World War II and Cold War Overview

World War II

• A battle between the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, Japan) and the Allied Forces (United States, Great Britain, France, Soviet Union)
• Germany surrendered after Adolf Hitler's suicide
• Japan surrendered after the US detonated atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
• Events of WWII contributed to the Cold War

Causes of the Cold War

• Tensions between superpowers
• Nuclear arms race
• Ideological conflict

Tensions Between Superpowers

• America and the Western Bloc (Free World, Western World)- capitalist countries under the United States
  • Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty (ANZUS)
  • Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO)
  • North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
• Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc (Socialist, Communist, Soviet Bloc)- socialist state governed by the Communist Party
  • Eastern Europe
  • Asia
  • America: Cuba

Nuclear Arms Race

• United States developed atomic weapons during WWII
• Soviet Union worked to develop its own atomic weapons.
• Soviet Union successfully tested its first atomic bomb, codenamed "First Lighting"
• Both superpowers developed rockets that could carry weapons through space.
• Both superpowers used rockets to spy on each other, leading to the Space Race.

Space Race

• Soviet Union launched "Sputnik 1," the first satellite to orbit the Earth.
• The United States established NASA to launch the first human into space.
• Soviet Union launched Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space.
• Soviet Union launched Luna 2, the first object to reach the moon.
• Soviet Union launched Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space.
• Soviet Union launched Alexei Leonov, the first man to perform a spacewalk.
• The United States launched Apollo 8, the first manned mission to orbit the moon.
• Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the moon.
• Soviet Union launched the first space station, "Mir."

Ideological Conflict

• The United States and the Western Bloc are based on capitalism and democracy.
• The Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc are based on communism and dictatorship.

Capitalism

• An economic system focused on individual liberty and free markets.
• Emphasizes private ownership, competition, free trade, and the principles of supply and demand.

Communism

• An economic system based on Karl Marx's socialism.
• Promotes public ownership of the means of production and the elimination of social classes.
• Government plays a central role in the economy, often referred to as a command economy.

Democracy

• A political system where power rests with the people.
• People exercise authority through elections and representation.

Dictatorship

• A form of government where most or all authority is concentrated in a single individual.
• Dictators often prioritize their own power and position over the well-being of citizens.

Cold War (1947-1991)

• A period of geopolitical tension between the Soviet Union and its allies (Eastern Bloc) and the United States and its allies (Western Bloc).
• Characterized by a lack of direct large-scale fighting between the two blocs, but competition through the Nuclear Race and Proxy Wars.
• The establishment of alliances, like NATO and the Warsaw Pact, intensified the Cold War.

Proxy Wars

• Armed conflicts between states or non-state actors that are instigated or supported by other parties not directly involved in the hostilities.

Cold War Created the North-South Divide

• During the Cold War, countries were categorized based on their alignment with the East (Soviet Union, China) or the West (United States, allies).
• Eastern countries were labeled as Second World countries.
• Western countries were labeled as First World countries.
• Poorer countries, not aligned with either bloc, were labeled as Third World countries.
• After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the categorization changed to the North-South Divide.
• First World countries became known as the North.
• Third World countries became known as the South.

Collapse of the Soviet Union

• Occurred in December 1991.
• Resulted in the formation of new independent countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania.
• The remaining Soviet Union became the Russian Federation.