The

aftermath of
WWII
Differences that simmered
during war boil over and
create the Cold War

Threads in the fabric of the

post-war world
Initial

US involvement through the LendLease Act (1941)

$11 000 000 000.00 worth of goods and Stalin

admitted to Roosevelt that the USSR would have
lost without help
Fighting without fighting as it would:

give the President power to carry on a kind of

undeclared war all over the world, in which America
would do everything except actually put soldiers in
the front-line trenches where the fighting is.

Robert Taft, Republican Senator who opposed the bill

Threads in the fabric of the

post-war world
The

Soviet view was that their

suffering had made it their war and
their sacrifice made victory
possible

20 000 000 soldiers and civilians dead

(50% of all casualties from the war)
The brutality of the Germans left an
enduring fear of invasion

Threads in the fabric of the

post-war world
Stalins

distrust of his allies grew

throughout the war

Ideological differences preceded WWII

He was dissatisfied with the lack of a second
front given the desperation facing the Red
Army
(1941

1944)

Germans invade USSR but D-Day was in

Yalta Feb 1945

The

Big Three (Winston Churchill,

Franklin D. Roosevelt and Josef Stalin)
met to discuss Europe after the war

Demand unconditional surrender

Germany would be de-nazified and
separated into four zones of occupation
though governed as a single economic
unit
Set out the plans for the United Nations

Yalta
The

Main issue was dealing with the

defeated/liberated countries of Eastern
Europe
Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary,
Czechoslovakia and Poland were to have
pro-Soviet governments but Stalin
promised they would have free elections
What

could the Western Allies do about this

when the Soviet troops occupied these
countries?

There is an ever present threat

on everyones minds

Memorial for the Murdered

Jews of Europe

Creation of the UN
Created

formally in October 1945 on the principle

of collective security

With

the purpose of maintaining international

peace and security, by taking effective collective
measures for the prevention and removal of threats
to peace and to follow international laws when
settling international disputes or situations which
might lead to a breach of the peace;

1948

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

How Would the UN Work??

The General Assembly
The main forum for
making policies and
hosting multilateral
discussion of international
issues
Can condemn actions
through speeches and
resolutions, impose
economic sanctions and
deploy armed forces
Membership is open to any
recognized nation (began
with 51, now 193)

The Security Council

Is primarily responsible for
maintaining international
peace and security
The Big Five have
permanent seats (there
are10 non-permanent seats)

The Big Five are GB, France,

US, Russia and China

Consent of 9 members is
required for decisions but
each of the Big Five has
veto power

How well will the UN deal

with?

Capitalism vs Communism in
Europe Pt I Reconstruction

The USSR wanted Eastern states as a

buffer zone and to contribute to its own
economic recovery

The US wanted to use European

reconstruction as an economic offensive to
add to US dominance in world markets

Fearing the US intentions, the USSR

refused to allow free elections and annexed
neighbouring territories

In 1946 Winston Churchill said

From

Stetin in the Baltic to Trieste in the

Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended
across the continent. Behind that line lie all
the capitals of the ancient statesThe
Communist parties, which were very small
in all these Eastern States of Europeare
seeking everywhere to obtain totalitarian
control. Police governments are prevailing in
nearly every case, and so far, except in
Czechoslovakia, there is no true democracy

Truman Doctrine
May

1947 American foreign policy to

stop Soviet expansion
Truman declared that it was the duty of
the free democratic world to fight
against the tyranny of a state/political
philosophy that restricted basic freedom
such as the right to free elections &
freedom of speech

Economic Tit for Tat

In 1948 the US created the Marshall Plan

Funneled over $13 billion to spark economic recovery

in Europe (and lessen the appeal of communism and
provide a market for US goods)

The USSR then created Comecon (Council for

Mutual Economic Assistance)as a response

Instead of giving aid to partner states, Comecon

benefitted the USSR at the expense of the Comecon
partner states
The eastern block countries had also been offered the
Marshall Plan $$ but declined the offer

Berlin Blockade First Major

Clash
The

Yalta agreements that divided Berlin

did not include phrasing about access

The deteriorating relationship between

the USSR and the West contributed to
fears that those in Eastern Berlin would
head west

Berlin Blockade March 1948May 1949

The

Soviets sought to isolate the people of

West Berlin so that there was no possibility for
reunification with the more prosperous
American (as well as French & British) areas

Soviets stopped all surface travel between West

Germany and Berlin including people and supplies

The

Truman Doctrine won out as the US made

272 000 flights over 321 days; blockade failed
and West Germany and East Germany became
separate republics

August 1949 Now theres a

new threat

Like it or not Canada is part of

the Cold War
Igor

Gouzenko defected in 1945 claims

that that Soviet spies had infiltrated
scientific and government agencies
NATO
Korean War
Suez Canal
DEW Line
NORAD

Marshall Plan

North Atlantic Treaty

Organization

NATO was a military alliance formed in 1949

initiated by Britain, Canada and the US and was
born out of fear, frustration and hope

Fear of the USSR

Frustration with the UN as it seemed unable to
protect its members
Hope that it would be peace and progress (not an
old style alliance) and that it would keep the US
from isolationist and unilateral activities

Founding NATO countries: Belgium,Canada,Denmark,France,

Iceland,Italy,Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal,
theUnited Kingdom and theUnited States (quickly followed by
Greece, Turkey and West Germany)

NATO

The US set the policy and priorities for NATO

Soviet counterpoint was the Warsaw Pact:

An attack on one member constituted an attack

on all members

which included Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East

Germany, Hungary, Poland and Romania

Leads to a system of where two sets of alliances

function as extensions of the US and USSR hostilities
involving espionage, assassinations, promoting
revolutions, counter-revolutions, and and arms race

Things
went MAD
Mutually

Assured
Destruction

Korean War Cold gets warm

Japan

had controlled Korea as part of its empire

prior to 1945 (Korea had valuable coal & mineral
deposits)
1948 a UN commission oversaw elections where
the Democratic Republic of Korea (South) was
established, along with the separate Communist
Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (North)
Over the next year, the Soviets and Americans
withdrew uniformed forces while leaving advisers
in place. North Korea was supported by the USSR
and the new Communist government of China

In 1950 the North Koreans invaded South Korea

and the UN sent forces (+20 countries involved)
In 1951 the leader of South Korea, and Kim IlSung, the leader of North Korea rejected
pressure to make peace (each believed they
could win)
Ceasefire agreement in 1953 included the
establishment of boundaries and the release of
prisoners of war. (Even after fighting ended
Canadians served in the area until August
1957).
Greatly heightened tensions

Suez Canal Crisis - 1956

Gamal

Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal

Company (Br and Fr) which threatened transport of
oil to Britain

In response British, Israeli and French took military

action and began trying to oust Nasser
Nasser got military support from the USSR

Lester

B. Pearson (Cdn foreign affairs) suggested a

peacekeeping force

Peace is far more than ceasing to fire.

 Canadian

members of the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) on

the border between Egypt and Israel, 1962.
Image: Department of National Defence/Library and Archives Canada
/PA-122737

North American Air Defence

Agreement and DEW Line

(1958) NORAD joint air defence against the threat of

attack from the USSR

Integrates the missile bases, radar and fighter forces of the

US and Canada under a joint command at Colorado Springs

(1958-60) Distant Early Warning Line was meant to

counteract the threat of long-range bombing by the
USSR through radar stations that could detect surprise
Soviet attacks

Protection at the cost of Canadian autonomy