part 3: transformation

• how was the living standard different between East and West Berlin?


  wages in West Berlin were higher than in East Berlin. It was found that areas that were in West Germany were still 17% higher than in East Germany in 2018. This difference was even greater in the 1950s.
• between 1952 and 1961 how many Eastern Germans migrated to West Germany?

  3.5 million
• how did Eastern Germans migrating to the West affect the Soviets?

  People were leaving their territory and moving to American controlled territory which caused problems for East Germany as skilled workers tended to leave meaning East Germany's output, productivity, and wealth didn't rise as much. There was a shortage of skilled labour.
• when did Krushchev propose the Berlin ultimatum?

  November 1958
• what was the Berlin ultimatum?

  Krushchev claimed that Berlin should be absorbed into East Germany.
• what was the response to the Berlin ultimatum?

  it led to a series of summit meetings between the leaders of the powers. The first summit happened in Geneva and the second at Camp David in September 1959.
• when did construction of the Berlin wall begin?

  13th August 1961
• why was the Berlin wall constructed?

  it was an effort to solve the refugee crisis and keep people in East Germany and East Berlin. Initially it was a flimsy fence with a razor wire at the top but over time it became a heavier concrete border.
• how were foreigners allowed to travel from East to West Berlin?


  by crossing "checkpoint Charlie". There was a tense stand-off on 27th October 1961 between the Soviet army (with tanks) and the American citizens trying to cross into East Berlin.
• what was Kennedy's response to the Berlin Wall?

  on a visit to West Berlin on the 26th June 1963, the US president described himself as a "Berliner" in a symbolic speech.
• why was there a growing opposition to communism in Czechoslovakia?

  living standards had fallen under the soviet rule.
• who became the leader of Czechoslovakia in 1968 and what did he want?

  Alexander Dubcek: he had a good relationship with the Soviet leader Brezhnev and supported the Warsaw pact but wanted communism to have a "human face", introducing reforms that improved the lives of Czechoslovakian people.
• what were the reforms made in Czechoslovakia that increased political freedom?

  in April 1968, cencorship was relaxed, more criticism of communism was allowed and other political parties were permitted. The secret police had their powers reduced and arresting and detaining without a trial was restricted.
• what was the response to the Prague Spring?

  many Czechoslovakians were enthusiastic about the reforms. Brehnev and the East Germany leader were especially concerned: they feared that Prague Spring would lead to calls for reforms elsewhere in the USSR's sphere of influence.
• what did Brehnev do as a result of Prague Spring?

  nothing, he was unsure how to act as he was close to Dubcek and did not want to risk his country's reputation by going to war.
• when was the Prague Spring?

  1968
• how and when was Soviet control re-established in Czechoslovakia?

  21st August 1968: troops from all the countries in the Warsaw pact entered Prague and Dubcek was arrested and flown to Moscow. Nobody in Czechoslovakia was expecting an invasion, especially the armed troops. Dubcek urged Czechoslovakians not to resist the invasion with violence.
• what happened to Czechoslovakia after Dubcek?

  it became a strictly-run Soviet satellite state again, led by Husak. The process of rolling back Dubcek's reforms was called "normalisation". Unlike Nagy in Hungary, Dubcek was returned to Czechoslovakia and given a less important position.
• what was the Brezhnev doctrine?

  a policy that the Soviet Union would use the Warsaw pact troops to maintain their position of influence in Eastern Europe. Anyone proposing reforms or threatening communism in the Soviet sphere of influence was likely to be invaded.
• how did the West respond to the Brezhnev doctrine?

  it was condemned by Britain and America, but again West didn't want to go to war over a relatively peaceful invasion within the Soviet's sphere of influence. However, the Brezhnev doctrine and the invasion harmed the Soviet's brand of communism.
• which regions supported Soviet action?

  Latin American nations, like Castro's Cuba. However, Mexico, which had previously supported the Soviet Union, broke away.
• what ended the cooperation between the USA and Cuba?

  before 1959, Cuba cooperated with the USA under the leadership of General Batista. In 1959, Castro led a socialist revolution that overthrew US-supported General Batista.
• how did Cuba respond to their cooperation with the USA ending?

  Cuba began to trade with the USSR. Links between the USSR and Cuba strengthened and the Soviets began to sell oil and fuel to Cuba. Brezhnev visited Cuba in 1974 as the relationship grew stronger.
• what did Cuba ask the USSR for?

  military defense support. At the same time, the USA was trying to bring Cuba back into the American sphere of influence.
• when was the Bay of Pigs?

  17th April 1961
• what was the Bay of Pigs?

  America invaded Cuba, the CIA told the USA that it would look like a Cuban revolt. The USA assembled a group of Cuban exiles called "Brigade 2506". The invasion was funded by the CIA and was launched from Guatemala. They were met with an army of 20000 Cubans and the exiles surrendered.
• why did the Bay of Pigs fail?

  Castro had been informed about the impending invasion before it was launched, allowing him to prepare. The American planes used in the raid made it obvious that it was an invasion.
• what happened as a result of the Bay of Pigs?

  1202 members of the Brigade 2506 were captured. Castro offered to release the men in exchange for $28 million worth of tractors before an agreement was struck in 1962 to deliver $53 milliom worth of food an medicine.
• what were the consequences of the Bay of Pigs?

  • destroyed the possibility of good Cuban-American relations
  • Castro cemented his socialist rule in Cuba
  • the USA lost face: they funded a failed invasion and pretended they weren't involved.
• when did the USA discover Soviet missile sites on Cuba and why were they there?

  October 1962: Cuba had allowed the USSR to station missiles there to act as a deterrent to stop the USA attacking Cuba again.
• what was Kennedy's response to the Cuban missile crisis?

  20th October 1962, kennedy decided on a "quarantine zone". He thought an invasion of Cuba would risk nuclear war. Instead, the blockade would try and stop any Soviet ships reaching Cuba.
• how was the Cuban missile crisis settled?

  27th October 1962, Krushchev and Kennedy compromised. The USSR would not place any missiles on Cuba if the USA removed its warheads (ICMBs) from its army bases in Europe (mainly Italy and Turkey) meaning neither superpower had missiles within the range of the opposition's territory.
• what were the consequences of the Cuban missile crisis for the USA?

  showed that there was no appetite for war between the USSR and the USA. This strengthened the "dove's" position politically in the USA. A hotline connecting the US president and the Soviet leader was set up so they could communicate immediately during a crisis.
• what were the consequences of the Cuban missile crisis for the USSR?

  after 1962, the USSR had accumulated even more nuclear weapons. By 1965, the USSR and USA had the same number of nuclear missiles. The USSR looked weaker than the USA. Krushchev was removed 2 years later.
• what were the nuclear treaties?

  • August 1963: the Limited Test Ban Treaty was signed the USA and USSR. Nuclear weapons couldn't be tested above ground.
  • 1967: the Outer Space Treaty agreed to not use nuclear weapons in space.
  • 1968: USA and USSR signed the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty which stopped the two countries from sharing their nuclear missiles with other nations.
• when did the Cuban missile crisis take place?

  20th-28th October 1962
• what was SALT 1?

  a nuclear weapons limitations treaty. It is placed a cap on what different kinds of missiles that they USA and USSR could have. No new ICMBs could be made and no new nuclear launch sites were allowed. No new nuclear submarines were allowed. A maximum of 2 ABMs.
• when did SALT 1 happen?

  1972
• why was SALT 1 significant?

  it was a positive sign of collaboration between the 2 superpowers. It capped the number of ICMBs, which marked a pause in the nuclear missiles arms race. Nixon and Brezhnev would go to visit each others countries. SALT 1 was so successful that it led to SALT 2 in 1979.
• what was the Moscow summit?

  1972: the ABM treaty and the SALT 1 were signed. The meeting was a high points of detente between the East and West.