The Cold War - Summary on a Map (long version)

Aug 9, 2023

The Cold War - Summary on a Map (long version)

New version ! Let’s retrace, on a map, the major events of the Cold War, from the end of WWII until the fall of the USSR.
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Support the channel on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/geohistory
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English translation \u0026 voiceover: Matthew Bates https://www.epicvoiceover.com/
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Original French version: • La guerre froide - résumé sur carte, …
Russian version: Coming soon
Arabic version: Coming soon
Spanish version: Coming soon
Portuguese version (Brazil): Coming soon
Japanese version: • 冷戦完全版
Korean version: Coming soon
German version: Coming soon
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Music: Made for Geo History by Ledge End: https://www.beatstars.com/ledgeend
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Software: Adobe After Effects
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Chapters
00:00 WWII
01:24 End of World War II
03:36 The division of the world into two blocks
06:33 The Cold War
08:26 Alliances
09:50 The Korean War
11:30 Interventionism
13:26 Peaceful coexistence
15:42 Cuba
18:20 Détente
20:42 USSR rise in power
23:17 USA rise in power
25:01 The end of the Cold War
26:47 The fall of the USSR

Content

0.596 -> We begin in 1943, during World War II.

4.576 -> The Allies are gradually gaining the upper hand and begin to look towards victory.

9.94 -> The USSR, the United States and the United Kingdom begin a series of meetings to prepare for the post-war period.

18.242 -> The three agree to divide and occupy Germany after its defeat.

23.344 -> The United States, for its part, announces its intention to establish international institutions to pacify the world,

31.636 -> stabilize the global economy, and increase its influence.

36.144 -> For its part, the United Kingdom seeks to preserve and strengthen its colonial empire,

41.569 -> and begins negotiations with the USSR on future zones of influence in the Balkans,

47.145 -> where the Axis forces are being defeated.

50.527 -> Churchill and Stalin agree that Romania and Bulgaria should come under Soviet influence,

56.576 -> that Hungary and Yugoslavia should be shared, and that Greece should come under British influence.

63.114 -> But just a few days later, as Greece is liberated,

66.98 -> the Greek Communist Party, which had played a major role in the resistance,

71.19 -> finds itself in a position of strength, which does not sit well with the British.

76.606 -> The British then intervene militarily to restore a royalist government, triggering a civil war.

87.286 -> As the Allied victory becomes clearer, a new meeting is organized at Yalta in Crimea.

94.35 -> The United States formalizes the future creation of the UN.

98.746 -> The three powers, along with China and France, will play a major role,

103.171 -> becoming the 5 permanent members of the Security Council.

107.275 -> The USA also obtains a commitment from the USSR to attack Japan within three months of the German defeat.

115.231 -> The three also agree to recreate Poland, but the USSR will keep the territories it has conquered,

121.73 -> and the country will be moved further west, to Germany's detriment.

126.382 -> Finally, Germany and Austria will be occupied and partitioned, with Churchill negotiating to include France in the partition.

134.748 -> On May 8, 1945, Germany surrenders. The UN is then created in San Francisco, initially bringing together 51 countries.

145.79 -> At the Potsdam conference, Germany and Berlin, as well as Austria and Vienna,

151.216 -> are officially divided into 4 zones of occupation.

155.373 -> But there are already the first signs of dissension among the three powers,

160.069 -> as they are unable to agree on how the country should be administered,

164.166 -> or whether Germany should pay war reparations.

167.425 -> At the conference, the new President of the United States, Truman,

171.507 -> informs Stalin that his country now possesses an extremely powerful new weapon.

177.321 -> Two weeks later, on August 6, 1945, the United States drops its first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.

186.332 -> On August 9, a second bomb is dropped on Nagasaki,

190.67 -> while the USSR keeps its promise, and begins a military invasion of Manchuria,

195.899 -> southern Sakhalin, and the Kuril Islands.

199.021 -> The United States negotiates and obtains a temporary division of Korea at the 38th parallel

205.736 -> so that it can occupy the south of the country.

209.084 -> On September 2, Japan signs its surrender, marking the end of World War II.

219.434 -> The USA and the USSR are now the world's two superpowers, while Europe has been ravaged.

227.102 -> Weakened France and the United Kingdom concentrate their efforts on regaining control of their colonies around the world.

234.947 -> The Soviet Union, which during the interwar period was isolated and threatened,

240.584 -> now wants to secure its borders, notably by imposing coalition governments favorable to it

247.162 -> in the countries it has liberated from the German yoke.

250.598 -> Yugoslavia, which had liberated itself from Axis forces, is now in the hands of the Communist Tito,

257.811 -> himself allied with Stalin, and who is supporting the Greek Communists in the civil war by supplying them with arms.

265.508 -> On the other side, the United Kingdom finds itself in trouble, and seeks support from the United States.

272.166 -> On March 5, 1946, Churchill, who is visiting the United States,

277.636 -> makes a speech in which he declares that Europe is now divided by an iron curtain

283.779 -> separating the Communist camp from the Western camp.

287.496 -> The Soviet Union also puts pressure on Turkey

291.08 -> to take control of the strategic straits linking the Black Sea to the Mediterranean,

296.179 -> and on Iran, where the Red Army remains stationed to defend the creation of a state in the north

302.264 -> that would give it privileged access to oil.

305.372 -> Finally, the USSR supports the Communists in China,

309.75 -> where civil war resumes between the Communists and the Nationalists, the latter being supported by the United States.

317.105 -> Truman then makes a speech in which he declares that the world is now divided

322.351 -> between democracies and authoritarian regimes,

325.807 -> and that his country will embark on an interventionist policy around the world to stem the spread of communism.

333.027 -> The country now supports Turkey, and takes over the arming of royalists in Greece.

338.725 -> In Western Europe, where the rise of Communist parties is a cause for concern,

343.872 -> the Marshall Plan is promulgated, designed to provide credit to speed up reconstruction,

349.718 -> stabilize economies, and strengthen United States influence.

354.513 -> In the United States, communists are driven out of government, and a central intelligence agency,

361.172 -> the CIA, is created to defend the country's interests around the world.

366.215 -> For his part, Stalin reacts by founding the Cominform, an alliance of Communist countries dominated by the USSR.

374.853 -> On this occasion, Andrei Zhdanov, a high-ranking Soviet representative,

380.275 -> makes a speech in which he confirms that the world is now divided into two camps,

386.34 -> one imperialist, led by the USA, and the other democratic, led by the Soviet Union.

395.94 -> As tensions mount, the USSR invests massively to make up for its military and industrial lag with the USA,

405.627 -> and to develop atomic weapons.

408.088 -> At the same time, Stalin fails to impose his policies on Tito, leading to the first tensions between the two.

416.033 -> Finally, in the heart of Europe, Czechoslovakia is still seen as a bridge between the two blocs.

423.252 -> The country remains a democracy with a strong Communist party.

427.87 -> But in February 1948, after some tension, the Soviets support a coup d'état,

434.126 -> and the country falls entirely into the Eastern bloc.

438.377 -> In response, the UK, France, and the Benelux countries form a military alliance to repel any attack from the East,

446.935 -> whether Soviet or German.

449.099 -> In Germany, the four fail to reunify the country.

452.776 -> The United States and the United Kingdom then persuade France to unite their zones of occupation

459.283 -> to create a federal, democratic German state to block the spread of communism.

464.62 -> The future country will be included in the Marshall Plan,

468.231 -> and will have the Deutsche Mark as its new currency.

471.732 -> Unhappy with this agreement, Stalin responds with a coup de force,

476.407 -> imposing a blockade on West Berlin, which is still under Western occupation and at the heart of his zone.

484.735 -> The Westerners then organize an airlift that supplies the two million inhabitants of West Berlin for a year.

492.225 -> At the same time, Stalin formalizes the split with Tito, and excludes Yugoslavia from the Cominform.

499.738 -> As a result, Yugoslavia stops supplying arms to the Communist camp in Greece.

509.6 -> On April 4, 1949, Western European countries form a military alliance with the USA and Canada to create NATO.

519.67 -> If one member of the alliance is attacked, all of the others agree to defend it.

525.526 -> The countries of Western Europe thus find themselves under the protection of the United States,

531.191 -> which is still the only country to possess atomic weapons.

534.893 -> The following month, the Federal Republic of Germany is officially created.

540.174 -> In Greece, after a major royalist offensive, the last Communist stronghold is defeated,

546.529 -> and the country joins the Western camp.

548.869 -> On the Soviet side, on August 29th, 1949, the USSR successfully tests its first atomic bomb.

558.826 -> In China, Mao Zedong's Red Army overcomes the Kuomintang nationalists, who retreat to Taiwan.

566.186 -> Mainland China becomes Communist and allies itself with the Soviet Union,

571.681 -> which gains a major ally in Asia, while war rages in Indochina between Communist forces and the French army,

579.779 -> which is struggling to regain control of the territory.

583.174 -> And tension mounts in Korea, where no agreement has been reached on reunification.

593.534 -> On June 25, 1950, the North Korean army, supported by the USSR,

600.022 -> begins its invasion of South Korea across the 38th parallel.

604.872 -> The United States turns to the UN to organize the defense of South Korea.

610.191 -> But on the Security Council, China is still represented by the Republic of China, which has taken refuge in Taiwan,

618.494 -> provoking the displeasure of Stalin, who boycotts the meetings.

622.644 -> Without veto or opposition, the UN agrees to form an army under US command to defend South Korea.

630.587 -> The front line is pushed back to the Chinese border.

633.993 -> China in turn intervenes, sending its army to support the North Koreans.

639.551 -> The front line is pushed back and stabilizes more or less around the 38th parallel.

645.334 -> The United States, which is heavily involved on this front,

648.768 -> fears having to intervene militarily elsewhere in the world,

652.765 -> and forges new alliances with the Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, where it ends the occupation.

660.75 -> The US also fears a Soviet offensive against West Germany, which is not allowed to rearm.

667.656 -> The United States then applies political pressure to give the authorization for the country to rearm, and to join NATO.

675.535 -> In 1953, a ceasefire is signed in Korea, and a demilitarized zone becomes the new border between the two Koreas.

684.424 -> This zone is constantly guarded by over a million soldiers.

693.359 -> In the United States, the new President Eisenhower relies on the country's nuclear superiority,

699.765 -> and advocates for the installation of atomic weapons in Western Europe to discourage any attack.

706.233 -> In the USSR, Stalin dies without having prepared for succession.

711.308 -> A period of instability follows, during which Nikita Khrushchev gradually establishes himself as the country's new leader.

719.865 -> In Iran, the CIA secretly organizes a coup d'état to overthrow the Prime Minister, who has nationalized oil.

728.364 -> The Shah of Iran returns to the throne, and embarks on a pro-Western policy.

734.137 -> In 1954, in Indochina, France is defeated, and forced to withdraw.

740.58 -> Laos and Cambodia are recognized, and Vietnam finds itself divided along the 17th parallel,

747.442 -> with the north communist, and the Republic of Vietnam in the south.

751.777 -> In Central America, in Guatemala,

754.434 -> the left-wing government introduces an agrarian reform that is unfavorable to the powerful US company,

761.59 -> the “United Fruit Company”.

763.825 -> The latter then asks the CIA to organize a coup d'état to overthrow the government.

769.765 -> But as the world becomes increasingly divided,

773.308 -> 29 so-called “Third World” countries, most of which have recently gained their independence,

779.417 -> meet in Bandung to condemn colonization and proclaim their neutrality.

785.201 -> In Europe, West Germany is finally integrated into NATO.

789.604 -> The USSR responds by creating the Warsaw Pact, a military alliance between the Eastern Bloc countries.

797.287 -> Agreement is also reached on the reunification of Austria,

801.17 -> but the new country must remain neutral in the context of the Cold War.

809.84 -> In Hungary, an anti-Soviet insurrection rages and gains momentum.

815.349 -> The Soviet army intervenes to quell the rebellion.

819.05 -> At the same time, in Egypt, the new president Nasser nationalizes the strategic Suez Canal,

825.615 -> to the detriment of the French and British, who were controlling it until then.

830.186 -> In response, the latter ally themselves with Israel and launch a military offensive to regain control of the canal.

838.347 -> The USSR, allied with Egypt, threatens to retaliate with nuclear weapons,

844.134 -> forcing the United States to call off the operation.

847.71 -> This event marks the end of colonial domination by the United Kingdom and France.

853.784 -> From then on, only the USSR and the USA impose their policies.

859.416 -> But both have now developed large nuclear arsenals, and know that war would have devastating consequences.

867.157 -> The challenge is now to gain superiority in other areas.

871.927 -> In 1957, the USSR surprises and worries the USA by sending the first satellite into space.

880.074 -> The following year, China begins bombing islands that are controlled by Taiwan.

885.541 -> The United States then deploys a military fleet in the Straits and puts an end to the offensive.

892.105 -> But the Soviet Union didn’t intervene on behalf of its Chinese ally, which irritates Mao Zedong.

899.251 -> The latter distances himself from the Soviet Union, and launches his own development programs.

905.769 -> The following year, Khrushchev is the first Soviet head of state to make a diplomatic visit to the United States.

913.108 -> He does so in order to ease tensions, and to negotiate an agreement on West Berlin,

919.286 -> which is still under Western control.

921.896 -> In China, Khrushchev is now perceived as too conciliatory with the West.

927.471 -> What's more, since Mao Zedong has launched his own reforms,

931.435 -> the USSR is no longer helping China to develop atomic weapons.

936.677 -> This time, the split between the two Communist powers is official.

945.298 -> In Cuba, Fidel Castro's new revolutionary government nationalizes US companies

951.374 -> and draws closer diplomatically to the USSR.

955.479 -> Eisenhower commissions the CIA to organize his downfall.

960.108 -> In Africa, the Congo gains independence and, after elections, Patrice Lumumba is appointed Prime Minister.

968.26 -> But in the rich uranium mining region of Katanga, independence movements break out,

974.321 -> supported by the Belgian army.

976.926 -> On the other side, the USSR and Third World countries defend Lumumba.

981.744 -> The CIA then intervenes to organize his downfall.

986.313 -> Colonel Mobutu seizes power and organizes Lumumba's arrest and execution.

992.889 -> In the United States, Kennedy becomes the new president.

996.637 -> He advocates for peaceful coexistence with the Soviet Union,

1001.042 -> while continuing to contain the spread of communism around the world.

1005.378 -> In Cuba, counter-revolutionaries, armed by the CIA, land on the island,

1010.86 -> but the offensive is repulsed.

1013.194 -> At the same time, the USSR sends the first man into space, Yuri Gagarin.

1019.601 -> Now, Kennedy decides to invest heavily to make up for lost time in the space race,

1025.047 -> and to become the first country to set foot on the Moon.

1028.547 -> In the same year, although no agreement has been reached on West Berlin,

1033.043 -> the Soviets begin building a wall to divide the city, and halt migration from East to West.

1040.121 -> The Soviet Union, which has caught up to the West in industrial and military terms,

1045.513 -> is now testing an atomic bomb 3,000 times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb.

1052.521 -> At the same time, the Soviet Union takes advantage of the failure of the Cuban invasion

1058.254 -> to move closer to Cuba, and obtains authorization to deploy nuclear missiles there,

1063.806 -> which pose a direct threat to United States soil.

1067.322 -> Realizing this, Kennedy deploys his military fleet and imposes a total quarantine on the island,

1074.407 -> blocking the arrival of Soviet ships.

1076.923 -> Tensions reach a climax, and the two powers are on the brink of nuclear war.

1082.962 -> But an agreement is finally reached.

1085.77 -> Khrushchev undertakes to withdraw his nuclear missiles,

1089.519 -> in exchange for which Kennedy promises not to invade the island,

1093.58 -> and also to withdraw US nuclear missiles which are situated in Turkey and Italy.

1103.902 -> After coming close to nuclear war, the two superpowers begin a series of meetings to calm the situation.

1111.189 -> An agreement is reached to limit nuclear testing,

1114.644 -> and a direct telephone line is set up between the Kremlin and the White House to avoid future incidents.

1121.419 -> In Vietnam, tensions remain high between the North and the South,

1125.787 -> which is defended by the United States.

1128.607 -> In August of 1964, after a series of controversial incidents,

1133.47 -> the United States steps up its military involvement, massively bombing the north and deploying troops.

1141.001 -> The US also lands troops in the Dominican Republic,

1144.836 -> where it fears a revolution similar to that which took place in Cuba.

1149.355 -> Finally, in Indonesia, the United States supports General Suharto who,

1154.65 -> after overthrowing the Communist government, begins a bloody crackdown on his opponents.

1161.028 -> More than 500,000 Communists are massacred,

1165.468 -> and hundreds of thousands more are imprisoned in camps.

1169.054 -> At the same time, the war in Vietnam intensifies, forcing the United States to deploy up to 500,000 troops.

1177.631 -> But in early 1968, North Vietnam and the Communists in the south organize a major counter-offensive.

1185.398 -> In the United States, victory seems to be slipping away, and the war becomes increasingly unpopular.

1192.639 -> At the same time, in Czechoslovakia, the government begins a democratic transition.

1198.846 -> The USSR then invades the country, along with three other Warsaw Pact members,

1204.486 -> to re-establish a pro-Soviet government.

1207.854 -> Brezhnev, now head of the USSR, hardens his foreign policy.

1213.305 -> Conversely, Nixon, the new President of the United States,

1217.3 -> wants to reduce the country's military presence around the world,

1221.059 -> including in Vietnam, while providing financial and material support to countries fighting communism.

1228.339 -> At the same time, the United States makes up much of its lost ground in the space race,

1233.973 -> and on July 21, 1969, Armstrong and Aldrin become the first men to walk on the moon.

1246.151 -> In the Gulf of Aden, Somalia, after a coup d'état,

1249.976 -> and South Yemen, which has been independent since 1967,

1254.572 -> are both turning to the Soviet camp.

1257.228 -> In 1971, the UN passes a resolution allowing the People's Republic of China to replace Taiwan

1265.297 -> as a permanent member of the Security Council.

1268.031 -> Nixon then makes his first trip to China to establish initial contact.

1273.682 -> Three months later, he goes to Moscow to sign an agreement to limit the arms race.

1279.318 -> Finally, in 1973, the United States formalizes its total disengagement from Vietnam,

1286.655 -> after failing to find a lasting peace solution.

1290.02 -> That same year, at the fourth meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Algiers,

1295.16 -> 75 countries are represented, including in Latin America,

1299.853 -> where the United States is determined to prevent any communist governments at all costs.

1305.342 -> But in Chile, since 1970, the country is governed by Salvador Allende,

1311.188 -> a democratically-elected socialist who is implementing a program close to communism.

1317.144 -> The CIA is tasked with secretly organizing his downfall.

1322.106 -> On September 11, 1973, following a military coup,

1327.157 -> Augusto Pinochet seizes power, and establishes a violent military dictatorship.

1333.525 -> The following month, Egypt and Syria launch a surprise attack on Israel.

1338.998 -> The USSR supports the offensive, while the USA sets up an air corridor to supply Israel.

1346.011 -> In the end, a ceasefire is signed, but tensions have risen between the two superpowers.

1352.059 -> In 1975, North Vietnamese forces invade the south of the country.

1357.97 -> In the United States, Congress blocks any military intervention,

1362.414 -> and within a few months the Communists win and reunify the country,

1367.103 -> while Laos and Cambodia also fall to Communist powers.

1371.671 -> In Africa, following Portugal's withdrawal from its colonies, war rages in Angola.

1378.286 -> The Communist camp, supported by the USSR and Cuba, wins, and the new country becomes part of the Soviet camp.

1386.526 -> Finally, in Europe, the USSR installs new, more powerful nuclear missiles,

1392.066 -> which threaten Western Europe in particular, thus rekindling tensions.

1401.163 -> In Afghanistan, the Communist Party seizes power.

1405.057 -> On the other side, Mujahideen rebels, supported by Pakistan and China,

1409.808 -> organize a revolt that turns into a civil war.

1413.176 -> At the same time, the United States begins full diplomatic relations with China,

1418.764 -> establishing an embassy in Beijing.

1421.592 -> The country also authorizes the CIA to help support the Mujahideen in Afghanistan.

1427.581 -> But as the situation becomes more complicated, the USSR decides to intervene militarily and invades the country.

1436.242 -> Tensions between the two superpowers rise again.

1440.225 -> US President Carter relaunches the country's armaments program

1444.6 -> and announces economic sanctions against the USSR.

1448.347 -> While NATO responds to the new Soviet missiles by installing its own nuclear missiles in five Western European countries.

1456.412 -> Regarding the Olympic Games in Moscow,

1459.171 -> most Western and Arab countries boycott the event.

1462.806 -> In Poland, strikes undermine the government, and lead to the creation of Solidarity,

1468.933 -> the first independent free trade union in the Eastern bloc.

1473.101 -> In the United States, Ronald Reagan is elected President,

1477.187 -> and further tightens the country's foreign policy.

1480.166 -> He pledges to train and arm all political opponents of Communist governments, without sending in armies.

1487.131 -> The death of Brezhnev in 1982 is followed by a period of instability in the USSR,

1493.261 -> as the Union's economy stagnates, and the Soviet army becomes bogged down in Afghanistan.

1503.775 -> In 1985, Gorbachev comes to power and pursues a policy of international appeasement.

1511.028 -> He renews contact with the United States, with whom he agrees to reduce military arsenals by 50%.

1518.729 -> But the following year, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster is another blow to the Soviet Union,

1524.498 -> which struggles to manage the crisis, and whose image is tarnished worldwide.

1530.236 -> On the domestic front, Gorbachev attempts economic reforms and openness to increase freedom and transparency.

1537.236 -> At a third meeting with Reagan, the two agree to withdraw their nuclear missiles from Europe,

1543.66 -> putting an end to the Euromissile crisis.

1546.671 -> In 1988, the USSR undertakes to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan,

1552.936 -> and then announces the withdrawal of a large number of its soldiers stationed in Eastern Europe.

1558.756 -> While this policy is successful on the international stage,

1562.669 -> within the USSR and the Eastern bloc this policy of relaxation facilitates the organization of opposition movements.

1571.545 -> In Poland, the first elections are held, with the Solidarity party victorious.

1577.493 -> In Hungary, the country opens its border with Austria,

1580.949 -> allowing East Germans to migrate to West Germany unchecked.

1585.505 -> Finally, Gorbachev announces that he will not intervene to protect the Berlin Wall.

1591.645 -> The Wall is torn down on November 9, 1989.

1596.55 -> The following month, Gorbachev and new US President George Herbert Walker Bush meet in Malta

1603.14 -> and declare an end to the Cold War.

1610.441 -> Following the collapse of communist rule in Eastern Europe and German reunification,

1615.887 -> instability rages within the USSR itself.

1620.01 -> The Baltic republics are the first to proclaim their independence.

1624.778 -> On July 1, 1991, the Warsaw Pact is dissolved.

1630.135 -> The following month, Gorbachev narrowly avoids a coup d'état.

1634.769 -> Weakened, he loses control of the Soviet Union, as more and more republics declare their independence.

1641.67 -> Finally, on December 25th, 1991, the USSR becomes an empty box, and Gorbachev is forced to resign.

1651.895 -> Over some 45 years of tension, the USA and the USSR never faced each other militarily.

1659.359 -> The name Cold War derives from this period,

1662.369 -> during which the two superpowers competed diplomatically, industrially, and technologically,

1669.001 -> without any direct military confrontation.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3jv4QbIoQ8