The Cold War: An Introduction What was the Cold War Relevancy of Cold War to 21 st century Aims of this course.

The Cold War: An The Cold War: An IntroductionIntroduction

What was the Cold WarRelevancy of Cold War to 21st century

Aims of this course

The 21The 21stst Century Century

Treaties of past wars sought to balance power◦ Treaty of Westphalia◦ Treaty of Ghent◦ Congress of Vienna◦ Treaty of Versailles

New World Order after Soviet defeat◦ International cooperation◦ No longer a world of ‘Us v. Them’◦ Democracy will grow out of necessity ◦ Interconnectedness between politics and economics◦ “Trade pacts are of greater importance than missiles”

Martin Walker in The Cold War

Clinton PresidencyClinton Presidency

Faced with new challenge in uni-polar worldNew foreign policy needed to deal w/ challengeClinton speech on eve of Congressional vote on

NAFTA:◦“This vote comes at a defining moment for our

nation. This country is now the most productive country in the world across a broad spectrum of manufacturing and service industries in this economy. We can win. And we have to decide whether we are going to reach out and win or try to withdraw” Martin Walker, The Cold War

Winning no longer means defeating Communism, but remaining the most relevant economic power in the world- How else to retain American supremacy in post Cold war era?

History Full CircleHistory Full Circle

Clinton strategy similar to post-WWII◦ Japan and Germany rebuilt to provide an economic

stabilizer in both Europe and Asia◦Marshall Plan and NATO worked hand-in-hand to create

buffer zone between the ‘West’ and Soviet RussiaFormer Soviet satellites would be brought into

collective agreements◦Democracy would reach the crevices of old Soviet system◦Post Cold War policy was to bring China, India and places

in Africa into this circle of trust and cooperativeness◦Former countries behind Iron Curtain (Estonia, Ukraine,

Romania, Bulgaria to name a few) would enter to economic and political agreements w/in framework of European Union

A World w/out a Balancing ForceA World w/out a Balancing Force

“The press is now searching for a different organising principle- North-South tensions, religion versus secularism, nationalm versus internationalism… The Cold War could turn anything into an issue of national interest if Communism was somehow implicated. That easy link is gone…How does the press relate national interest to more or less obscure wars in remote areas, to communal strife in India, corruption in Brazil, AIDS in Zaire or overpopulation worldwide? How does it make clear to the public that the old dividing line between foreign and domestic affairs is getting ever thinner.”◦ Time magazine editor Henry Grunwald (1993) on the global

media’s role in a ‘New World Order’

Good v. EvilGood v. Evil

Good and evil according to U.S. and U.S.S.R.Cold War was a war of perceptions

◦Perceptions became realityNo matter the viewpoint, a definitive evil existedPropaganda used to influence and dictate

domestic & foreign policyFax machines, cell phones, satellite TV made that

definition all too cloudy◦East Berlin and Fall of Berlin Wall◦Glasnost◦Poland’s ‘Solidarity’◦Tiananmen Square in Beijing

Cold War DefinedCold War Defined

History of Cold War has been world history between 1945-1991

Martin Walker argues that it still continues today

Global conflict reaching Korea, Vietnam, Venezuela, Cuba, Turkey, Afghanistan and Greece to name a few places

War fought by proxy- never ‘hot’ between Soviets and Americans

DeterrenceDeterrence

U.S. strategy adopted to deter warMassive weapons build-up; ready military forces;

political will to use themNukes would be ultimate deterrentIs this a balanced deterrent? Amt of nukes would be

disproportional to threatDeterrence and collective security- UN introduced-

championed by U.S. This foreign policy/military strategy known as MAD

◦ Mutually Assured Destruction◦ Both parties (Soviets & American) would have to mind one

another’s military weaponry when determining foreign policy

1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1995

UNITED STATES 6 3,057 31,265 26,675 22,941 14,766

SOVIET UNION 0 200 6,129 19,443 39,197 27,000

BRITAIN 0 10 310 350 300 300

FRANCE 0 0 32 188 360 485

CHINA 0 0 5 185 425 425

Source: National Resources Defense Council

History of Nuclear Warhead Stockpiles: 1945-1995* Notes: totals are estimates. Lists include strategic and non-strategic

warheads, as well as warheads awaiting dismantling

Similarities and Contrasts Similarities and Contrasts

U.S. & U.S.S.R: Similarities Contrasts

Both latecomers to international prominence

Large population and resource centers

Drawn into continental rivalry

Both had messianic visions about political organization

Demonstrated massive military capability

Heart of rivalry was national interest and ideology

Rivalry was clash between principles

Capitalism v. Socialism Individual liberty v. state

security Religious freedom v.

scientific materialism International diversity v.

Communist Commonwealth◦ For the Common Defense: A Military

History of the United States by Peter Maslowski

An InstitutionAn Institution

Perversely, Cold War became way of life

Social norms, behaviors and patterns witnessed in both U.S. and U.S.S.R.

Cold War became a warped stability

Cold War was also an economic war- U.S. won because it could produce more guns, food, health care, vacations and private cars than Soviets◦ The Cold War - Martin Walker

In Conclusion

We will analyze and assess the Cold War this SemesterYou will implement skills of interpretation, analysis,

evaluation and synthesis as we carry forwardWe will be able to provide answers to questions such as, but

not limited to:◦ Is there a blame to be placed on a certain country or government for the Cold

War?◦ For what reasons did the Cold War never become a ‘hot war?’◦ Change the meaning of Cold War around, was the Cold War, in fact, a hot war?◦ To what reasons should we attribute the fall of Communism and the Soviet

Union?◦ Was the Cold War a war of perception?◦ Did the U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War determine American foreign

policy in the post Cold War era?◦ Was M.A.D. a valid military strategy during the Cold War?◦ How do you describe the Cold War culture as different from U.S. culture today?