Eisenhower and the Cold War
Dec 23, 2015
John DullesSecretary of StateCritical of Truman“New look” foreign policy
Challenge USSR and ChinaLiberate captive Eastern
European nationsEncourage NationalistsCommunists would back down if
pushedEisenhower kept him in check
John DullesMassive Retaliation
Nuclear weaponsAir PowerMore bang for the
buckHydro-bombsIgnorance of non-
superpower/third world conflict
Third World UnrestNew, developing
nationsIndia, Pakistan –
1947Indonesia – 1949Ghana – 1957Need for help
turned nations into pawns
Third World UnrestIran
Nationalized oil industryMohammed Mossadeq
(elected leader) overthrown by CIA in 1953
Shah Reza Pahlavi keeps oil prices down, buys American weapons
GuatemalaSame story, only with fruit
instead of oilMaybe 140,000 deaths at the
hands of successive military dictators
Third World UnrestIndochina
(Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos)France tries to retakeHo Chi Minh and
Communists fight for independence
U.S. gives aid to FrenchUSSR to Ho Chi MinhU.S. refuses to send in troops,
French lose
Third World UnrestDivision of Vietnam
Temporary division at 17th parallel
South Vietnam under Ngo Dinh Diem refuses to let election take place
U.S. gives $1 billion plus to South Vietnam
Third World UnrestMiddle East
Need for oil vs. support for IsraelSuez Crisis
Egypt asked U.S. to build the Aswan Dam on the Nile
U.S. refuses over Israeli complications
Egypt turns to USSR Limited financing
Egypt seizes Suez canal France, Britain, Israel retake canal
Eisenhower condemns invasion, forces withdraw
Third World UnrestMiddle East
Eisenhower Doctrine Economic and military aid to any Middle Eastern
country threatened by communismOPEC and oil
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
U.S. – Soviet RelationsSpirit of Geneva
U.S. call for slowdown of arms race
Soviet withdrawal from Austria and peace with Greece and Turkey
“Open Skies” proposalFirst thaw in Cold WarKruschev proposes
“peaceful coexistence”
U.S. – Soviet RelationsHungary
Popular uprising overthrows Communist gov.Khrushchev sends in tanks to restore controlEisenhower takes no action
U-2 IncidentRussians shoot down high-altitude spy planeEisenhower takes responsibilityKhrushchev calls off planned summit
conference
Sputnik1957Soviet satellite that
was first man made object in orbit
U.S. rockets failUS funds NASA,
science and tech education
Beginning of “space race”
Cuba LibreFidel Castro overthrows
Dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959
Castro nationalized American businesses and properties
Eisenhower cuts off trade with Cuba
Castro turns to USSRCommunism within 90 miles
of the U.S.Eisenhower prepares CIA to
retake island
Eisenhower’s LegacyChecked communist
aggressionDidn’t enter all-out warsSuspension of above-ground
nuclear testingFarewell Speech
“Military-Industrial Complex”G. Washington’s farewell -
“Overgrown military establishments are under any form of government inauspicious to liberty, and are to be regarded as particularly hostile to Republican liberty.”
Today
1. Lockheed Martin Corporation $113,150,702,033
2. Boeing Company, The $69,767,183,931
3. Northrop Grumman Corporation $58,965,101,199
4. Raytheon Company, The $39,574,959,300
5. General Dynamics $34,305,146,453
6. BAe Systems $27,433,827,992
7. McDonnell Douglas (a subsidiary of Boeing) $24,411,061,390
8. Science Applications Intl Corporation $15,496,672,846
9. Oshkosh Corporation $15,008,304,950
10. General Electric Corporation $10,297,038,378
12. L-3 Communications $8,606,004,056
Since 10/30/2006... MilitaryIndustrialComplex.com has recorded a total of 15,664 publicly-reported defense contracts. To date, that is an average of $3,840 for each member of the US citizenry.