The End of the Cold War

The End of the Cold War

By Mr. Carrasco

• 1968 Richard Nixon is elected President

• Realpolitik approach: foreign policy should be based solely on consideration of power, not ideals or moral principles.

• Policy pushed by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger

  • Fulfilling national interests justifies any means that world leaders have to take.

  • The world should maintain a balance of power, with no single country becoming dominant in world affairs.

​Richard Nixon (1969-1974)

• ​Shift away from Brinkmanship to Detente

  • Focus on improving poor relations with communist countries

  • Expand trade agreements with USSR building mutual reliance and reducing tensions

​Detente

Multiple Choice

What was the main goal of Nixon’s policy of détente?

• To completely defeat the Soviet Union

• To reduce Cold War tensions through diplomacy
  

• To increase military spending

• • To isolate China

• 1972 Nixon was the first President to visit China and diplomatically recognize the Chinese communist government

• 3 months later he visited the Soviet Union and signed a new 5-year agreement to limit nuclear weapons called SALT I Treaty

• SALT I Treaty: First major arms control agreement between the U.S. and USSR, limiting intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).

Nixon Visits

Multiple Choice

What was the primary purpose of the SALT I Treaty?

• To eliminate all nuclear weapons

• To increase U.S. missile stockpiles

• To limit the number of ICBMs and SLBMs

• To prevent U.S.-Soviet scientific cooperation

• Nixon resigned and was replaced by Ford

• Continued Nixon’s détente approach, ensuring ongoing dialogue despite rising tensions.

• Kept Henry Kissinger as Secretary of State

• Continued improving relations with China and the Soviet Union​

• Helsinki Accords (1975): Agreements between the U.S., USSR, and 33 other nations focusing on security, economic cooperation, and human rights.

Gerald R Ford (1974-1977)

Multiple Choice

What was the main focus of the Helsinki Accords?

• Military expansion in Europe

• Arms reduction agreements

• Promoting security, economic cooperation, and human rights

• Strengthening NATO’s military presence

• Won Election in 1976 against Ford

• Campained as an outsider of Washington politics

• Championed human rights, it influenced his foreign policy causing a breakdown in Soviet Relations

  • Soviet Union often oppressed and violated rights of political opponents and critics

• SALT II Treaty (1979): Negotiated to further limit nuclear weapons, but ratification was halted after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Jimmy Carter (1977-1981)

Multiple Choice

What event caused the U.S. to halt ratification of SALT II?

• The Iranian Revolution

• The fall of the Berlin Wall

• The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

• The signing of the INF Treaty

• Elected in 1980 defeating Carter who ran for the Democrats

• Strong anti-communist stance: Declared the USSR an "Evil Empire" and emphasized the need to confront communism directly.

• Supported anti-communist movements worldwide: Provided aid to groups opposing Soviet-backed regimes, including in Latin America and Afghanis

Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)

Multiple Choice

How did Reagan approach the Cold War?

• He promoted détente

• He called the USSR an "Evil Empire" and increased military spending

• He withdrew from arms negotiations

• He reduced defense spending

• Spend, Spend, Spend!

• Massive military buildup: Increased U.S. defense spending to pressure the Soviet economy and demonstrate military superiority.

• Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI): Proposed a space-based missile defense system, forcing the USSR to invest heavily in countermeasures.

• Soviet Economy was not good in the 1980s, they could not keep up!

• The plan was to outspend the Soviets and bankrupt them using American economic might

Reagan Diplomacy

• Shift to diplomacy: After an initial period of confrontation, Reagan engaged in direct talks with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

• INF Treaty (1987): The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty eliminated an entire class of nuclear weapons—ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. It marked the first time the U.S. and USSR agreed to destroy existing nuclear weapons rather than simply limit their production.

Reagan – Arms Control and INF Treaty (1987)

• Worked with Gorbachev to ease tensions: Encouraged peaceful resolutions rather than confrontation.

• 1989: Fall of the Berlin Wall: Symbolized the collapse of communist control in Eastern Europe.

• Advanced arms reduction negotiations: Continued discussions on limiting nuclear stockpiles beyond previous treaties.

Bush (1989-1993)

Multiple Choice

What symbolized the end of communist control in Eastern Europe?

• The signing of the START I Treaty

• The U.S. withdrawal from NATO

• The fall of the Berlin Wall

• The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

• Perestroika (economic restructuring): Introduced market-oriented reforms but failed to revitalize the Soviet economy.

• Glasnost (openness): Allowed greater freedom of speech, exposing government corruption and inefficiencies.

• Allowed more independent media: Loosened government control over press and public debate.

• 1991: Soviet Union officially dissolved: Gorbachev resigned, and republics declared independence.

Gorbachev’s Reforms

Multiple Choice

What event marked the official end of the Soviet Union?

• Gorbachev’s resignation and republics declaring independence

• The collapse of the Warsaw Pact

• The U.S. signing a peace treaty

• The expansion of NATO