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Title: Hot%20Spots%20of%20the%20Cold%20War


1
Hot Spots of the Cold War
2
The Korean War
3
Chinese Revolution
  • Communist forces led by Mao Zedong struggled
    against the Nationalist government led by Chiang
    Kai-shek
  • To prevent a Communist revolution in Asia, the US
    sent the Nationalist government 2 billion in aid

4
Chinese Revolution
  • However, the Nationalists did not use the money
    wisely and lost the civil war by 1949 and US
    stopped sending money
  • 1950 ? Peoples Republic of China and Soviet
    Union signed a treaty of friendship and alliance
  • US feared this would lead to other Communist
    revolutions throughout Asia

5
New Policies in Japan
  • General Douglas MacArthur took control of
    occupied Japan and made it his mission to
    introduce democracy and keep Japan from
    threatening war again
  • Once the US lost China as an ally, it began to
    encourage the rapid recovery of Japans
    industrial economy
  • US viewed Japan as the key to defending Asia from
    Communism

6
The Korean War Begins
  • Following the Japanese defeat, the US disarmed
    the Japanese in southern Korea and the Soviets
    disarms the north, divided at the 38th parallel
  • A Communist government developed in North Korea
    and an American-backed government controlled the
    south
  • Soviet Union provided military aid to the North
    Koreans
  • June 25, 1950 ? North Korean troops invaded the
    south

7
The Korean War Begins
  • Truman saw the Communist invasion as a test of
    the containment policy so he ordered the US naval
    and air power into action
  • Truman asked the United Nations to take action
  • Soviet delegate to the UN was not present to veto
    the request, so the UN stepped in on the southern
    side

8
The Korean War Begins
  • US and southern troops pushed into the Pusan
    perimeter where they resisted the Northern
    onslaught
  • September 15, 1950 ? MacArthur ordered an
    invasion behind enemy lines
  • North Koreans were pushed into a full retreat
    back to the 38th parallel, then to the border
    with China

9
China Enters the War
  • Peoples Republic of China saw the advancing UN
    troops as a threat and warned the troops to halt
  • Warning was ignored and China sent thousands of
    troops into North Korea to push back the UN
    troops
  • MacArthur, angry that his troops were pushed back
    approved the expansion of the war to China and
    asked for a blockade of Chinese ports, the use of
    Chiang Kai-sheks Nationalist army, and the
    bombing of Chinese cities with atomic weapons

10
Truman Fires MacArthur
  • Truman refused MacArthurs demands
  • MacArthur publically criticized the president,
    arguing that there is no substitute for victory
    and that a limited war was a form of appeasement
  • Truman fired MacArthur for his insubordination in
    April 1951
  • Although MacArthur was still widely popular and
    returned home a hero, Congress supported Truman
    and his policy of a limited war

11
Changes in Policy
  • Following 1951, the Korean War settled into a
    series of small battles over hills and other
    local objectives
  • Armistice signed in July 1953
  • Korean War was the first time that the United
    States used the military to resolve Cold War
    issues
  • Shifted focus from Europe to Asia
  • 1954 ? US signed a defense agreement with Japan,
    South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and
    Australia, forming the Southeast Asia Treaty
    Organization (SEATO)

12
JFK and the Cold War
13
Bay of Pigs Invasion
  • When Fidel Castro overthrew the corrupt leader
    Fulgencio Batista in 1959, he immediately created
    ties with the Soviet Union
  • This made the communist fear too close to home
    for many Americans
  • Kennedy approved a plan for the CIA to secretly
    train and arm a group of Cuban exiles to invade
    the island
  • On April 17, 1961, 1,400 Cubans landed in the Bay
    of Pigs, but the invasion was a disaster and
    within two days, Castros forces killed or
    captured almost all of the members

14
Cuban Missile Crisis
  • Summer 1962 ? intelligence agents learned that
    the Soviets sent technicians and military
    construction began
  • October 22, 1962 ? Kennedy announced that
    American spy planes detected that the Soviets had
    put long-range missiles on Cuba
  • Kennedy ordered a naval blockade to stop the
    delivery of more missiles

15
Cuban Missile Crisis
  • American people were incredibly worried because a
    nuclear Holocaust seemed imminent
  • Soviet Union offered a deal they would remove
    the missiles from Cuba if the US would promise to
    never invade Cuba and remove missiles in Turkey
  • October 28, 1962 ? leaders reached an agreement
    and missiles were removed from Cuba

16
The Vietnam War
17
Growth of Vietnamese Nationalism
  • Vietnamese people were sick of being ruled by
    foreigners
  • Ho Chi Minh became a prominent leader of the
    Nationalist movement in Vietnam
  • Ho Chi Minh founded the Indochinese Communist
    Party and worked to overthrow French rule
  • In 1941, Ho Chi Minh organized a nationalist
    group called the Vietminh and it united
    Nationalists Communists

18
America Aids the French
  • When Japan surrendered to the Allies in 1945, it
    gave up control of Indochina
  • Ho Chi Minh quickly declared Vietnam independent
  • However, France refused to give up its colonial
    rule in the region

19
America Aids the French
  • France appealed to the US for help, which placed
    the US in a difficult position
  • US opposed colonialism, but it also greatly
    opposed Communism
  • Truman became convinced to help France
  • President Eisenhower continued Trumans policy
    and defended it using the Domino Theory

20
Defeat at Dien Bien Phu
  • France continued to struggle in the guerilla war
    against the Vietminh
  • 1954 ? French commander ordered his forced to
    occupy the mountain town of Dien Bien Phu
  • A huge Vietminh force surrounded the town and
    began bombarding it
  • May 7, 1954 ? French force fell to the Vietminh

21
Geneva Accords
  • Divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel ? Ho Chi
    Minh in charge of the north, and a pro-western
    regime in the south
  • 1956 ? elections were to be held to reunite the
    country under a single government
  • Ngo Dinh Diem lead the Nationalist government of
    the south
  • Very pro-western and anti-communist
  • Did not allow the elections to occur in 1956
    because he feared that Ho Chi Minh would win

22
Resistance in the South
  • After Ngo Dinh Diem refused to hold national
    elections, the Communists of the south began to
    organize
  • Vietcong ? Communists of South Vietnam, supported
    by Ho Chi Minh
  • Vietcong grew more powerful because many
    Vietnamese opposed Diems government

23
Kennedy Takes Over
  • Kennedy continued the nations policy of support
    for South Vietnam
  • Between 1961-63, the number of military personnel
    grew from 2,000 to 15,000
  • American officials urged Diem to create a more
    democratic government and introduce reforms to
    help the peasants
  • Diem created strategic hamlets ? fortified
    villages protected by machine guns, barbed wire,
    and trenches

24
The Overthrow of Diem
  • Diem made himself very unpopular by
    discriminating against Buddhists
  • Banned the traditional religious flags and killed
    9 protestors
  • Monks set themselves on fire in protest
  • August 1963 ? Henry Cabot Lodge (ambassador)
    learned that Diems unpopularity was so strong
    that Vietnamese generals were planning on
    overthrowing him

25
The Overthrow of Diem
  • November 1, 1963 ? Generals launched a military
    coup and executed Diem
  • Kennedy will be assassinated less than a month
    later on November 22, 1963
  • South Vietnams government grew weaker after the
    coup
  • The people of South Vietnam did not support the
    new military government

26
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
  • August 2, 1964 ? President Johnson announced that
    the North Vietnamese torpedoed two American
    destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin
  • August 4, 1964 ? Johnson reported that a similar
    attack occurred
  • August 7, 1964 ? Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
    authorized the president to take all necessary
    measures to repel any armed attack against the
    forces of the United States and to prevent
    further aggression

27
United States Sends in Troops
  • Vietcong began to attack bases were Americans
    were stationed
  • Americans began to bomb North Vietnam
  • Johnsons popularity grew following the bombing
  • March 1965 ? Johnson began sustained bombing
    called Operation Rolling Thunder
  • Also ordered more troops into Vietnam

28
Bloody Stalemate
  • By the end of 1965, there were 184,300 US troops
    in Vietnam
  • The next year that number doubled
  • Vietcong used ambushes, booby traps, and other
    guerilla tactics
  • General William Westmoreland advocated for
    increased military presence in Vietnam
  • American troops began using Agent Orange
    (herbicide used to kill plant life) and Napalm
    (jellied gasoline)

29
The Tet Offensive
  • In November 1967, Johnson and Westmoreland
    assured the American public that the strength of
    the North Vietnamese was decreasing and the
    American troops could withstand any major
    offensive
  • On January 21, 1968, the NVA launched a major
    offensive on Tet, the Vietnamese lunar new year
  • The Tet Offensive was a coordinated attack on 36
    provincial capitals, 5 major cities, and the U.S.
    embassy in Saigon
  • It is considered a military victory but a
    strategic loss for the US troops

30
My Lai Massacre
  • March 16, 1968, American forces searching for
    enemy troops stumbled upon the village of My Lai
  • At this point, the U.S. troops had been subjected
    to years of guerilla tactics by the Vietnamese,
    including using women and children as soldiers
    and soldiers posing as civilians
  • Lieutenant William Calleys unit began shooting
    and killing unarmed civilians
  • By the end, 400-500 Vietnamese were killed

31
Nixon Works to End the War
  • Nixon campaigned on the promise of peace with
    honor
  • Vietnamization ? U.S. forces would withdraw as
    ARVN troops assumed more combat duties and would
    eventually take over the war altogether
  • To help destroy the communist supply lines, Nixon
    ordered the secret bombing of the Ho Chi Minh
    Trail

32
The War Finally Ends
  • Paris Peace Accords ? In January 1973, the United
    States, South Vietnam, and North Vietnam signed
    the peace agreement
  • All parties agreed to a cease-fire, US troop
    withdrawal, POWs exchanged, and North Vietnam
    troops would remain in South Vietnam
  • By the spring of 1975, the capital city of South
    Vietnam, Saigon, fell to the north and the nation
    was united over communist rule

33
Impact of War
  • Twenty-Sixth Amendment 18 year olds can vote
  • War Powers Act, 1973 ? restricted the Presidents
    war-making powers by requiring him to consult
    with Congress within 48 hours of committing
    American forces to a foreign conflict must
    withdraw forces if he does not receive
    Congressional approval within 90 days
  • Returning veterans faced harsh criticisms from
    the public ? baby killers

34
Impact of War
  • 591 POWs returned during Operation Homecoming
  • Many returned with psychological and physical
    damage
  • Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

35
Lessons for Future American Presidents
  • 1. Wars must be of a short duration
  • 2. War must yield few American causalities
  • 3. Restrict media coverage access to
    battlefields.
  • 4. Develop and maintain public support.
  • 5. Set clear, winnable goals
  • 6. Set timeline for troop withdrawals.

36
In The End
  • If we have to fight, we will fight. You will
    kill ten of our men and we will kill one of
    yours, and in the end it will be you who tires of
    it. Ho Chi Minh
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