Czechoslovakia | 1968-69

• Czechoslovakian people hated USSR:

  • 1948 - communism forced upon Czechoslovakia - communist government set up
  • Life for Czechoslovakian people was hard
• Dubcek:

  • Communist, but "socialist with human face"
  • USSR not positive - wanted strong influence in Eastern Europe
• Prague Spring:

  Dubcek introduced reforms:

  • less censoring and allowed criticism of government
  • More power to trade unions and government control of industry reduced
  • Increased trade with West
  • More power to Czech people
  • Czech people given more freedom to travel abroad
  • Dubcek's reforms popular in Czechoslovakia and less in Moscow
• • USSR disapproved of Prague Spring
  • Domino Theory
• Soviet reaction to Prague Spring:

  • 50,000 Warsaw Pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia and ended Prague Spring
  • Little opposition to invasion
• Brezhnev Doctrine:

  • USSR policy that any threat to communist rule in Eastern Europe was threat to all, and intervention of other communist states
• Summary:

  • Communist rule in Czechoslovakia became more unpopular
  • Prague Spring
  • Inavsion of Czechoslovakia
  • Brezhnev Doctrine