cold war intensifies

• • 1945: USA dropped two atomic bombs on Japanese cities
  • 1949: Soviet Union tests its first atomic bomb
  • 1952: USA develops H-bomb
  • 1953: Soveit Union develops H-bomb
• By the mid 1950's, both powers had developed weapons which would result in mutually assured destruction (MAD) if they were to be used.
• MAD meant that the USA and USSR had to find ways to stop disputes before they turned into dangerous wars involving nuclear weapons.
• The Warsaw Pact was a collective defence treaty involving the Soviet Union, Poland, Hungary, East Germany and Czechoslovakia.
• The Warsaw Pact was set up on 14 May 1955, after West Germany entered NATO on 9 May 1955.
• The Warsaw Pact gave the Soviet Union direct control over its satellite states armed forces, which strenghtned its grip on Eastern Europe.
• When Stalin died, Khrushchev took over and hinted that soviet control would relax in 1956. This caused hungarians to start protesting against communist control. In response, Khrushchev elected Nagy, a more liberal prime minister, in hopes it would calm people down.
• Nagy wanted the following reforms for Hungary:

  • leaving the warsaw pact
  • holding free elections
  • united nation protection from the soviet union