Beginning of the Cold War

I. Beginning of the Cold War
A. Background

Soon after the war ended, the Allied unity and spirit of cooperation (former Grand Alliance) shattered and the world divided into two sides -- East (USSR) vs West (US)
Who was to blame for the breakdown of unity?
a. Evil intentions of the USSR .
b. Soviet actions were defensive , not aggressive, in response to US actions (revisionist history of the late 1960s).
c. Synthesis view -- both sides shared the blame -- probably misunderstood each other

USSR and US entered their wartime alliance burdened by a past record of mutual distrust and a significantly different emphasis on what should constitute the major rationale for fighting the war
a. systemic conditions : end of the former multipolar system, with the total collapse of Germany, Japan and France, had created power vacuums into which the US and USSR stepped and came into conflict, areas where Soviet and American interests had not before been in direct conflict, like Iran and Eastern Europe.
b. ideology - opposing poles of capitalism and Marxism-Leninism were influential in shaping highly negative images of each other -- America (brutal, totalitarian communist state) vs USSR (exploitative, imperialist, capitalist state);
c. national security systems - the economic and strategic needs of each nation were different
(1) Soviets insisted on a defense perimeter to include central and eastern Europe and appeared to include influence in eastern Mediterranean and Middle East as well.
(2) US desired a global open door or free trade (access to all world markets) and soon saw themselves as heirs to traditional British empire interests and policies.
d. miscalculation in diplomacy - Truman and his top foreign advisers were predisposed to view Soviet actions as aggressive and threatening while Soviet leaders around Stalin were predisposed to suspect Western (esp. Britain and US) powers of conniving to rob the USSR of wartime gains and to pack its western European border with anticommunist states as had been done after WW I.
Early divisive issues were
a. The government of postwar Poland
b. The governments of postwar Eastern Europe
c. Postwar planning for Germany, including Soviet demands for large-scale reparations.
d. The structure of the new United Nations Organization
e. International controls for the atomic bomb and atomic energy.

Soviet intent to dominate the entire world -- this was a life and death struggle;
Communism was monolithic - All communist movements in the world were controlled by the USSR whose one aim was advancing their interests
Domino Principle - If one nation went communist (from Soviet pressure), those nations bordering it would soon be communist as well
a. What happened in one country affected the political systems of its neighbors;
b. A chain reaction of communist victories would encircle free nations, eventually the US.
Best way to fight Soviet aggression was containment:
a. Containment was coined by George F. Keenan of the State Department in an article ["Sources of Soviet Conduct" Foreign Affairs July 47] under the pseudonym X .
b. The article suggested that
(1) Russia was historically expansive;
(2) Marxist-Leninist doctrines was now motivating Russia:
(3) The Soviets would seek to influence neighboring states to "adopt" communism;
(4) USSR would exercise a persistent pressure but would withdraw if opposed;
c. US must assert firm, vigilant containment patiently over the long term if needed.
d. "Soviet pressure against the free institutions of the Western world is something that can be contained by the adroit and vigilant application of counter-force at a series of constantly shifting geographical and political points."
e. Containment was viewed as a defensive measure against a ruthless adversary

Middle East -- Iran -- The first major East-West Confrontation Dec 1945
a. An Anglo-Soviet agreement in 1941 allowed the stationing of British forces in Southern Iran and Soviet troops in Northern Iran.
b. Although the agreement specified that forces would be withdrawn at war's end, Soviet troops remained, aiding separatist revolts in north Iran (Azerbaijan and Kurdistan).
c. The Soviets refused to withdraw after the 2 March deadline and blocked Iran's attempts to end the rebellion.
d. By 4 May, however, the Iranian government and the Soviets had reached an agreement which made the Soviet withdrawal complete.
e. This confrontation caused the US to consider assuming a greater role in the Middle East.
Turkey was threatened by an external Soviet-backed movement, seeking to control the Straits
a. During 1945, the USSR pressured Turkey, demanding a cession of several Turkish districts on the Soviet-Turkish frontier, a revision of the 1936 Montreux Convention [giving Turkey exclusive supervision of the Dardanelles], and a leasing to the USSR of naval and land bases in the strait, giving joint defense to Turkey and the Soviets.
b. Warnings from Truman that the US would support the UN with military power to protect Near Eastern nations, official protests by the US rejecting Soviet demands, and US naval movements in the Mediterranean caused the Soviets to ease its pressure in late 1946.
Greece was threatened by a Soviet-backed internal guerrilla movement seeking to overthrow the government
a. Aug 1946 - Communist led-rebellion against the newly-elected right-wing government broke out, continuing the civil war which broke out when German occupation ended.
b. Guerrilla forces were supported and given sanctuary from the neighboring communist states of Albania, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia.

Truman Doctrine - 12 March 1947 - The Beginning of the Cold War
a. After Britain announced that it could no longer provide economic and military aid to Turkey and Greece after 31 March 47, Truman requested before a joint session of Congress that the US provide the necessary aid.
b. Truman's request for aid became known as the Truman Doctrine , an open-ended commitment to use US power anywhere and anytime to oppose the threat of Soviet communism wherever it was perceived -- "It must be US policy to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressure ."
c. Congress, with Republican majorities in both houses, approved $400 million in aid
d. Soviets withdrew support from attempts to overthrow Turkish and Greek governments, making it appear that containment successfully countered communist aggression.
Marshall Plan - 5 June 1947
a. Background
(1) Post-war Europe, devastated by the war, faced a leadership vacuum because the traditional governments of Britain, France, Germany and Italy were bankrupt.
(2) Because Truman believed that communism operated best among political chaos and economic deprivation, postwar Europe emerged as the cold war key arena.
b. Sec of State George Marshall 's speech at Harvard launched the Marshall Plan
(1) The US was not directing its efforts against any specific nation or doctrine, but against "hunger, poverty, desperation and chaos."
(2) The purpose was to revive "a working economy in the world so as to permit the emergence of political and social conditions in which free institutions can exist."
c. Plan put into operation
(1) Foreign ministers of Britain, France and the USSR met to consider the offer, but Soviet foreign minister saw it as a US "imperialist" plot to enslave Europe.
(2) Britain and France invited 22 nations to join a Committee for Economic Cooperation to draft plans for the reconstruction of Europe, using U.S. aid.
(3) After the Soviets and Eastern European communist bloc nations declined to attend, 16 nations met in Paris from 12 July to 22 Sept 47.
d. Foreign Assistance Act - April 1948 -- (1) Republican-dominated Congress approved $5.3 billion in aid for a 1-year European Recovery Program, which included $275 million more for Turkey and Greece, $463 million in economic and military assistance to not-yet-communist China and $60 million for the UN children's fund
e. Mutual Security Act 1951 provided $7,483,400,000 in additional foreign aid.
National Security Act - 26 July 1947 -- created the:
a. Department of Defense by combining the Departments of War, Navy and Army
(1) It elevated the Air Force into a third major military branch
(2) James Forestal , former Sec of Navy, was the first Secretary of Defense;
b. Joint-Chiefs of Staff to coordinate military activities;
c. National Security Council to coordinate the activities of the Departments of State and Defense and to advise the US President;
d. Central Intelligence Agency as a branch of the NSC to correlate and evaluate intelligence activity which related to national security.
(1) It was denied activities involving internal security.
(2) Rear Admiral Roscoe Hillenkoeter was the first CIA Director.
NSC 68 -- National Security Council recommended increasing US defense spending by 4X, initially ignored, was resurrected by the Korean crisis when Truman recommended raising the armed forces to 3.5 million men and spending 13% of the GNP ($50 billion) annually on defense.
Selective Service Act - June 1948 - This peace time draft required the registration of all men between ages 18 and 25 and established an Army level of 837,000, Navy and Marine of 666,882 and Air Force of 502,000.

Eastern Europe
a. The Soviets created several satellite nations in Eastern Europe, repeatedly referring to US reconstruction aid offers as "imperialistic" and US actions in the UN as "warmonger" acts
b. While failing to achieve communist takeovers in Turkey and Greece, a successful Soviet-backed coup d'etat in Czechoslovakia on 25 Feb 48 created a communist regime led by Klement Gottwald.
Germany
a. The four occupying powers disagreed over the government for post-war Germany: a centralized form (Soviets) versus a federal form of government (Britain and the US).
b. After the Soviet request for $10 billion in reparations was rejected and discussions broke down, the Western powers continued talks without the Soviets.
c. 30 March 1948 - after withdrawing its representative from the Allied Control Council in Berlin on 28 March, the Soviets refused to allow the US, British or French troop trains to travel to Berlin without their inspection and closed off ground transportation to Berlin.
d. 7 June - Western Powers created a federal zone from the western German-occupied zones, forming the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany).
e. Berlin Airlift - 24 June 48 - 25 May 49
(1) After the USSR discontinued all land traffic between Berlin and West Germany, the West airlifted supplies between West Germany and 2,100,000 Berlin residents.
(2) The airlift lasted 321 days before the Soviet ban was finally lifted, having failed to alter US policy toward Germany.
(3) 21 May 1949 - German Democratic Republic (East Germany) was formed.
f. It again appeared that containment was working.

Organization of American States (OAS) - 30 April 1948 -- Collective security in the Western hemisphere with US participation -- first met in Bogota Colombia with 21 nations present
Point IV - 20 Jan 1949 -- Truman announced in his inaugural address a bold new plan to provide technical and capital assistance to underdeveloped nations.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization - 4 April 1949
a. Background
(1) Initial successes of Marshall Plan created a need for additional military security.
(2) Brussels Pact - 17 March 1948
(a) If one of the signatories was attacked in Europe the other members would render all military and other assistance needed.
(b) Signatories (Britain, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands) hoped to bring the US into the agreement.
(3) Vandenberg Resolution - 11 June 1948 - This Senate resolution called for US participation in regional and other collective security arrangements outside the western hemisphere under UN auspices and led to talks with European nations for a military defense alliance on an Atlantic basis.
b. North Atlantic Treaty - first peacetime military alliance for the US since the Treaty of Amity and Commerce in 1778 with France
(1) 12 nations in Washington D.C. signed a military alliance -- NATO -- Brussels Pact signatories + US + Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Norway and Portugal.
(2) 21 July 1949 - With its passage, the US Senate (82-13) accepted collective security (a concept rejected after World War I).
(3) Article V - Attacking one member would be perceived as attacking all of them
c. Mutual Defense Assistance Act (21 Sept 49) provided military aid to NATO allies.
Creation of Israel
a. Background
(1) Britain announced that effective 14 May 1948, they would no longer maintain the mandate over Palestine (had since WW I) returning its care to the UN
(2) UN General Assembly under US influence voted to partition Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states.
b. Israel Recognized -- 15 May 1948
(1) Israel declared its independence and was first recognized by the US (almost immediately).
(2) Rejecting the partition of Palestine, the Arab states refused to recognize Israel's right to exist and went to war with Israel, a war that ended with an UN armistice.
c. Tripartite Declaration - 25 May 1950 -- Deploring the Middle Eastern arms build up, the US, Britain and France agreed to halt all violations of the armistice by either Israel or the Arabs by pledging not to contribute significantly to the arms race themselves.
d. Continued US support for Israel remained an irritant between the Arab states and the US
China
a. After World War II, the US aided the Nationalists led by Chiang Kai-shek, who controlled the South against the communists in the North led by Mao Tse-tung .
b. 10 Jan 1946 - An uneasy cease fire between the two factions occurred.
c. By 1947, the US under Truman was reluctant to aid fully the Nationalists without a comprehensive Nationalist plan for moral, political and economic reforms.
d. US aid continued through 1948, but not at the levels requested by the Nationalists.
e. Aug 1949 - A State Department White Paper determined that in order to save the Nationalists from collapse, the US would have to intervene militarily because of military, political and economic deficiencies within Chiang's regime.
f. 27 Oct - Chinese Communists arrested the American consul, Gen. Angus Ward, which resulted in a vigorous US protest.
g. 8 Dec - Nationalists fled mainland China to the island of Formosa (aka Taiwan).
h. The battleground shifted to the UN, over who was the legitimate representative of China - Nationalist China or People's Republic of China (communists).
i. 13 Jan - 1 Aug 1950 - The Soviet delegate to the UN Security Council boycotted the meeting over the presence of the Nationalists in the UN instead of Communist China.
j. While some nations (Britain, France) recognized communist China, the US refused to recognize its legitimacy, supporting Nationalists on Formosa as legal representative of China, opposed changing China's UN delegation, but refused to commit forces to Formosa's defense in Jan 1950.

Korean Conflict

Temporary Division
a. Japanese troops in Korea above the 38th parallel surrendered to Soviet Allied troops and to western Allied troops below the 38th parallel.
b. 1 Oct 46 - The US announced its intention to stay in Korea until it was united and free.
c. 17 Sept 47 - the question of Korean independence was referred to the UN which planned free elections in the spring of 1948.
Permanent Division
a. 10 May 1948 - The UN Temporary Commission on Korea was prevented from entering North Korea by the USSR, but elections were held in South Korea.
(1) Syngman Rhee was elected as the first president.
(2) 15 Aug - Republic of Korea was organized under the UN flag with a capital at Seoul, South Korea, but it was not recognized by the North.
(3) 9 Sept - People's Democratic Republic of Korea proclaimed jurisdiction over all of Korea, with Kim II Sung as leader.
b. 10 Dec - The Republic of Korea or South Korea, signed an economic assistance agreement with the US but on 12 Jan 49 Secretary of State Dean Acheson omitted Korea from the Pacific Defense Perimeter of the US, suggesting that military security of the Republic of Korea was the commitment of the entire civilized world under the UN charter.
c. 19 April 1949 - The USSR blocked South Korea's admission into the UN
d. By 29 June, the US had withdrawn all remaining troops except for 500 advisors.
US/UN Response to North Korean Aggression
a. Sept 1949 - the UN reported that the differences between North and South Korea had not been resolved and the possibility of civil war remained great.
b. 25 June 1950 - North Korean communist forces using Soviet weapons and tanks invaded South Korea.
(1) In the absence of the Soviet representative, the UN Security Council ordered an immediate cease fire and a withdrawal of the 70,000 North Korean troops.
(2) 26 June - Truman authorized the US Navy and Air Force to aid South Korea, begin a naval blockade of North Korea, give additional aid to Indochina and move the 7th Fleet to prevent any attack on Formosa.
(3) 27 June - The UN Security Council (without the Soviets) resolved to assist the Republic of Korea to repel the armed attack and restore international peace and security there.
c. 28 June - Seoul fell to North Korean forces, but within two days, US ground troops were ordered into the fighting and authorized to conduct missions above the 38th parallel.
d. 1 July - the first US ground troops landed in Korea.
e. 8 July - Gen Douglas MacArthur , designated commander of UN forces, led forces from ten nations, including one division from the British Commonwealth.
f. Although officially a UN policing action, the bulk of the fighting forces and support were American, who by mid-Aug, had 65,000 troops in Korea.
US/UN Troops in Action 1950
a. 26 Sept - UN troops recaptured Seoul after MacArthur conducted a counter-offensive behind enemy lines with an amphibious landing on 15 Sept at Inchon, an outpost of Seoul.
b. 29 Sept - US-backed South Korean troops crossed into North Korea in pursuit of retreating forces.
c. 7 Oct - UN General Council authorized UN forces to pursue North Koreans beyond the 38th parallel.
d. 11 Oct - Red China denounced the invasion of North Korea by UN forces, and warned that it would not stand idly by, threatening to intervene if hostile forces approached the Yalu River.
e. 20 Nov - UN troops reached the Yalu River on the border of Manchuria.
Chinese Intervention
a. 3 Nov - UN General Assembly passed a Uniting for Peace Resolution asserting the right of the General Assembly to deal with any threat to the peace if the Security Council could not function (the Soviet UN ambassador had returned).
b. 26 Nov - 200,000 Chinese "volunteers" crossed the Yalu River in a Red counter-offensive
c. 5 Dec - The North Korean capital of Pyong yang was abandoned by UN forces slowly being pushed out of North Korea resulting in a stalemate
d. 4 Jan 1951 - UN and South Korean forces were pushed South and Seoul was recaptured by the North.
e. 14 March - Seoul was recaptured by a UN counter offensive after which the UN again called for a cease fire and a return to the status quo.
Removal of MacArthur 1951
a. 29 Dec 1950 - MacArthur, desiring retaliation for the humiliating entrance of China into the Korean struggle, called for an invasion of China by
(1) an attack by Formosa on mainland China;
(2) a blockade of the entire Chinese coast;
(3) bombing bridges over the Yalu river and Chinese bases in Manchuria
b. Truman was reluctant to expand the war in Asia for several reasons:
(1) uncertainty of what the Soviets would do;
(2) perception that the Soviets were a greater enemy to Europe than China to Asia;
(3) realization that as a UN action, several UN members did not want a global war;
(4) fact that other Allies faced problems elsewhere: France in Indochina, Britain in Malaya, communist activities in the Philippines and India's struggle over Tibet.
c. 5 April - After Truman announced plans to negotiate a truce, MacArthur wrote there is no substitute for victory , denouncing reluctance to expand the war into China.
d. 11 April - LT Gen Matthew Ridgway replaced MacArthur for continued insubordination, violating earlier presidential orders not to make public policy statements
(1) Truman was condemned for his treatment of this war hero.
(2) 19 April - MacArthur before Congress urged expanding the war into China, stating his famous Old soldiers never die, they just fade away .
End of the Korean Conflict
a. 10 July 1951 - armistice negotiations at Kaesang continued two years without progress.
b. In the US presidential election of 1952, Eisenhower promised to go to the peace talks personally, if elected, to get then moving again.
(1) 2-5 Dec 52 - Eisenhower visited the peace talks as promised.
(2) It is unclear if his actions aided the end of the war because the talks continued for six months before an armistice was finished
(a) Eisenhower had threatened to use nuclear weapons.
(b) 5 March 1953 - More than likely, Stalin's death left North Korea uncertain about future Soviet backing
(c) A breakthrough at the peace talks occurred three weeks later.
c. 27 July 1953 - An armistice was signed by the UN, communist China and North Korea which established a de-militarized zone along the 38th parallel.
d. 19 Jan 1954 - the US approved a US-SK mutual defense treaty.
e. Korean Conflict again reinforced within the US State Department that "containment" was the correct response to Soviet-backed Communist aggression.
Cost of the War
a. US casualties included 33,629 dead from battle and 21,617 from other causes, 103,492 wounded and 7,955 MlAs.
b. The Koreans and Chinese suffered over 1 million casualties.

II. Truman (33d) and Eisenhower (34th) Administrations
A. Truman Domestic Policy

Demobilization - Truman faced many problems at home with the post-war economy and with demobilizing a war-time military machine, although his primary concern was to contain the spread of worldwide communism.
a. Serviceman's Readjustment Act - (GI Bill of Rights)
(1) While FDR was president, Congress debated and passed legislation which let returning servicemen and women adjust back to peace time, by going to college.
(2) Leading an opposition filibuster in Congress was Senator John Rankin (MS)
(3) Thousands of ex-servicemen completed their education under this act, crowding the colleges of America immediately after the war.
b. Removal of Price Controls -- Truman could not stop Congress from removing wartime price controls which resulted in a jump in inflation by 33% in 1946-47.
c. Labor Problems
(1) Labor had been stifled from striking by wartime labor controls and by the negative image that strikes carried as hurting the war effort and "boys" overseas.
(2) Immediately after the war, labor strikes involved 4.6 million workers in 1946.
(a) 9 Jan - 7700 Western Electric telephone mechanics strike.
(b) 15 Jan - United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers in 16 states
(c) 21 Jan - United Steelworkers
(d) 13 March - 113 day strike by United Auto Workers ended against GM
(e) 1 April - UMW 400,000 strike, which ended 30 May, 59 days later but the UMW went on strike again in March 1948.
(f) 23 May - Railroad Trainmen and Locomotive Engineers Brotherhood
(3) A Republican-controlled Congress passed, over Truman's veto, the Taft-Hartley Act on 23 June 1947, reducing union benefits from the National Labor Relations Act.
(a) It outlawed the closed shop, becoming known as right to work law
(b) It limited the use of the strike
(c) It required labor unions to publish financial statements
(d) It eliminated the check off system which enabled union dues to be collected from all employed workers
(e) It required union leaders to take a loyalty oath to the US constitution and claim not to be a communist.
(f) It permitted employers to sue unions for broken contracts or for damages incurred during strikes.
(4) In spite of this, labor remained strong - AF of L claimed 8 million members and the CIO claimed 6 million members.
Gains for Black Citizens -- Executive Orders
a. Executive Orders
(1) EO 9808 (1946) created the Presidential Committee on Civil Rights .
(a) Its report in 1947 To Secure These Rights recommended that the Civil Rights Section of the Justice Dept. be expanded to a full division
(b) a Fair Employment Practices Commission be permanently created
(c) Federal laws against lynching and for equal enforcement of justice be passed.
(2) EO 9981 -- After improper treatment of Black ex-servicemen in the South.
(a) This order desegregated the Armed Forces
(b) It also created the President's Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services- (26 July 1948)
b. 19 Dec 1947 - Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier, signing with Dodgers
Anti-communist Measures at Home
a. 1947 - EO 9835 - In conjunction with the containment doctrine espoused for foreign affairs, a massive loyalty program was launched
(1) A Loyalty Board was established which listed organizations whose loyalty was questioned - ninety listed in 1947.
(2) After federal employees were required to take a loyalty oath, 3,000 either resigned or were forced to resign rather than comply.
(3) Future applicants hired for government positions were fully investigated to insure that they were not connected in any way with communism.
b. McCarran (Internal Security ) Act - communists and communist organizations must register with the federal government.
c. Congress established the House UnAmerican Activities Committee (HUAC)
(1) Richard M. Nixon , prosecuted Alger Hiss for giving away government secrets, and Hiss, found guilty of perjury, was sentenced to five years in 1950.
(2) 18 Oct 1947 - HUAC began investigating communist infiltration of Hollywood.
d. Senator Joseph McCarthy - McCarthyism
(1) In 1950, Sen Joseph McCarthy began to seek out a domestic communist conspiracy, suggesting that communists had infiltrated the State Department to shape American foreign policy
(a) 7 Feb 1950 - McCarthy in Wheeling West Virginia claimed to have a list of 205 "known" communists working in the US State Department
(b) It was really his wife's grocery list but reporters did not press for proof
(c) 1952 - The Republicans used this theme to discredit the Democrats, suggesting that Truman was "too soft on communism."
(2) After the 1952 election, McCarthy kept "exposing" communists in government.
(a) Over 150 investigations resulted in character assassinations, blacklisting at universities for professors, in certain businesses, and within several professional organizations and the entertainment business
(b) His "new" investigations began to damage the image of the Republicans, and they sought to discredit him so that he would stop.
(3) 1954 - McCarthy stated that the Army was promoting communists in its officer corps, but the public found this too hard to believe, because the military was a different kind of institution in the public mind.
(a) 22 April - 17 June - Televised committee hearings allowed Americans for the first time to see McCarthy in action and he became a casualty of the new medium of television, as it was clear that he was an alcoholic.
i) His flimsy evidence, intimidation of witnesses, arrogance and contempt for others, and manipulation of statistical data brought his integrity and sobriety into question.
ii) American public saw him as a bully and a liar.
(b) McCarthy lost support among Republicans, lost control of his Senate Committee, and was censored by a Senate resolution (67 - 22) on 2 Dec after a Senate committee led by Arthur V. Watkins (UT) condemned many of his practices.
(4) In May 1957, McCarthy died of cirrhosis of the liver, a broken man.
(5) Results of McCarthyism
(a) Many careers of public officials, writers, actors and others were ruined by merely suggesting they had even once been connected with communism
(b) The professional foreign service was seriously demoralized and its effectiveness was seriously damaged.
(c) In reality McCarty rooted out no communists, but left Americans more afraid of supposed communists in our midst than in Moscow.
Actions Regarding the Presidency
a. Presidential Succession Act filled a gap within the Constitution
(1) Congress established the line of succession for the presidency, if both President and Vice-President became incapacitated.
(2) Third in line was the Speaker of the House, then the Senate Pro-Tem, then each cabinet member according to order of creation with the State Department first.
b. 22nd Amendment ratified 26 Feb 1951 by Nevada
(1) Offered to the states on 24 March 1947, this amendment limited the number of terms that a President could have to two full terms and no more than ten years, should the vice-president become president upon the death of the President.
(2) It exempted the president in office at the time - Harry S. Truman
Other Actions
a. McCarran-Mather Act (Immigration and Nationality Act ) retained the national origins quota system for limiting aliens entering the US
b. McMahan Act Aug 1946 created a 5-man Atomic Energy Commission
c. The Rockefellers gave the UN $5 million to build a headquarters building, which was dedicated in NY on 27 Oct 1949.
d. The US was team champion at the resumed Olympic Games in London in 1948.
Election of 1948 - the biggest political upset in US history
a. Bi-Elections of 1946 - the Republicans gained a majority in both houses (Senate 51-45; House 245-188, 1 seat to others)
(1) Voters reflected dissatisfaction with the post-war inflation and labor strikes
(2) Truman was no Roosevelt and Americans took it out on him at the polls.
b. Candidates
(1) Democrats in Philadelphia
(a) A "Dump Harry" move lost steam when the alternative being drafted, Dwight D. Eisenhower, declined to run.
(b) Truman was less enthusiastically renominated for president, and Senator Alben W. Barkley (KY) was nominated for Vice-president.
(c) Democratic Splintering
i) Southern Democrats resisted Truman's nomination, dissatisfied with his strong civil rights stand, bolted the party, met in Birmingham AL on 7 July to form a States Rights "Dixiecrat " Party and nominated Governor J. Strom Thurmond (SC) for President and Gov Fielding Wright (MS) for Vice-President
ii) Dissatisfied with Truman's foreign policy, Henry A. Wallace (NY) [Vice-President replaced by Truman for FDR's fourth term] announced his candidacy for President on 29 Oct 1947, having resigned as Truman's Secretary of Commerce on 20 Sept 1946.
iii) Liberal democrats, as a new Progressive Party, who did not like Truman's "Get-Tough-With-Russia" policy also met in Philadelphia
(2) Republicans in Philadelphia
(a) Although Sen Robert A. Taft (OH) had announced his candidacy in Oct 1947, Thomas E. Dewey (NY), ex-Governor, defeated in 1944, was chosen and Gov Earl Warren (CA) was Vice-Presidential candidate.
(b) Sensing the badly-split Democrats, Republicans smelled victory.
c. Campaign
(1) Unfortunately for Republicans, major newspapers endorsed Dewey, whose low-key style campaign cautiously avoided the issues, really saying nothing.
(2) Although Democrats were badly divided, Truman hit the campaign trail by train, whistle-stopping in several cities, traveling over 31,000 miles, delivering over 300 Give-em-hell speeches, dubbing the Republican-controlled 80th Congress as the Do-Nothing Congress .
d. Results
(1) The early returns projected Dewey the winner, as some newspapers proclaimed him the winner on their front pages, retiring early for the night.
(2) Western returns, late in being tallied because polls closed later in the West, gave the margin of victory to Truman, almost as he had predicted to the very state.
(a) Truman received 24,105,812 popular (304 electoral) votes to Dewey's 21,970,065 popular (189 electoral) votes.
(b) Thurmond's 1,169,063 votes carried 5 southern states 39 electors
(c) Wallace's 1,157,172 popular votes carried no states.
(3) Democrats regained Congress (Senate 54-42; House 263-171, 1 other).
Additional Domestic Issues
a. At his inauguration, Truman outlined his domestic program, the Fair Deal
(1) Repeal the Taft-Hartley Act
(2) Farm Price Supports
(3) An expansion of Social Security
(4) Government supported low-rent public housing
(5) Additional Civil Rights laws -- anti-lynching laws; abolishing the poll tax.
(6) Raising the Minimum Wage
(7) Some type of National Health Insurance
(8) Federal aid to Education
b. Fair Deal was not as successful as hoped, because Southern Democrats blocked many of his measures but he did achieve some of his objectives.
(1) Housing Act 1949 - provided 800,000 units for the poor.
(2) Social Security Act 1950 expanded those covered by the system.
(3) Minimum Wage was raised to 75 cents per hour.
c. 19 Jan 1949 - The President's annual salary was raised to $100,000 with a tax-free $50,000 expense account, while Vice-President and Speaker of the House salaries were raised to $30,000.
d. July 1952 - GI Bill of Rights was expanded for Korean veterans
e. 1 Nov 1950 - Puerto Rican nationalists attempted to assassinate on Truman.
(1) While the White House was being remodeled, Truman lived in Blair House
(2) Typically Truman threw open windows to his balcony to see what all the commotion was.
(3) Marine guards repelled the attack, although CPL Leslie Coffelt was killed.
f. Other Items of Interest
(1) 1949 - the US government reached a record national debt of $250 billion.
(2) A new record auto/truck production was reached with six million
(3) June 1951 - The first commercial color television was broadcast by CBS.
(4) The 1950 census showed a US population greater than 150 million.
(5) Truman, a 33d degree Mason, never finished college, and had been a haberdasher by trade, but went bankrupt in Missouri before entering local politics.

It was consumed by the Korean Conflict, although the OAS met for the first time in Bogota, Colombia, on 30 April 1949 with 21 nations participating.
Point Four of Truman's plan, designed to aid underdeveloped countries with loans so that they could help themselves, started in 1950.

Election of 1952
a. In the Bi-Elections of 1950, Republicans gained 5 Senate seats and 29 House seats but the Democrats retained control of both Houses (Senate 49-47; House 234-199).
b. Candidates
(1) Democrats in Chicago
(a) After Truman withdrew, having polled badly in the first Democratic primary, on the third ballot, Gov Adalai E. Stevenson (IL), Truman's choice, was nominated and Sen John J. Sparkman (AL), Vice-President.
(b) Stevenson did not seek the nomination -- first to be drafted since 1880
(c) Their platform endorsed the domestic and foreign policy of the New and Fair Deals, advocated repealing Taft-Hartley Act and called for federal legislation to secure civil rights.
(2) Republicans in Chicago
(a) The popular Dwight D. Eisenhower , hero of World War II, who could not be persuaded to run for president in 1948 as a Democrat, had retired from active duty on 7 Feb 1948 and accepted the presidency of Columbia University on 7 June.
(b) Sen Robert Taft (OH) was an announced candidate, when Eisenhower entered the race.
(c) Taft camp sought evidence of IKE's infidelity while in the service
i) A letter from Eisenhower to Chief of Staff George Marshall indicated that he had intended to divorce his wife and marry his British driver Kate Somersby , but Marshall threatened to drive him out of the service if he did.
ii) Truman ordered Marshall to find and destroy the letter, citing the belief that a candidate's personal affairs did not have a place in a presidential campaign.
(d) Eisenhower was nominated President, and to satisfy conservatives, young newly-elected Sen Richard M. Nixon (CA) was nominated Vice-President, having successfully painted himself as an anti-communist by prosecuting Alger Hiss.
(e) They blased Truman's stands on Korea and China and called for a balanced budget, reduced deficit spending, "progressive" tax relief, retention of the Taft-Hartley Act, and some kind of federal laws against unfair employ-ment practices.
(f) After it was disclosed that Nixon benefited from a secret fund established by a CA businessman, and Nixon defended himself in an emotional televised Checkers speech on 23 Sept, Eisenhower kept him on the ticket.
(3) Douglas MacArthur was nominated in some states under the banner Christian Nationalist and in others under the banner Constitution.
c. Campaign
(1) Republicans successfully painted the Democrats as "soft on communism"
(2) Voters responded by rejecting Truman's foreign policy, but not the New Deal.
d. Results
(1) Eisenhower received 33,938,285 popular (442 electoral) votes to Stephenson's 27,312,217 (89 electoral) votes, carrying four southern states (TN, VA, FL, TX).
(2) Republicans controlled Congress (Senate 48-47; House 221-211; 1 other)
Affluent Society - 1950s is usually viewed as a tranquil period in American society, but under the surface were many tensions which bubbled up in the 1960s-70s.
a. Economically
(1) Rise in consumer purchasing power - discretionary spending power rose from $40 billion in 1940 to over $200 billion by 1959.
(2) Availability of credit - expanded to included short term purchasing with gasoline credit cards + "all-purpose" credit cards (Carte Blanche; Diners Club).
(3) Rise of franchise outlets - US suburbs were homogenized -- many communities had a familiarity about them as neighbors bought their own businesses, similar in each community (Dairy Queen, Midas Muffler, Holiday Inns, etc).
b. Automobile Industry 1950s
(1) The automobile became the symbol of success as Americans spent 4.7% of their disposable income on new cars with 8 million peak production in 1955.
(2) Road building increased to accommodate this increase in automobiles
(3) Between 70-80,000 miles of new highway construction occurred annually.
(4) Federal Highway Act 1956 - Interstate Highway System of 41,000 miles including 5,500 of urban freeways (projected cost $26 billion, 13 years)
c. Communication Industry
(1) By 1960 over 45 million Americans owned television sets.
(2) Between 6-7 million televisions were produced annually
(3) In the 1950s, 500 broadcasting stations appeared.
(4) The ownership and use of radios also increased significantly
d. Mass Production
(1) Aided by new technology and better automation, more goods produced rapidly.
(2) The first computer, built in WW II, was commercially marketed in the early 50s
(3) International Business Machines (IBM), led by Thomas J Watson worked to fill a data processing demand and by 1960 topped $1 billion in sales
(4) Increased automation raised demand for white-collar, college-educated workers.
(5) With the rise of machines which could do the work of several persons, came the rise of job insecurity as well.
e. Growth of Corporations
(1) Numerous corporations emerged without government interference during the Truman/Eisenhower administrations, growing to great sizes.
(2) By 1960 the top 500 US corporations equaled 1/2 the sales + 70% of the profits
f. Rise of Suburbia
(1) 1940 - the US was 54% urban, but by 1960 it was 64% (although the definition of urban was expanded by the census takers.
(2) 1950 - An increase in shopping malls and centers (first in Kansas City in 1920) resulted in 33% of retail sales being concentrated in these type of shopping centers.
(3) Urban cores deteriorated and segregation greatly increased.
g. New Emphasis on the Family
(1) Larger families were again emphasized
(a) The "baby boom" occurred immediately after World War Il.
(b) 1942 - 3 million births rose in 1946 to over 4 million births.
(2) New emphasis on the woman's role as homemaker
(a) momism - In child-centered homes, wives sacrificed for their children
(b) Dr. Benjamin Spock Child Rearing encouraged parents to let children develop their own personalities, giving rise to later permissiveness
(3) Parents wanted to protect children from events like WW II, Great Depression
(4) The younger generation became big spenders and enjoyed the new music craze -- Rock and Roll led by stars like Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Bill Haley.
h. Growing Tensions
(1) The younger generation, pressured into conformity with their own generation, began to question the lifestyles and middle-class values of their parents
(2) New racial awareness -- America was growing uneasy about it race relations.
(3) Women who gave up their own interests grew restless, but kept quiet about it in the 1950s fearing that something was wrong with them.
Election of 1956
a. In the Bi-Elections of 1954, Democrats gained a one seat Senate majority (48-47), a House majority of 232-203 and 19 of 36 governor's races.
b. Major Candidates
(1) Democrats in Chicago again nominated Adalai E. Stevenson , on the 1st ballot against Averell Harriman (NY), Truman's choice, and Sen Estes Kefauver (TN) as Vice-President
(a) Withdrawing from the race, he threw his delegate support to Stevenson.
(b) Kefauver narrowly defeated JFK for Vice-President's nomination
(2) Republicans in San Francisco renominated Eisenhower and Nixon
c. Campaign
(1) Platforms offered little difference on the issues:
(a) Democrats asserted the right of all citizens to "equal educational opportunities," favored public over private development of water power and supported 90-100% parity payments to farmers.
(b) Republicans approved the Supreme Court's order to "progressively eliminate" segregation, advocated partnerships between federal and state agencies and private enterprise to develop water power, and supported flexible parity payments.
(2) Stevenson proposed an international ban on H-bomb testing.
(3) Although the later stages of the campaign were marred by the Suez Crisis, and the beginning trouble in Hungary, they made little difference at the polls.
d. Results
(1) Eisenhower won 35,590,472 popular (457 electoral) votes to Stephenson's 26,029, 752 popular (73 electoral) votes, (one Alabama elector voted for Walter P. Jones), making Eisenhower the first Republican to win reelection since McKinley.
(2) Democrats retained control of both Houses (House 232-199; Senate 49-47).
e. Other Items of Interest
(1) 1 Apr 1953 - Department of Health Education and Welfare (HEW) was created by joint action of Congress [Oveta Culp Hobby (TX), first Secretary]
(2) 19 June - Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were executed for espionage, the first civilians.
(3) 1 Mar 1954 - Puerto Rican nationalists shot 5 Congressmen on the House floor
(4) 1 Apr - Air Force Academy was authorized, opening at Lowry Air Force Base on 11 July 1955, and moving permanently to Colorado Springs in 1958.
(5) 13 May - St. Lawrence Seaway (US and Canada) improved navigation with a 27-foot deep channel between Montreal and Lake Erie.
(6) Social Security Act Amendments
(a) 1 Sept 1954 - raised benefits, raised the wage base to $4,200, added 7.5 million workers to the coverage (mostly self-employed farmers).
(b) 1 Aug 1956 - lowered minimum age for benefits to women to 62 and created disability insurance for persons permanently disabled ages 50-64.
(c) 28 Aug 1958 - increased benefits and raised the wage base to $4,800.
(d) 13 Sept 1960 - eliminated minimum age of 50 for disability coverage.
(7) Housing Acts
(a) 2 Aug 1954 authorized the construction of 35,000 houses over a one-year period for families displaced by programs of urban redevelopment, slum clearance and urban renewal.
(b) 11 Aug 1955 authorized another 45,000 units over two years.
(c) 12 July 1957 raised the mortgage amounts under FHA programs.
(8) 2 Sept 1958 - National Defense Education Act
(a) It provided low-interest loans to college students,
(b) grants to state schools to improve facilities in sciences or modern foreign languages
(c) fellowships to graduate students planning to go into college or university teaching.
(9) Oklahoma repealed its prohibition laws, leaving Mississippi the only dry state.
(10) Alaska became the 48th state on 3 Jan 1959 and Hawaii, the 50th in Aug.

New Military Commitments in the 1950s
a. Republican Platform in 1952
(1) Dwight D. Eisenhower was elected President in 1952 over Adalai Stevenson, partially on the claims that the Democrats had gone soft on communism.
(2) However, no changes were made in the doctrine of containment.
(3) Eisenhower moved to expand US military and economic influence in the world.
b. Worldwide Military Alliances - Eisenhower continued the trend started by Truman
(1) US + Philippines 30 Aug 1951 - Philippines Trade Agreement to 1954
(2) US + Japan
(a) 8 Sept 1951 -Treaty allowed the US to maintain armed forces in Japan.
(b) Japanese Peace Treaty in San Francisco CA
i) On the same day, Japan and 48 other nations (USSR, Poland, Czechoslovakia not included) signed an agreement, providing for the withdrawal of occupation forces, restoration of Japan's full sovereignty, and a denouncement by Japan of territorial interests in Korea, Formosa, Pescadores, Kuriles, Sakhalin, and Pacific Islands which were formally under Japan's control
ii) It was ratified by the US Senate 66-10 on 20 March 1952.
(c) 8 March 1954 - Mutual DefeAssistance Agreement permitted the US to develop gradually the sefl-defense forces of Japan.
(d) 19 Jan 1960 - Modifications permitted Japan a greater voice in their military arrangements by releasing the US or Japan from coming to the other's aid, if attacked, unless in Japanese-administered territories.
(e) It was renewed on 23 June 1970, indefinitely, unless either party wanted to change
(3) ANZUS (Australia, New Zealand, the US) 1 Sept 1951 provided mutual aid
(4) SEATO - Southeast Asian Treaty Organization - 8 Sept 1954
(a) Similar to NATO but only weaker (no joint military command like NATO), most important members resided outside the region.
(b) Signatories in Manila (Australia, Britain, France, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand, and the US) pledged joint action against aggression upon any member nation.
(c) 1 Feb 1955 - Ratified by the US Senate.
(5) 26 Sept 1953 - Mutual Defense Assistance Agreement - Spain + US - effectively committed the US to Spain's defense by allowing the US to develop and maintain air bases and naval installations in exchange for economic aid.
(6) In a separate action, the signatories of SEATO pledged to support and aid South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos who were excluded by the Geneva Agreements from entering into separate military alliances.
(7) Jan 1955 - the Senate promised to defend Formosa and the Pescadores Islands
New Look for the US Military
a. More Bang Per Buck
(1) Dual dilemma was created by the 1952 Republican pledge to balance the budget while maintaining the new defense agreements (often requiring military support)
(1) The military got a new look
(a) less emphasis on ground forces and more reliance on nuclear weapons
(b) a nuclear umbrella placed over ourselves
b. Massive Retaliation -- Secretary of State John Foster Dulles 12 Jan 1954
(1) If a country were to attack the US or an American ally, the US would not hesitate to strike with full instant nuclear retaliation
(2) Inflexible -- it is sensible only if the arena were Europe, but would the US risk a major war if the arena shifted to Asia, Africa or the Middle East.
(3) It was not thought so, and this weakened the credibility of the concept.
(4) Kennedy altered the idea of massive retaliation by counter-insurgency - apply appropriate action where needed.
Additional Crises of the 1950s
a. Guatemala Coup 1954
(1) The US viewed as threatening the regime of Jacob Arbenz Guzman , president of Guatemala since 1950, because of the spread of communist influence.
(2) 18 June 1954 - After an arms shipment of arrived from Czechoslovakia on 17 May, a CIA-backed insurgent force under Col Carlos Castillo Armas invaded Guatemala from Honduras.
(3) 29 June - Although the UN Security Council called for termination of the invasion (20 June), Guzman government was overthrown and replaced by an anti-Communist military junta
(4) 1 Sept - the junta was dissolved with Armas as president of Guatemala.
(5) The US promised Guatemala $6,425,000 in economic aid and signed a military assistance pact on 18 June 1956.
b. Taiwan Straits Crisis Sept 1954
(1) After the US lifted its blockade of Taiwan, making possible Nationalist attacks on mainland China, Chou En-lai declared on 11 Aug that Taiwan must be liquidated.
(2) 17 Aug - The US warned China against action against Taiwan.
(3) 3 Sept - Red China bombarded Taiwan-held islands of Quemoy, Little Quemoy
(4) 2 Dec - US-Nationalist Chinese Mutual Security Pact did not apply to islands along the Chinese mainland.
(a) 18 Jan 1955 - During its debate in the Senate, China seized Ichiang, 210 miles north of Formosa and increased its attacks on Quemoy and Matsu.
(b) 29 Jan - Formosa Resolution - passed both houses of Congress, authorized the president to employ US armed forces if deemed necessary to defend Formosa and the Pescadores against armed attack, including such territories as appropriate to defend them.
(c) 9 Feb - The treaty was ratified 65-6.
c. Austrian Peace Treaty 15 May 1955, signed by the US, Britain, France, the USSR and Austria, established Austria as an independent, sovereign state with pre-1938 borders, barred Austria from political union with Germany, required no reparations, barred Austria from owning or making atomic weapons or guided missiles, declared Austria's neutrality in perpetuity and provided for the withdrawal of all occupation troops by the end of 1955.
d. Baghdad Pact April 1955
(1) To block Soviet infiltration into northern Middle Eastern nations, US promoted the formation of a mutual defense treaty (Turkey, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Britain)
(2) To avoid alienating Egypt, US did not formally join, but remained an observer.
(3) The US did provide military and economic aid to pact members and on 29 Nov 1956, issued a declaration of support for the pact and the independence and territorial integrity of its members.
(4) 25 March 1959 - Iraq formally withdrew.
e. Suez Crisis 1956 - US support for the new state of Israel hurt its influence in the region, further undermined by the Soviets and at other times hurt by its own allies.
(1) Background on the Suez Canal
(a) The Canal, built between 1859-69, was declared in 1888 as a neutral zone by nine nations including Turkey (which controlled Egypt at the time).
(b) The declaration of neutrality required the canal be opened to all nations in time of war or peace, a stipulation which had always been observed
(c) The canal was owned and operated by a private company, of which, by 1950, Britain had become the company's largest shareholder.
(2) 1952 - Egyptian King Farouk was overthrown by his army, with Gamal Nassar emerging as ruler with his partner General Naguib.
(3) After the establishment of Israel, however, the Arab states looked to Nasser to refuse canal usage to Israel's ships.
(4) UN Security Council ordered ending the illegal ban in 1950 but Egypt refused.
(5) Britain had maintained a small military force at the canal but on 27 July 1954 - Britain agreed to withdraw the force within 20 months (signed in Oct) and it was actually withdrawn by June 1956, assuming that Nasser would continue the 1888 agreement after June.
(6) To get Nasser to comply, negotiations for funds for a dam at Aswan were held in which Egypt was to get $70 million from Britain and the US + loan guarantees from the World Bank.
(a) 19 July 1956 - When it was discovered that Nasser was negotiating with the Soviets for a better financial deal, US-$56 million offer was canceled.
(b) 26 July - Nasser seized the physical plant of the Suez Canal Company, expelling company officials and nationalizing the Canal.
(7) While negotiations with Nasser over the return of the canal occurred while IKE remained committed to a peaceful settlement of the dispute, nothing else.
(8) With the promise of support by Khrushchev, Nassar did not negotiate.
(9) 29 Oct - Israel moved against Egypt in the Sinai Peninsula, and defeated 45,000 Egyptian soldiers, reaching the Canal in four days
(10) 30 Oct - Britain and France issued an ultimatum for both sides to move away from the canal, which of course Egypt did not do, as expected which gave France and Britain an excuse to invade under the guise of "saving" the canal.
(a) Nasser blocked the canal by sinking ships
(b) Russia denounced the French and British, threatened to drop bombs on both, and called for an immediate cease fire.
(11) The US did not support its NATO allies, whom it felt had acted without good sense and had failed to get the advice of the US.
(a) US backed an Asian-African UN resolution for an immediate ceasefire
(b) Britain and France backed down in the face of mounting world opinion
(12) Results
(a) Israel, robbed of a well-earned victory, still could not use the Canal
(b) Nasser continued using the canal, putting revenues into the treasury
(c) Soviets emerged as Africa's friend, forcing major powers to back down
(d) The NATO alliance was strained.
(e) Although IKE claimed to have averted a world war, the US really was not willing to risk a war by calling the Soviet bluff, but the US was convinced that its allies could not be counted on to influence the Middle East
f. Hungarian Revolt 1956
(1) 23 Oct - Following antigovernment demonstrations, revolutionaries in Budapest demanded a renunciation of the Warsaw Pact and independence from the Soviets.
(2) 30 Oct - The Soviets promised major concessions.
(3) 4 Nov - The Soviets invaded with a major assault on Budapest, establishing a new all-Communist government in Hungary.
(4) While Eisenhower had promised no military support to Poland on 21 Oct, he provided no military assistance to the Hungarians either.
(5) Because this occurred almost simultaneously at the time when the Suez Crisis was being debated in the UN, almost no one noticed this Soviet aggression.
g. Collapse of Middle Eastern Defense Organization (MEDO ) and the Creation of the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO )
(1) 1955 - the British had organized a Middle Eastern security arrangement with several Arab nations and tried to get the US to participate
(2) Eisenhower did not have a strong Middle Eastern focus, until after the British and French lost their influence in the region in the aftermath of the Suez Crisis
(3) As a result of the Suez Crisis fiasco, MEDO collapsed and a power vacuum resulted in the development of a stronger US Middle Eastern Policy
(4) The US put together a defense organization (Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, US) that pledged mutual support of one another while blocking the Soviets from the region with a land barrier.
h. Eisenhower Doctrine - To fill the leadership vacuum in the Middle East
(1) 5 Jan 1957 - Before a joint session of Congress, IKE asked for authority to extend economic and military aid to any Middle East nation who requested it, even armed forces if deemed necessary by the President, against armed aggression from any country controlled by international communism.
(a) IKE promised an hourly communication with Congress when used
(b) Its use would be in accordance to US treaty obligations and UN charter.
(2) 7 May - Congress passed the legislation which became known as the Eisenhower Doctrine, with support in the Senate led by John F. Kennedy (MA)
(3) The Doctrine was used in 1958 in Lebanon
(a) United Arab Republic (Egypt + Syria in 1 Feb 1958) sided with a leftist coup on 14 July 1958 to oust the pro-Western government of Iraq
(b) Facing internal strife, President Camille Chamoun asked for US aid
i) 15 July - 5,000 US marines were quickly ordered from the 6th fleet to Lebanon
ii) British troops were flown to Jordan at request of King Hussein.
iii) By Oct US forces had reached 15,000 but were withdrawn as the area was turned over to the UN.
Attempts to Thaw the Cold War -- Spirit of Geneva - 18-23 July 1955
a. French Premier Edgar Faure, British Prime Minister Anthony Eden, US President Eisen-hower and Soviet Premier N. A. Bulganin (as well as Nikita Khrushchev as First Secretary of the Communist Party) met in Geneva to remove sources of conflict between the nations.
b. Agenda
(1) reunification of Germany
(2) European Security
(3) disarmament
(4) improvement of East-West relations.
c. No results were produced except for the prevailing good spirit at the meeting
(1) An agreement to meet again in 1960 in Paris
(2) a cultural exchange was arranged
(3) Khrushchev would go to the US in 1959 and Eisenhower to Moscow in 1960
Attempts Sour - U-2 Spy Plane Incident
a. Sept 1959 - Nikita Khrushchev visited several US cities before talking with IKE.
(1) When asked what he wanted to see in the US, Khrushchev stated Disneyland.
(2) Nixon, after 2-week tour of Poland and USSR, arrived in Moscow 23 July
b. 5 May 1960 - an American U-2 Plane was shot down, conducting photographic reconnaissance 1, 200 miles inside the Soviet Union.
(1) Francis Gary Powers the pilot confessed to being a CIA spy.
(2) Eisenhower admitted on 11 May that he had ordered the flight of the planes for reconnaissance purposes.
c. Paris Summit 16-17 May 1960
(1) Khrushchev censored the "spy flight " on 16 May, called upon the US to renounce such flights, desired to postpone the summit for 6 to 8 months after the presidential election and canceled Eisenhower's visit.
(2) Powers was tried, convicted of espionage, sentenced to 10 years, but was exchanged in 1962 for Russian spy Rudolf Abel .
d. Thus Eisenhower ended with growing tensions between the East and West again.
Beginning of Vietnam - Truman, while not liking colonialism, cared even less for a communist-dominated Indochina and therefore supplied the French with military equipment in the struggle to regain dominance of their former colony after World War Two.