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Germany Surrenders
The Soviets had found Hitler's body on May 2nd, 1945. Berlin also surrendered that same day. Germany surrendered on May 7th, 1945 and the next day was claimed V-E Day; Victory in Europe Day. -
Soviet Plans
American and British leaders were concerned about Stalin's intentions in Eastern Europe. They worried that communism and soviet influence would spread in the postwar world. They were right, Stalin soon breaks his promises about respecting democracy in Eastern Europe. -
The Conflict Worsens
The relationship between the Soviet Union and the Western nations continue to worsen after WWII. Soon the Untied States and the Soviet Union entered an era of tension and hostility, which became known as the Cold War. -
Cold War Confrontations
The United States created the Truman Doctrine and the Marshall Plan to demonstrate the West's Cold war Policy of containment, which involved resisting Soviet aggression in order to contain the spread of communism. The confrontations between the East and the West became increasingly severe. -
The Nuclear Arms Race Begins
The Soviet Union had tested an atomic bomb in August of 1949. The West was shaken by Soviet's successful test. Immediately the United States sought to develop more powerful weapons. -
The Cold War in Southeast Asia
There was a war in Southeast Asia, where communist rebels fought the French, forcing them to give up control of Vietnam. In a resulting peace agreement, Vietnam was temporarily divided into Northern and Southern halves. Communists controlled the North and the anti- communist regime ruled the South. -
Communism in Cuba
In 1959 rebels under the leadership of Fidel Castro overthrew Cuba's dictator and installed a communist government. Once in power, Castro forged close ties with the Soviet Union. This alliance worried the United States because it brought the Cold War alarmingly close to U.S territory. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
In 1962 came the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union over the installation of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. After a two-week stand off, Soviet leaders removed missiles from Cuba when the U.S agreed to remove their missiles from Cuba and promised not to attack Cuba. -
SALT I
In 1968, President Nixon sought what he called Detente, or reduced tension between superpowers. One result of his efforts was the start of negotiations known as the Strategic Arms Limitations Talks or SALT I. The talks led to agreements limiting the number of weapons held by each side. -
SALT II
SALT I also led to the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty, which prevented the development of weapons designed to shoot down nuclear missiles. The ABM treaty was meant to ensure that each side remained vulnerable to the others nuclear weapons. The two sides began a round of new talks called SALT II and they resulted in the arms control treaty in 1979. -
The 1980s
Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980 and he took aggressive position against the soviet union and spoke of developing a new missile defense system. President Reagan began arms reduction talk with Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev and in 1988 the two countries ratified the Intermediate- Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which called for elimination of certain types of missiles. The relationship between the Soviet Union and the U.S was finally beginning to improve. -
Postwar in North America
The postwar in the United States was a land of tremendous prosperity; there was the economic boom, the civil rights movement, feminist and also counter culture movements.
