Cold War Vocab Flashcards
Chapter 13 (35 cards)
What was the Cold War?
The hostile but nonviolent struggle for power between the United States and the Soviet Union, as well as their respective allies, from the end of WWII to the collapse of the Soviet Union.
What was the Yalta Conference?
A conference held in February 1945 in Yalta, attended by US president Franklin D. Roosevelt, British prime minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet premier Joseph Stalin, to plan the future of post-WWII Europe.
What was the Potsdam Conference?
A conference in July and August 1945 in Potsdam, attended by US president Harry S. Truman, British prime ministers Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee, and Soviet premier Joseph Stalin, to finalize post-WWII plans for Europe.
What are superpowers?
Nations that are so powerful that they influence or control less powerful states.
What is containment?
The US foreign policy practice after WWII of attempting to restrict the expansion of Soviet influence around the world.
What is the UN Atomic Energy Commission?
A panel established by the United Nations in 1946 to propose ways to control atomic energy and restrict the development of nuclear weapons.
What is the Iron Curtain?
The ideological barrier that existed between Eastern and Western Europe from 1945 to 1990.
What is the Truman Doctrine?
A US foreign policy established in 1947 by President Harry S. Truman, providing economic and military aid to countries resisting communism.
What is the NSC and what does it do?
The National Security Council, which advises the president on national security issues and oversees the actions of the CIA.
What is the CIA and what does it do?
The Central Intelligence Agency, which collects and analyzes intelligence gathered in part by agents operating in foreign countries.
What was the Marshall Plan?
A US plan initiated by Secretary of State George Marshall from 1948 to 1951 to aid in the economic recovery of Europe after WWII by offering substantial funds to certain European countries.
What is an arms race?
A competition between nations to achieve the more powerful weapons arsenal.
What was the Berlin Blockade?
The Soviet blockade of Berlin from 1948 to 1949 to halt land travel into the city, which led to the Allied nations airlifting food and supplies into Berlin.
What is brinkmanship?
A foreign policy characterized by a willingness to push a dangerous situation to the brink of war rather than give in to an opponent.
What is covert action?
A secret political, economic, or military operation that aims to shape events or influence affairs in a foreign country to support the initiating nation’s foreign policy.
What is a demilitarized zone?
An area, often along the border between two military powers, where no military forces are allowed to enter.
What is an H-bomb?
A hydrogen bomb, created by fusing atoms, more powerful than an atomic bomb, first tested by the US in 1952.
What was the Korean War?
A war fought on the Korean Peninsula from 1950 to 1953 after North Korea invaded South Korea, leading to US and UN intervention.
What is mutually assured destruction?
The principle during the arms race that either side would respond to a nuclear attack by launching its own missiles, preventing the Cold War from becoming a hot war.
What is NATO?
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a military alliance formed in 1949 among the US, Canada, and several European nations to establish collective security against the Soviet Union.
What is a satellite nation?
A country under another country’s control.
What is the Warsaw Pact?
A military alliance signed in 1955 by the Soviet Union and several Eastern European nations in response to NATO.
What was the Alger Hiss case?
A court case involving Alger Hiss, a US State Department official accused of passing secrets to the Soviet Union, contributing to fears of subversion during the early Cold War.
What is the Atomic Age?
The era beginning in 1945 with the first use of atomic weapons, lasting to the present time.
