HASS12 Modern History ATAR: The Cold War / The Second Cold War

After Stalin

For students of the Cold War, Nuclear Politics, USA and USSR history in the 20th century.

Source: ClickView, ABC1, 1989, Rated G, Duration 42:26, URL: https://online.clickview.com.au/libraries/videos/27775/after-stalin

USA vs USSR fight!

The United States and the Soviet Union divvied up Europe in the aftermath of the war, and then proceeded to spend the next 45 years fighting over the rest of the world.

Source: YouTube, Crash Course, 2012, Duration 12:15, URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C72ISMF_D0

1. The Second Cold War began to unfold in the late 1970s and continued into the 1980s. It marked the end of Détente, which had produced arms reduction treaties and better relations.

2. Two contributing factors were the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980. Reagan resolved to rollback Soviet communism rather than contain it.

3. Reagan applied pressure to the Soviet leadership with belligerent anti-communist rhetoric, increased military spending and the authorisation of new defence programs like SDI.

4. Changes of leadership elsewhere – such as Margaret Thatcher’s election in Britain and Brezhnev’s decline in the USSR – also contributed to this revival of Cold War tensions.

5. This revival of the Cold War arms race caused consternation around the world. There were incidents and potential flashpoints, such as the 1983 Korean air disaster and several false alarms, that could have led to confrontation and possible war.

Source: Alpha History, 2020, The second world war, URL: https://alphahistory.com/coldwar/second-cold-war/