BERLIN

• BERLIN REFUGEE CRISIS, 1958

  • The FRG gave access to more rights and freedom, and had a strong economy. West Berlin was governed as a democracy
  • East Germans experienced food shortages, their economy was not being recovered, and they lived in poor quality houses, where they were in constant fear of the secret police who arrested many for dissent.
  • This led to approximately three million Germans leaving the GDR by 1958 and became embarrassing for Khrushchev. It showed that given an option citizens under communist rule would prefer Capitalism over communism. This was known as the Brain Drain, as the USSR lost many experienced workers with skills such as doctors, engineers etc. There were not enough people to fill important job vacancies. This was also a propaganda failure
• REASONS FOR ULTIMATUM

  • Khrushchev believed that the USA had no claim to Berlin. Berlin fell within the GDR's territory 
  • The Soviet Union believed that its geographical position gave them the right to control the whole city
  • Khrushchev wanted to permanently push the West out of Berlin. The USSR could acquire Western infrastructure for their own economic progress
  • The Soviet Union fully controlling Berlin would result in a propaganda victory for Khrushchev
• ULTIMATUM

  • In October 1958, Khrushchev demanded that the West recognise the GDR as an independent country of the Soviet Union
  • Since the establishment of the GDR in 1949, many Western countries including the FRG refused to acknowledge that Germany had formerly split into two nations
  • The USA hoped that Germany would become one country soon. It refused to accept Khrushchev's demand
  • On 27th October 1958, Khrushchev issued his ultimatum to the West
• • US placed in an awkward position
  • Asking for Berlin to become a 'free city' showed the USSR as a peaceful nation
  • If the USA refused, it would make them look power-hungry 
  • In reality, Khrushchev had no intention to make Berlin independent. He wanted to incorporate the whole of Berlin into the USSR
  • Giving control of Berlin's transport network to the GDR played a clever political tactic
  • To secure access to West Berlin, the West would have to enter into negotiations with the GDR
  • Forces the USA to acknowledge that the GDR was an independent country and Germany was not ruled as one nation
• IMPACT OF ULTIMATUM

  • USA: Eisenhower considered Khrushchev's action as a way to force the USA out of Berlin. This would allow the Soviet Union to spread communism further across Europe
  • USSR: Khurshchev believed it was the only way to stop the mass migration out of the GDR
  • FRG: The FRG's Chancellor, Konrad Adenauer, did not want to recognise the GDR as a country. He also did not want the issue of Berlin to cause a nuclear war
• GENEVA SUMMIT, 1959

  • Khrushchev met the foreign representatives of France, Britain and the USA
  • AIMS: To find a solution for Khrushchev's Ultimatum. To agree on the way that the USA and the Soviet Union could govern Berlin
  • OUTCOMES: The representatives could not agree on what would resolve Khrushchev's ultimatum. Eisenhower and Khrushchev's relationship improved. Eisenhower invited Khrushchev to visit the USA later in the year
• CAMP DAVID SUMMIT, 1959

  • AIMS: To find a solution for Khrushchev's ultimatum. To agree on the way that the USA and the Soviet Union could govern Berlin
  • OUTCOMES: The representatives could not agree on what would resolve Khrushchev's ultimatum. Eisenhower and Khrushchev's relationship improved. They agreed to hold further talks in Paris the following year
• U-2 SPY PLANE INCIDENT

  • On May 1960, the USSR shot down a U-2 spy-plane, which was used by US Air Force to take photos and espionage operations on enemy countries, Eisenhower initially refused the claim and said it was a weather plane, however the USSR questioned the pilot Gary Powers who accepted that he wanted to gain intelligence on the USSR. Khrushchev demanded that the USA punished the CIA and Powers, and an apology, which Eisenhower refused to.
• PARIS SUMMIT, 1960

  • U-2 spy plane incident occurred before this.
  • AIMS: To find a solution for Khrushchev's ultimatum, To agree on wider international issues such as the communist takeover of Cuba and a Nuclear Test Ban
  • OUTCOMES: The representatives could not agree on what would resolve Khrushchev's ultimatum. Khrushchev walked out of the meeting due to the U-2 spy-plane incident. This increased Cold War tensions. The countries came to no resolution on these matters
• VIENNA, 1961

  • By 1961, there was a significant change in the USA. Kennedy replaced Eisenhower as the President of the USA and was an anti-communist. Khrushchev took Kennedy's age as a sign of his inexperience in politics and believed he could manipulate him. Kennedy already had a bad reputation due to the Bay of the Pigs in 1961 which led to Khrushchev believing Kennedy would be more likely to agree with his ultimatum on Berlin
• VIENNA, 1961

  • AIMS: To find a solution for Khrushchev's ultimatum, to agree on the way that the USA and the Soviet Union could govern Berlin
  • OUTCOMES: Khrushchev took a strong stance on Berlin. He restated to Kennedy his ultimatum. The meeting ended with no resolution on Berlin, Kennedy did not want to appear weak to Khrushchev. He refused to compromise with Khrushchev. Kennedy and Khrushchev established a negative relationship with each other
• IMPACT OF SUMMIT MEETINGS

  • By 1961, US-Soviet relations were very bad
  • Numerous peace talks had not succeeded in resolving the issue of governing Berlin
  • Both countries stopped pursuing cooperation
  • Kennedy and Khrushchev did not want 'peaceful co-existence' with each other
  • Kennedy increased the US armed forces budget to $2 billion, indicates Kennedy is willing to fight for Berlin
  • CONSEQUENCES: Worsened relations, Creation of Berlin Wall, and Kennedy increasing the armed forces budget to $2B.
• WHY WAS THE BERLIN WALL BUILT?

  • The situation in Berlin required Khrushchev to act quickly
  • The failure of the Vienna Summit in June created fear among East Germans
  • Over 40,000 East Germans escaped the GDR through Berlin in one day in August
  • Walter Ulbricht, the leader of the GDR, urged Khrushchev to act quickly to prevent more East Germans from leaving
  • Under nightfall, the East German government placed barbed wire between East and West Berlin on 12th August 1961 and placed guards near the divide
  • The Berlin Wall developed from barbed wire to a concrete structure during the 1960s
• CONSEQUENCES OF THE WALL

  • As a result, many people became stuck in East Berlin
  • The wall separated German families and friends for years
  • Many East Germans continued to attempt escape plans to West Berlin. The GDR killed over 130 people attempting to go over, around or under the Berlin Wall between 1961 and 1989. Escape plans included:
  • Climbing and jumping from windows next to the wall
  • Flying over the wall in hot air balloons
  • Using open-top cars to duck underneath the barriers at the Berlin Wall's checkpoints
  • Using the sewer systems to travel to West Berlin
• CONSEQUENCE OF THE WALL ON RELATIONS

  • POSITIVE: West Berlin remained independent of communist influence. It became a symbol of freedom across Europe. The migration of millions of East Germans was no longer an issue between the two countries. 
  • NEGATIVE: East Germans found it much more difficult to escape the GDR. The Soviet Union gained a reputation for repressing its own people. The possibility of uniting Germany into one country seemed further away than ever after the building of the Berlin Wall
• KENNEDY'S VISIT, JUN 1963

  • Thousands of West Berliners gathered to see Kennedy
  • Kennedy was a symbol of freedom for the West Berliners
  • On June 1963, Kennedy addressed the West Berliners in what is now known as the 'Ich bin ein Berliner' ('I am a Berliner') speech
  • Kennedy's speech praised the strength of West Berlin and maintained the USA's image as the protector of freedom
  • The crowd in West Berlin appreciated Kennedy's attempt to speak German and supported Kennedy's message of hope and freedom
• IMPACT ON CW TENSIONS

  • EASE OF TENSIONS - The Berlin Wall meant there was less chance of a nuclear war developing over Berlin. Kennedy stated: "a wall is a hell of a lot better than a war”.
  • ESCALATED TENSIONS - The Berlin Wall created a physical divide to match the ideological divide between East and West. It became a symbol of the Cold War until 1989. It was a diplomatic failure for the USA and the Soviet Union.