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Canada's Nuclear Arms Race

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Right after the end of World War II with the Allied forces rejoicing over a marginal victory over Germany, a new and different kind of war was brewing over the tensions of the Western and Eastern blocs, a kind that wouldn’t be fought on the battlefield. The Cold War began in the year of 1945 and lasted all the way until 1991. A cause of the Cold War was the tension between two former allies of World War II, the United States of America and the Soviet Union (also known as the USSR, which stood for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics). The United States had a democratic government and a capitalist economy, while the Soviet Union had a communist government, each trying to spread their political views and gain world power. Neither of the two …show more content…

Because of this, the worry and fear about a nuclear attack starting growing worldwide. The Soviet Union were developing their weapons and advancing their technology for it at startling rates. At their peak in 1985, the Soviet Union had stockpiled about 39,197 nuclear warheads, while the United States stockpiled 31,139 nuclear warheads at their peak in 1965. To protect Canada’s citizens and homeland, the Canadian government built nuclear fallout shelters called Emergency Government Headquarters between the 1950s and 1960s. They were also called “Diefenbunkers”, named after the Prime Minister of the day, John Diefenbaker. This was an important step for Canadians because it provided reassurance and ensured that while they were helping other countries during the war, its own citizens would be safe. The Canadian government also defended itself from the possible spread of communism by inaugurating a project called PROFUNC which stood for “PROminent FUNCtionaries of the communist party”. The objective of this top-secret plan was to track and observe any Canadians who were suspects of “crypto-communism”, which would allow for quick imprisonment of those suspects if a war were to break out. This project was crucial because when war broke out, the real crypto-communists wouldn’t be able to spread their beliefs and try and start a …show more content…

The Korean War was essentially a war that was started when North Korea decided to invade South Korea, each backed up by their respective allies. When Canada first intervened in the war, Canada supplied three Royal Canadian Navy destroyers (HMCS Athabaskan, HMCS Cayuga, and HMCS Sioux) and a Royal Canadian Air Force transport squadron, the No. 426 “Thunderbird” Squadron. After being pressured by the American, UN, and domestic pressure, Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent announced that the Canadian Army Special Force (CASF), later dubbed the 25th Canadian Infantry Brigade Group, was to be created and used to expand contributions to South Korea. This was very important because the extra squadrons and machinery helped turn the tides in many battles within the war. Canada also contributed 26000 as part of a United Nations force which consisted of 16 countries at the time. These troops were sent for both combat and for peacekeeping after the war. Out of the 516 Canadians that died, 312 died from combat. The peacekeepers that were left behind after the war stayed for three years as military observers, and the final few Canadian soldiers left Korea in 1957. These troops were extremely important to the war because they provided backup and aid to the UN force, and also acted as peacekeepers after the war was over to ensure that the Korean War wouldn’t have a repeat. Lastly, Canadian forces helped

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