Sections of UN

• Security Councel- most powerful
• International Court of Justice-judicial
• General Assembly-part with representatives from every member
• Economic and Social Council
• other unimportant ones

US plan and policy to limit the spread of communism and isolate Eastern Europe

• To offer support to any Eur country resisting communism and the soviet union (like Greece and Iran)

• Devised in 1946 by Secretary of State George Marshall to financially aid Eur nations, thereby exacting democratic influence
• Stalin declines this offer on behalf of eastern Eur
• this plan helped to rebuild western Eur after the devastation of WWII

• Stalin blockaded Berlin which was deep in East Ger, hoping to drive the allies out altogether
  • Stalin reacting to economic measues taken by Trumanrefusing to allow ger industries to pay reparations to the soviets
• Stalin closes off the road, and there was no treaty that would ever force Stalin to let western powers tavel through the Soviet zone of occupation
• Truman institues the BERLIN AIRLIFT
  • aircrafts fly in and out of B for 324 days, carrying supplies
  • Blockade lifted, but planes keep flying
  • 2 mill tons of food flown in in total

• Western allies felt like theyneeded something tangable to prove solidarity to the USSR
• 1949-signed North Atlantic charter
  • article V: "[an attack against one is an attack against all]"
  • Soviets never invaded western Eur

• Soviet response to NATO
  • 1955- Eastern Bloc nations of Sov Un, Pol, Hun...and others signed it
    • formed the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance
  • same Article V principle as NATO
  • East Ger joins in 1956...Nikita Khrushchev responsible for it (Stalin had died in 53)

• Over the eve of Japanese surrender in 1945, US and USSR decided to split Korea
  • planned to hold elections and reunify the country, but escalating cold war tensions led to 2 govts being formed (comm north,anti-com south)
  • June 25 1950- w Stalin's approval, N Karean troops invaded south

• Roots in the end of WWII...The french were in Indochina first, then Jap took over, then following WWII (when japanese lose) the Fr try to return. However, find a hostile vietnamese people under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh
• War breaks out in 1946
• 1954- Geneva Conference, Fr agreed to settlement and Vietnam temporarily divided into comm north and anti-comm south
• 1959-Despite wanting peaceful unification, Ho Chi Minh promoted revolution in the south.
  • by 63, South Vietnam expands their influence
• War waged throughout 60s with China support N. Vietnamese
• January 73-Treaty of Paris
  • removal of all US forces from S. Viet. in exchange for negotiations
• early 1975- communists resumed offense after breakdown in negotiations and at end of April, Saigon and all of South fell to Communists

• like the NEP, done to help indoctrinate Chinese citizens into believing the superioriity of socialism, with the Party relying on more capitalists methods of spurring productivity
  • ran 1949-55 and focused on honest govt, land reform (w/collectivization to be delayed until 55), social justice and peace
  • was mostly a success, other than disgruntled wealthy people who didn't like the redistribution of land
• in 53, China launched it's first 5 yr plan which failed to produce the agricultural output they had hoped for...so instead passed what came to be known as the Great Leap Forward (next card)

• Rural collectives combined into vast "people's communes"
• responsible for all administrative and economic tasks @ local level
• ended up being a disaster

SIGNIFICANCE:

• 15 mill people died from starvation! (plan abandoned in 1960)

• 1966-76: a new forced march towards communism launched by Mao (although some people say it was just a power struggle)
• "Mao Zedong thought" was introduced to school system
• Red Guard ( revolutionary units) rampaged through the country to rid it of the "four olds" (old thought, culture, customs and habits)
• Upon Mao's death, Deng Xiaoping came to power and reestablished ties with teh West and the US, and introduced economic reforms and modernizations that set China on its current path to world super power

Roots of Arab-Israeli conflict

• Palestine had been a Br mandate since 1920, but in 1947 the Br made clear their intentions to give up madnate and the UN created an agency to deal specifically with the issue
• tensions grow as date for Br withdrawl neared
• With withdrawl of last Br troops in May 1948, State of Israel proclamed independence on May 14th, by it's fiirst PM David Ben-Gurion
  • immediately recognized by USA and USSR

• Attacked by Egypt, Syria, Transjordan, Lebanon, and Iraq
  • Israelis seized much f the land the UN had designated for Palestinians
  • more than 750,000 Palestinians became refugees
  • The arab countries refused to make peace w/acknowledge israel, so the cease-fire lines became the new boundaries

• in 1954, Nasser seized power and instituted a land reforms program
• Even after independence, many egyptians still upset by British retention over the Suez Canal 
• Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal Company, promoting Br and Fr, under whose administration the company had previously been under and due to the forseeable threat to their trade route, to attack Egypt
  • Eisenhower liked a return to colonialism and supporeted Nasser, bringing about withdrawal of foreign forces from Egypt and Israeli troops from the Sanai Peninsula

• Israel lauches air strikes against Egypt and several Arab neighbors, broke blockade of Aquaba and occupied Sinai Peninsula; occupied all of Jerusalem; and seized Golan Heights from Syria
  • adds one mill Palestinians due to their new borders
  • arab states spend next few years demanding the return of their land (w arabs being backed by soviets and israiel being backed by US)
  • Nasser dies in 1970, amde way for Anwar al-Sadat to succeed him
    • who tried to make a peace treaty with Israel on the condition that they would withdraw to pre 67 borders, but Israel didn't trust the other countries so it refused
      • SET STAGE FOR YOM KIPPUR WAR

• Egyptian forces suddenly launced air and artillery strike on Israeli positions in the Sinai
  • isralelis able to fend off Arabs and keep borders unchanged
  • Tensins grew in Lebanon as Palestinians flooded north into the country and set up PLO headquarters, putting Lebanon on the font lines of the Arab-Israeli dispute in the future

• Jimmy Carter was able to bring Sadat and Israeli PM to the negotiating table
  • Is withdraw from sinai in exchange for recognition by egypt, but refused to withdraw from other occupied territores until same such recognition came fromt the other countries in the regioun
  • Sadat assassinated by an Islamic militant in 1981 and no other Arab countries would recongze israel

• The first of two "uprisings" of the Palestinians against the Israeli occupation, which took the form of violent, armed resistance

• US sponsored peace talks between Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin that called for Palesetinian autonomy in certain parts of Israel in exchange for PLO (Palestinian Liberation Org.)
  • Signals the move towards a two-state solution (Pal state and Indep Israel...not unlike original 1947 plan)

• Overthrow of teh Shah who had westerm ties, and there was lots of corruption in the Shah govt, and many lower class people are in bad conditions
• Opposition led by Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini, a radical Shi'ite cleric
• supporters of shah rounded up and executed
• Since 70s, Iran has modernized somewhat, but it is still and islamic state that has very tense relations with the US