1958-61 The Berlin Crisis Flashcards
(11 cards)
What was the issue with West Berlin?
West Berlin was deep inside Soviet controlled East Germany. This was a small part of capitalism in a communist country.
What happened during the Berlin Refugee Crisis?
Between 1949 and 1961 2.7 million people fled East Germany to the West through Berlin.
Why was the Berlin Refugee crisis problematic for the USSR?
- Caused a brain drain in East Germany which significantly crippled its industry
- It showed that people preferred capitalism to communism.
What was Khrushchev’s ultimatum?
The leader of the USSR, Khrushchev, stated that all of Berlin should belong to East Germany. He demanded that the USA remove their troops from Berlin in 6 months.
What happened at the Geneva Summit? (1959)
No agreements were made but another meeting was agreed.
What happened at the Camp David Summit? (1959)
Again no agreements were made but another meeting was agreed.
What happened at the 1960 Paris Summit?
Khrushchev stormed out of the meeting as the USSR had shot down a US spy plane over their land.
What happened at the 1961 Vienna Summit?
Khrushchev tried to intimidate the new US president, Kennedy, and restated his 6 month ultimatum.
What happened with the Berlin Wall?
In August 1961 Khrushchev ordered a wall to be built around West Berlin. West Berlin was cut off completely from East Germany.
What were the impacts of the Berlin Wall?
The refugee problem was solved. People were no longer able to leave communist East Germany.
The USA were able to maintain their control of West Berlin
War was avoided
Kennedy looked strong as he was able to keep control of West Berlin. In 1963 he gave a speech in West Berlin and was seen as a hero.
People were trapped under communist control. People who tried to escape were shot.
Khrushchev looked weak as he wasn’t able to force the USA out of Berlin.
