Download Note Outline on “Two Superpowers Face Off”

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Note Outline on “Two Superpowers Face Off”
1) Why were relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union already strained before the end of World War II?
How did the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill influence Truman and affect the advent of the Cold War?
2) Who attended the Yalta Summit in February 1945? Describe the decisions made there.
3) When and how was the United Nations created? What was its purpose? Describe the main deliberative bodies of
the UN? Which has more power? Why?
4) Describe the goals of the Soviet Union in the postwar period.
5) Describe the goals of the U.S. in the postwar period. How did these conflict with Soviet goals?
6) What happened to countries in Eastern Europe that were occupied by Soviet troops at the end of World War II?
Name some of these countries.
7) Who was George Kennan and what was the significance of his “Long Telegram”?
8) Why did Churchill make his famous “iron curtain” speech in Fulton, Missouri on March 5, 1946? How did Stalin
respond to this speech? What effect did it have on relations between the U.S. and Soviet Union?
9) Define “containment” in its Cold War context. What was the Truman Doctrine and when was it first announced
to Congress?
10) What was the fundamental difference between the policies of the Soviet Union and the U.S. as described in
President Truman’s March 12, 1947 speech to Congress?
11) What was the Marshall Plan? Why was it such a successful foreign policy?
12) Which countries in Europe were the largest recipients of Marshall Plan aid? (see chart below)
13) Why did the Soviets blockade Berlin in 1948? How did the U.S. and Britain respond? What was the result?
14) Describe the origins of NATO, its purpose, and membership. Describe the origins of the Warsaw Pact including
its purpose and membership. What other alliance did the U.S. form in Southeast Asia to combat the spread of
Communism?
15) How did the nuclear arms race progress during the Cold War period? What is meant by “brinkmanship” and
how was this concept developed? How long did the arms race last?
16) Describe the history of competition in the missile/space programs of the U.S. and the Soviet Union. What was
President Eisenhower’s “open skies policy” and how did the Soviet Union react to this proposal. What happened
with the U-2 Incident of May 1960?