Unit 13 Lesson 3: Reagan's Foreign Policies

Question 1

Reagan wanted to transform American foreign policy as much as he wanted to change domestic economic policy. What did he believe

Answer 1

He believed that Americans had been humiliated by their inability to win in Vietnam. Reagan wished to restore the stature that the United States had once had in the world, a stature he felt the country had lost. He entered the White House a “Cold Warrior” and spoke out against the Soviet Union.

Question 2

How did REgan feel about the use of the military

Answer 2

He believed that the United States should not be reluctant to use military force as necessary to keep countries from adapting communist policies.

Question 2

What was the invasion of Grenada

Answer 2

Two days after the bombing in Beirut, Reagan and Secretary of State George P. Shultz authorized the invasion of Grenada, a small Caribbean island nation. The invasion forced out the communist leaders of Grenada.

Question 2

How did Regan react to the Beirut barracks bombing

Answer 2

. In February 1984, Reagan announced that U.S. troops would be withdrawn from Lebanon due to the intensified fighting

Question 2

Reagan’s desire to show U.S. military readiness bore tragic consequences in 1983. He sent soldiers to Lebanon as part of a multinational force. The mission was to restore order following an Israeli invasion the year before. What was the **Beirut barracks bombings **

Answer 2

On October 23, more than 200 American troops were killed in a terrorist attack. Iranian-trained militants, known as Hezbollah, carried out the Beirut barracks bombing.

Question 3

How did Reagan feel about authoritarian foregin governments

Answer 3

He did not hesitate to support authoritarian foreign governments if it meant preventing communist governments from coming to power.

Question 4

What was the response to the invasion of Grenada

Answer 4

The United Nations General Assembly condemned the United States’ invasion of Grenada as a “flagrant violation of international law and of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of that State” by a vote of 108 to 9, adding that the U.N. “deplores the death of innocent civilians resulting from the armed intervention.”

Question 5

What was Nicaragua being governed by

Answer 5

Nearby Nicaragua was governed by a Marxist-inspired group, the Sandinistas, led by Daniel Ortega.

Question 6

Why were the Marxist-inspired group, the Sandinistas rulling Nicaragua

Answer 6

They had overthrown the brutal right-wing dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza in 1979

Question 7

Nearby Nicaragua was governed by a Marxist-inspired group, the Sandinistas, led by Daniel Ortega. They had overthrown the brutal right-wing dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza in 1979. How did Regan recact to this

Answer 7

Reagan feared that the Sandinistas opened the region to Cuban and Soviet influence. Reagan wished to prevent that expansion of Soviet alliance and communism in Latin America. He approved the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to equip and train a group of anti-Sandinista Nicaraguans. Known as the Contras, these counterrevolutionaries worked to remove Ortega.

Question 8

in 1979, the socialist Sandinistas came to power in Nicaragua. Similar movements were popular in the nearby countries of

Answer 8

Guatemala and El Salvador.

Question 9

To try to prevent Soviet influence or communist policies, in 1979, the United States supported a coup in El Salvador. What did this lead to

Answer 9

Unfortunately, this coup led to large protests in El Salvador. The new government reacted harshly, killing around 16,000 civilians between 1979 and 1982.

Question 9

To try to prevent Soviet influence or communist policies, in 1979, the United States supported a coup in El Salvador. Unfortunately, this coup led to large protests in El Salvador. The new government reacted harshly, killing around 16,000 civilians between 1979 and 1982. How did US respond to this

Answer 9

The U.S. sent funding and advisors to the Salvadoran armed forces as well as military training. The protests evolved into a civil war and a refugee crisis, which lasted until 1992 when peace was negotiated through the United Nations.

Question 10

In 1954, the United States led a coup against the democratically elected socialist president Jacobo Árbenz, supporting a series of authoritarian dictators in his place. What did this lead to

Answer 10

This began a decades-long civil war. The new dictatorship began a genocide of indigenous Guatemalans, who had supported Árbenz and socialist policies.

Question 11

This began a decades-long civil war. The new dictatorship began a genocide of indigenous Guatemalans, who had supported Árbenz and socialist policies. The United States provided military and financial aid to the Guatemalan government. What happened to this millitray and financial aid over the years

Answer 11

Under President Jimmy Carter, the United States reduced aid to the Guatemalan government due to its genocide. Congress placed an embargo on the government. Despite the embargo, President Reagan’s administration provided military equipment to the Guatemalan government.

Question 12

In 1985, Congress banned financial aid to the Nicaraguan Contras. Why did they that

Answer 12

This was in response to a 1984 government report that found President Reagan’s claims of an alliance between the Nicaraguan government and the Soviet Union to be “exaggerated.”

Question 13

A year later, Reagan’s National Security Council aide, Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, found a way to acquire funds to help the Contras. How did he do so

Answer 13

By secretly selling weapons to Iran, he could secretly use the proceeds to support the Contras. Of course, this was in direct violation of the congressional ban on military aid to the anti-communist guerrillas.

Question 13

Officials in the Reagan administration believed it was in their best interest to help the enemy of their enemy, so they agreed to assist Iraq with money, arms, and military intelligence. What changed this plan

Answer 13

In 1983, however, the capture of Americans by terrorist Hezbollah forces in Lebanon changed that plan.

Question 13

In September 1980, Iraq had invaded neighboring Iran. By 1982, Iraq had gained the upper hand but needed more weapons. How did Officals respond

Answer 13

Officials in the Reagan administration believed it was in their best interest to help the enemy of their enemy, so they agreed to assist Iraq with money, arms, and military intelligence.

Question 14

Still, the president desired to assist the counterrevolutionaries. What did this lead him to do

Answer 14

Surprisingly, this led him to secretly funding Iran.

Question 15

In 1983, however, the capture of Americans by terrorist Hezbollah forces in Lebanon changed that plan. How did the president respond and why was it contorversial

Answer 15

The president allowed the sale of anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles to Iran in 1985, in exchange for the Iranians’ help in freeing three of the American hostages, as Hezbollah was funded by Iran. This was in violation of congress’ arms embargo against Iran, which it had passed in part due to Iran’s funding of Hezbollah terrorism.

Question 16

How did Americans feel about the Contras

Answer 16

The Contras were also unpopular with the American public due to their human rights violations and terrorist attacks.

Question 17

A year later, Reagan’s National Security Council aide, Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, found a way to acquire funds to help the Contras. By secretly selling weapons to Iran, he could secretly use the proceeds to support the Contras. Of course, this was in direct violation of the congressional ban on military aid to the anti-communist guerrillas. Eventually members of the Senate became aware of the activity, how did they react?

Answer 17

North and others were indicted on various charges. All charges were eventually dismissed, overturned on appeal, or granted presidential pardon. He was unable to “remember” crucial facts and meetings related to this affair and escaped with nothing more than criticism for his lax oversight.

Question 18

Reagan had a delegation style of administration

Answer 18

He was known to give authority to subordinates to carry out tasks.

Question 19

How did the nation react to the Iran-Contra Affair

Answer 19

The nation was divided over the extent to which the president could go to “protect national interests.” Limits of Congress’s constitutional authority to oversee the activities of the executive branch have yet to be resolved.

Question 20

Shortly after Reagan’s election, the United States passed the Boland Amendment.

Answer 20

This law limited all U.S. assistance for groups working to overthrow the Nicaraguan government. This series of acts was specifically passed to diminish Reagan’s ability to contribute funds to the Contras.

Question 21

How did REagon feel about SALT

Answer 21

Ronald Reagan had never liked the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties, SALT I and SALT

Question 22

Money flowed to the Pentagon to pay for expensive new forms of weaponry. One of the most controversial aspects of Reagan’s plan was the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI).

Answer 22

He proposed SDI, nicknamed Star Wars, in 1983. SDI was conceived as a defensive shield to protect the United States from a Soviet missile strike.

Question 23

Response to SDI

Answer 23

Scientists argued that much of the needed technology had not yet been developed and might never be. Others contended that the plan would violate existing treaties with the Soviet Union. Some worried about the Soviet response. The system was never built, and the plan, estimated to have cost some $7.5 billion, was finally abandoned.

Question 24

In time, Reagan began to moderate his position toward the Soviet Union. Why was that

Answer 24

In time, Reagan began to moderate his position toward the Soviet Union. This move was largely initiated by his new counterpart, Mikhail Gorbachev.

Question 25

1985, Gorbachev and Reagan met in Geneva, Switzerland. What did this lead to

Answer 25

They both wanted to reduce armaments and shrink their respective military budgets. The following year, meeting in Reykjavík, Iceland, they surprised the world by announcing that they would try to eliminate nuclear weapons by 1996.

Question 25

Mikhail Gorbachev

Answer 25

. The new Soviet premier did not want to continue funding another arms race. He introduced political reforms, such as new civil liberties, and made information about the Soviet government more open to the public. In addition, Gorbachev proposed arms reduction talks with the United States.

Question 26

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF)

Answer 26

In 1987, they agreed to eliminate a whole category of nuclear weapons. The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty was later signed at the White House. This laid the foundation for future agreements limiting nuclear weapons.

Question 27

Ronald Reagan believed in the idea of **peace through strength**.

Answer 27

While his tone was aggressive, he managed to avoid a military conflict with the Soviet Union. Some believe that it was Reagan’s tough stance against the Soviet Union that weakened communism’s hold in the east. Others argue that none of that would have been possible without the emergence of Gorbachev. Some conservatives have held that peace through strength was posturing and that Reagan in fact appeased the Soviets throughout his terms as president.

Question 28

Reagan made a controversial decision in selecting the outspoken Jeane Kirkpatrick as ambassador to the United Nations (UN).

Answer 28

Kirkpatrick was a strong advocate of an assertive American foreign policy. Many members of the UN did not agree with that viewpoint. As ambassador, she was an unapologetic defender of U.S. actions in Grenada and the Middle East.

Question 29

The United States and its allies in NATO faced challenges in the 1980s.

Answer 29

Aggressive talk between the United States and the Soviet Union began intensifying. The Warsaw Pact countries had superior ground forces, so NATO allies needed American military might. In addition, NATO needed to counter the threat of the presence of nuclear weapons at European military bases. While NATO officials worked out nonnuclear options, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. After Ronald Reagan was elected president, tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union flared again. After the emergence of Mikhail Gorbachev, the threat of nuclear war on European soil began to diminish.

Question 30

Who do you think had more responsibility for lessening Cold War tensions, Reagan or Gorbachev? Explain your answer.

Answer 30

I think both leaders contributed, but Gorbachev did more to lessen tensions. He made changes that appealed to the United States and asked for a reduction in the arms race.

Question 31

How did Ronald Reagan's Cold War policies compare with those of previous administrations?

Answer 31

Ford and Carter wanted to distance the United States from any threat of armed conflict, not wanting to repeat the fiasco in Vietnam. They wanted to halt or at least slow down the arms race. Reagan wanted to promote "peace through strength," which meant letting the world know that the United States was not afraid to go to war. This increased the possibility of military conflict and a continued ramped-up arms race.

Question 32

What was the Iran-Contra Affair?

Answer 32

It was an attempt to secretly fund the Contras-a counterrevolutionary group trying to oust the leftist government of Nicaragua-with money made from selling weapons to Iran.

Question 33

Why is Ronald Reagan given credit for a role in ending the Cold War?

Answer 33

Reagan talked tough to the Soviet Union throughout his presidency and let SALT I and SALT II expire in an attempt to show that the United States was not afraid to fight if necessary. When a more agreeable Soviet leader emerged, many people credited that to Reagan's policy of "peace through strength."