Week 3

Cuban Missile Crisis - 1962 (Ch. 17.4)

The Cuban Missile Crisis was basically the USSR's attempt to secretly build missile sites in Cuba. However an American Spy plane discovered the sites. Thus the Crisis. The USSR wanted to have missiles close to the U.S incase of war actually coming around. The U.S didn't like the idea of it so we demanded they get rid of the missiles. This is significant because it showed the alliance between Cuba and the USSR which showed yet another friend for the USSR.

MAD – 1960s  (Video & Notes)

MAD stood for mutual assured destruction which basically meant that if one side attacked another side the side that was attacked would attack with the same or greater force. This was made to assure that if one side is attacked with the biggest nuclear weapons that the side that attacked would be hurt just as bad if not worse. It basically is like the Golden Rule, Treat people the way you want to be treated. This is significant because it would've been a big decision to go to war because you would be sealing the fate of yourself and your country if you fought with deadly force.

Vietnam War - 1965-1975 (Ch. 17.3)


The Vietnam War basically consisted of the Vietminh (which were Communist) and Vietnamese Nationalists fighting against the French Armies. This was significant because it showed how the Vietnamese wanted freedom from the French's constraints. The wanted to stop being controlled by the French and they wanted to be Free. This was a significant event because it showed how strong the Vietnamese people were they could revolt against a big dominant group like the French and not lose.

Détente - 1969-1979 (Ch. 17.5)


Detente was basically a policy to loosen tension between the U.S and the USSR. With the U.S helping the Vietnamese many wounds needed to be healed. Therefore declared instead of direct confrontation with the USSR they would just loosen the tension between each other. With so much work and effort put into helping the Vietnamese the were too weak to fight so therefore they did something that would benefit them and asked to let the tensions be loosened for a while. This is significant because it showed even the greatest of superpowers have weak moments where they need to rest.

SALT Negotiations - 1972 (Ch. 17.5)

Salt stood for Strategic Arms Limitation Talks and basically what it was, it was an agreement to how many weapons each country could have. I think the U.S. and the USSR agreed to this because if there are too many weapons on both sides it'll just obliterate both side. There will be nothing living anywhere around where the weapons and war happened. So... if war did arise no one side would get completely obliterated and wiped out. This was a significant event because it really showed that both sides were scared to go to war, and to minimize the destruction each side should have less weapons of Destruction.

Iranian Revolution - 1979 (Ch. 17.4)

The Iranian Revolution happened due to with the Dictator at the time. Shah Reza was a human rights violator which really made people mad. So in 1979 the people decided to overthrow him. Therefore a revolt starts. However he flees to the U.S to safety. This is significant because it shows how if a group or person is friends with the U.S, they can protect you at all costs...

USSR invades Afghanistan - 1979 (Ch. 17.4)

The Soviets invade Afghanistan to gain more land and an expansion of the earth under their belt. The reason why they invaded Afghanistan is because they thought it would be easy to invade due to the fighting with the Mujahedin and the prime minister of Afghanistan. So they would be easily distracted and the USSR could easily just take over while they fought. This is significant because it showed how desperate for expansion the USSR were. Which showed them wanting more power to be the biggest and baddest superpower out there.