Cold War Around the World

Chapter 17, Section 4

Confrontations over Developing Nations

• After WWII the nations of the world are grouped into 3 categories

• First World – USA and it’s allies• Second World – Soviet Union and it’s

allies• Third World – developing/new nations– They experienced poverty, political

instability, ethnic conflict, lagged in technology, poor education

Cold War Strategies

• The USA, USSR, and in some cases China used different strategies for influence in Third World countries

• They would back wars, revolutions, liberations, or counterrevolutions

• The CIA (US) and KGB (USSR) were spy agencies that dealt with covert operations

• Spying to assassination

Association of Nonaligned Nations

• Developing nations had a need for assistance

• India and Indonesia were Third World nations, but they wanted to remain neutral

• Nonaligned nations - Third World nations that remained neutral

Postwar Face-off in Latin America

• Before WWII American business controlled Latin America

• The USA supported rulers that looked out for America’s best interest, many being oppressive to their people

• Because of a growing gap between rich and poor many Latin American countries turn to communism (therefore the USSR)

Postwar Face-off in Latin America

• So the USA needs to intervene• Example, 1970 Salvador Allende is

elected president of Chile• He is communist so, the CIA helped

forces in Chile to topple Salvador’s gov.

• Augusto Pinochet took his place, and he was brutal, but he was not communist and America supported him so he stayed

Cuban Revolution

• Through the 1950s USA supported the unpopular dictator Fulgencio Batista in Cuba

• The resentment lead to a revolution• Fidel Castro, a young lawyer, lead the

revolution• At first Castro was praised but soon he

became a dictator as well• He suspended elections, jailed or killed his

opposition, and censored the press

Cuban Revolution

• Castro nationalized the Cuban economy• By doing this the gov. took over American

companies• Eisenhower placed an embargo on Cuba• As relations between the US and Cuba declined

Castro turned to the Soviets• 1960 the CIA planned an invasion of Cuba by

training anti-Castro Cubans• They landed at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba, without

support from the US the invades were crushed

The Cuban Missile Crisis

• Nikita Khrushchev, Soviet leader, was convinced after the Big of Pigs incident that the USA could not resist Soviet expansion in Latin America

• In 1962 Khrushchev wanted to build 42 nuclear missile sites in Cuba

• A US spy plane discovered the sites and Kennedy called for their immediate removal

The Cuban Missile Crisis

• Kennedy also placed a quarantine around Cuba to prevent the USSR from installing the missiles

• The USA and USSR are on a crash course

• The entire world watched to see what would happen fearing the worst a nuclear holocaust

• Khrushchev eventually backed down

The Cuban Missile Crisis

• Cuba was now completely dependent on the USSR

• In return for aid the Cubans would support communist uprisings in Latin America and Africa

• When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 Cuba was in big trouble

• Their aid had run dry and the economy tanked• Castro stepped down in 2008 as leader and now

Raul Castro is the leader• Talks have opened between the US and Cuba

about lifting the 56 year embargo

Civil War in Nicaragua

• The US also funded an unpopular dictator in Nicaragua Anastasio Somoza

• In 1979, communists Sandinista rebels toppled the gov.

• Daniel Ortega is the new leader• The US found out the Sandinista’s

were supporting the communist in El Salvador

• So the US supports the Contras in Nicaragua

Civil War in Nicaragua

• Funny thing is… the US supported Ortega and the Sandinistas at first

• A civil war between the Sandinistas and the Contras would last for over a decade and destroy most of the country

• In 1990 President Ortega agreed to hold free elections and he lost

Confrontations in the Middle East

• The Cold War was a global phenomena and would divide the world into capitalists and communist

• With its rich supply of oil the Middle East held interest for both superpowers

Religious and Secular Values Clash in Iran

• Because of its oil wealth a clash happened over traditional Islamic values and modernization

• This clash was most dramatic in Iran• Iran’s leader after WWII Shah Mohammad Reza

Pahlavi embraced western gov.• Iranian nationalist resented this idea• Muhammad Mossaddeq took over power• In the process they took over former western oil

business in Iran• The USA feared they would turn to the USSR so

they had him arrested and jailed

The United States Supports Secular Rule

• With support from the USA the Shah westernized his country

• Millions of Iranians still lived in poverty

• The shah had secrete military police (enough said)

• He also tried to suppress religion in Iran

• Muslim leaders known as ayatollahs opposed Pahlavi’s reign

The United States Supports Secular Rule

• Ayatollahs wanted the country to be run by Islamic law

• Their leader was Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini and he was in exile

• He sent a message into Iran that called for the downfall of the shah and the west

• In 1978 riots erupted• The shah fled Iran in 1979• Khomeini returned from exile and setup an

Islamic state, banning the west and following Muslim law

Khomeini’s Anti-US Policies

• Domestic policy was ruled by two ideas:– Traditional Islamic values– Hatred of America

• In 1979 the Iranians seized the US embassy in Tehran

• They took more than 60 hostages• Most of these hostages were held

captive of 444 days–Watch the movie Argo

Khomeini’s Anti-US Policies

• Khomeini also encouraged other countries to do as Iran did

• This was meant to unify Muslim nations but it also raised tensions between Iran and Iraq

• Iran was primarily Shi’a sect• Iraq was primarily Sunni sect• Plus Saddam Hussein was the leader in Iraq

and he ruled a secular state• In 1980 the two countries went to war for

eight years

The Superpowers Face Off in Afghanistan

• Afghanistan, were empires go to die• In the 1950s the USSR started to

exert its influence in the area• In late 1970s a Muslim revolt

threatened to topple the communist gov.

• So the USSR invaded in 1979

The Superpowers Face Off in Afghanistan

• The Soviets come in and prop up the communist hoping to then leave

• But they got mired down much like the USA in Vietnam

• The smaller Afghan force fought like the VC

• The Afghan rebels are called mujahideen

• The USA sent support to the rebels to fight the USSR

The Superpowers Face Off in Afghanistan

• The US and President Jimmy Carter feared the USSR would attempt to take over all of the Middle East

• Mikhail Gorbachev – new Soviet leader acknowledge the war was to costly for both sides

• After a ten year occupation the USSR left Afghanistan