He even allowed 2-candidate elections to be introduced in 1987. A new Soviet parliament was also created - the Congress of People's Deputies. In 1990 he legalized the formation of other political parties, and later became the first president of the Soviet Union.
On the flip side of all of these revolutionary reforms however, ethnic riots began to breakout as a result of glasnost. Nationalist movements arose all over the USSR, and in March 1990, Lithuania attempted to declare itself independent from the Soviet Union. This angered the Soviets, who then declared Lithuania's declaration null and void. More countries across the Soviet Union began to become unsettled, and in 1989, the Berlin Wall fell, signifying East Germany's independence from the USSR. Shortly after, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland each overthrew the Communist regimes and declared themselves independent. The Cold War was officially pronounced to be over on December 3, 1989 by George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev. Two years later, in December 1991, the Soviet Union officially disbanded.
Following Stalin's death in 1953, Communist leaders Georgi Malenkov and Nikita Khrushchev wanted to improve western relations by creating a "peaceful coexistence." To achieve this goal, Khrushchev negotiated an end to the allied occupation of Austria, and allowed the creation of a neutral country. In the late 1950's, the United States and Soviet Union agreed to create a cultural exchange. This included the playing of Soviet films in the U.S., and U.S. films in Moscow. In an attempt to distance himself and the country from Stalin and his ideas, Khrushchev weakened the Soviet secret police and began to open up the country to foreigners. He also thought that dismantling colonial regimes would serve as an advantage for the Soviet Union. Thus, Khrushchev initiated alliances with Indonesia, Egypt, India, and Cuba. The alliance he created with Cuba played a large role in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Controversy arose when the United States found that the Soviet Union had been hiding missiles in Cuba. After a 13-day standoff which put the world on the brink of nuclear war, Khrushchev agreed to remove Soviet missiles from Cuba. Khrushchev also endorsed the building of the Berlin Wall, which was meant to keep East Germans from fleeing the communist state. The wall only worsened tensions in Europe and the Soviet Union.
One of Khrushchev's goals of the "peaceful coexistence' was to cut off Moscow's ties with China. Following Stalin's death, relations with China began to deteriorate. In addition, the Soviets were modernizing, and China was radicalizing. Disputes between the two countries arose which involved territories, economic assistance, ideology, and the Cold War. As a result of the Soviet's successes in the space race, China believed in the socialists technological superiority to the capitalists. To even worsen the Sino-Soviet relations, in 1960, the Soviet Union removed its advisers from China. On March 2 and 15, 1969, Chinese and Soviet border guards opened fire on each other. These shootings resulted in numerous casualties and continued throughout the next couple of months. Finally the disputes were put to an end when Alexei Kosygin flew to Beijing for a meeting with Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. China eventually decided to back down and joined the American's side. This strengthened the Americans and helped change the tides of the war.
After the resignation of Nikita Khrushchev in 1964, the Soviet government, led by Alexei Kosygin and Leonid Brezhnev, continued its peaceful coexistence with the West. The United States' policy of brinkmanship began to shift into a policy of détente. This helped reduce tensions between the two sides. The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM Treaty), signed in 1972, limited the size of either country's ABM systems. This agreement made it unlikely for either side to win in the event of a nuclear exchange. It also created a policy of equivalence, meaning there was a roughly equal power balance between the two sides. In addition, the Helsinki Agreement was signed, formally recognizing all the borders established since World War II. It also acknowledged the Soviet sphere of influence in the East. This agreement even further improved the tension between the United States and Soviet Union.
End of the war:
In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev took control of the Soviet Union following the death of Konstantin Chernenko. Gorbachev wanted to reform the Soviet Union, and put in place his reform movement called perestoika, or "restructuring." In an attempt to restructure the economy, Gorbachev created a market economy with limited free enterprise and allowed private businesses to operate. He also promoted glasnost, "openness," and modernization. He encouraged citizens and officials to openly discuss the problems and successes of the Soviet Union, many of which were presented in the communist newspaper Pravda. Gorbachev promoted his citizens to travel and use new advancements like computers and other technology. He even allowed 2-candidate elections to be introduced in 1987. A new Soviet parliament was also created - the Congress of People's Deputies. In 1990 he legalized the formation of other political parties, and later became the first president of the Soviet Union.
On the flip side of all of these revolutionary reforms however, ethnic riots began to breakout as a result of glasnost. Nationalist movements arose all over the USSR, and in March 1990, Lithuania attempted to declare itself independent from the Soviet Union. This angered the Soviets, who then declared Lithuania's declaration null and void. More countries across the Soviet Union began to become unsettled, and in 1989, the Berlin Wall fell, signifying East Germany's independence from the USSR. Shortly after, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland each overthrew the Communist regimes and declared themselves independent. The Cold War was officially pronounced to be over on December 3, 1989 by George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev. Two years later, in December 1991, the Soviet Union officially disbanded.