The Cold War, 1961-68

The Cold War, 1961-68Libertyville High School

Berlin Wall, 1961Nov. 1958: Khrushchev demanded western powers leave West Berlin Khrushchev repeated same demand in June, 1961Kennedy increased size of military to 1.1 millionAuthorized draftThousands of East Berliners fled to West during crisis

Berlin Wall, 1961August 13, 1961: Border between E. Germany and W. Berlin closedOn same day, border between E, W Berlin closedJFK ordered 150,000 troops to W. BerlinStandoff w/ East German troops continued through summer of 1962

The Bay of Pigs (1961)Castro seized power in Cuba, 1959Prior to invasion, US owned CubaPro US governmentUS owned 4/5 of island utilities of sugar productionNearly all miningMob dominated casinosOverthrowing Castro became focus for CIA

Bay of Pigs (1961)March, 1960: Ike ordered invasion of CubaCIA would train Cuban immigrants / exilesUS would support invasion with bombers, suppliesCuba govt knew invasion was coming (loose lips, KGB info)

Bay of Pigs (1961)Invasion itself a fiasco1300 ground troops supported by air sorties by WWII era airplanesThree days of fighting left about 90 exiles dead; most surrendered, out of ammoAt UN, Cuban diplomats accused US of invasionAdlai Stevenson: under no circumstances would US troops participate in combat in CubaAbout 100 Cuban exiles were executed; rest were exchanged in Dec. 1962 for $53 million in food, medicine ($ raised privately)

Bay of Pigs - OutcomesCastro declared self a Marxist, accelerated nationalization of industries

Castro driven firmly into arms of USSR (US saw as violation of what doctrine?)

Soviets used invasion as pretext to send in military advisors, nuclear weapons

Severe embarrassment for JFK

Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962Feb. 1962: JFK est. economic embargo of CubaCastro was convinced of imminent US invasionKhrushchev decided to secretly place med. range nukes in Cuba

Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962Crisis at peak from October 8-28, 196210-14: U2 photos showed proof of buildupJFK, 10-22-62: It shall be the policy of this nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union.

Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962US est. strict quarantine on CubaBlockade of all supplies = declaration of warQuarantine against weapons NOT a dec. of warIntense negotiations between JFK, KhrushchevKhrushchev: US pirate actionTrade nukes in Turkey for nukes in Cuba?US: no just getem out of CubaDefcon 2, nukes loaded for attack against USSR

Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962ResolutionKhrushchev publicly agreed to remove missilesJFK agreed to publicly state that US would never invade CubaCastro would publicly promise never to accept nukes in CubaJFK secretly removed nukes from TurkeyTo world, it looked like Khrushchev blinked

Third World Arena

Non-alignment policy of small countriesPolicy: peaceful coexistence with the 1st, 2nd world nations was preferable & possiblePlayed US, USSR off against each other for cash, rewardsCreation of Org. of African States (1963)African states banded together vs. 1st World

Non-aligned nations

Third World Arena

Invasion of Dominican Republic (1965) 22,000 marines sent inLBJ: Invasion to prevent communist takeoverLBJ exaggerated threat, to press; start of Credibility gap

Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) formed 1960Resentment strong amongst oil producing 3rd World countries who were being exploited by West corpsOPEC NationsNew Soviet LeaderKhrushchev overthrown in 1964Losing Cuban missile crisisEconomic difficultiesPerceived loss of power within PolitburoReplaced by Leonid BrezhnevConservative party leaderChinese-Soviet relations deteriorate to warfare in 1969, over border

French Withdrawal From NATODe Gaulle protested strong US role in org.Developed French indep. army, from 1958 onIn event of war, intended to strike separate peace1959 w/d Med fleet from NATO command1959 banned stationing of nukes on French soil1966 removed Fr. from NATO commands

Prague Spring

1968: new Czech president, Dubcek, came to powerLoosened restrictions on media, speech, travelSoviets objectedAugust, 1968: Thousands of Soviet troops and tanks moved inCrackdown, occupation continued until 1990

Development of Nuclear StrategyTriad of nuclear strategyLand based missilesRockets for space programLarge launch facility vulnerable to attackMissile silos first built in mid 1960sMultiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicles (MIRV) were game changersBomber fleetB-52s continued to be updatedSubmarine fleetBallistic missile subs first deployed in 1959

Development of MADMutual Assured DestructionFirst strike nation would still be wiped out by second strike capability of other countryEach nation a rational actor, intent on self preservationDoctrine depends upon credibility of the threat of second strike = continual investment, updating nukes

MAD Game Tree