End Of WWII And New World Order Flashcards
(25 cards)
Q1: What was the main aim of the IMF when it was created in 1944?
A: To ensure global monetary stability through a fixed exchange rate system, prevent currency devaluations like in the 1930s, and provide emergency funding to stabilise economies.
Q2: What is the N-1 problem, and how did it apply to the IMF system?
A: It meant only N-1 countries could adjust their currency; the remaining country (the US, with its dollar tied to gold) had to maintain a fixed value to ensure global stability.
Q3: What conditions could the IMF impose on countries seeking aid?
A: The IMF could require countries to implement economic reforms, such as reducing deficits, liberalising markets, or cutting public spending.
Q4: What was the original aim of the World Bank (IBRD)?
A: To help rebuild war-torn countries after WWII through reconstruction loans, starting with France in 1947.
Q5: How did the World Bank’s first major loan help postwar recovery in France?
A: It provided $250 million for essential equipment, raw materials, and energy resources, helping to revive French productivity and confidence.
Q6: Why was GATT created in 1948?
A: To prevent a return to the protectionism of the 1930s by encouraging international trade through negotiated tariff reductions.
Q7: What was the limitation of GATT in its early years?
A: It excluded agriculture and heavily favoured industrialised countries, leaving many developing countries marginalised.
Q8: How did GATT promote trade liberalisation?
A: Through negotiation “rounds” like the 1967 Kennedy Round, which reduced tariffs between the USA and Europe by 35%.
Q9: What replaced GATT, and when?
A: The World Trade Organization (WTO) in 1995.
Q10: What were the key aims of the UN according to its 1945 Charter?
A: To maintain peace, uphold human rights, promote social progress and better living standards, and ensure international law.
Q11: When was the UN officially founded, and by how many original member states?
A: On 24 October 1945, with 51 founding member states
Q12: What are the four main organs of the UN as established at Dumbarton Oaks?
A: The General Assembly, Security Council, Secretariat, and International Court of Justice.
Q13: What does Article 1 of the UDHR state?
A: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
Q14: According to the UDHR, what forms of mistreatment are explicitly prohibited?
A: Slavery, torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
Q15: What is the purpose of the UDHR’s preamble?
A: To affirm the dignity and equal rights of all human beings as the foundation for peace and justice worldwide.
Q16: What did the UN Genocide Convention define genocide as?.
A: Any act intended to destroy a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group—such as killing, causing serious harm, or forcibly transferring children.
Q17: What types of acts are punishable under the Convention?
A: Genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, incitement, attempts, and complicity.
Q18: Who can be held accountable under the Genocide Convention?
A: All individuals, including public officials and heads of state.
Q1: What made World War II the most devastating conflict in human history?
A: Its sheer scale: 65 nations involved, over 78 million deaths, cities flattened, genocides committed, and societies left traumatised. It wasn’t just a war of armies—it was a war against civilians, against values, against humanity itself.
Q2: What kinds of suffering did civilians endure during WWII?
A: Bombings (like Hamburg), the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, rape and violence (especially in Germany), famine, mass displacement, and psychological trauma. Civilians weren’t just “caught in the crossfire”—they were often the targets.
Q5: What was the purpose of FDR’s Four Freedoms speech in 1941?
A: To set out a moral vision for the post-war world, built on freedom of speech, worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. It was a rallying cry for democracy, human dignity, and a world no longer ruled by terror or conquest.
Q6: How did the IMF and the Bretton Woods system reflect lessons learned from the 1930s?
A: By creating a global monetary system with fixed exchange rates and emergency funding mechanisms, the IMF aimed to avoid the chaos of competitive devaluations and financial collapses that helped lead to fascism and war.
Q12: What is the overall narrative of this lesson?
A: WWII exposed the depths of human cruelty and suffering, leading to a moral reckoning. In response, world leaders built new global institutions to prevent future wars, protect human dignity, stabilise economies, and promote justice—a blueprint for a new world order rooted in cooperation and shared humanity.
