Détente During The Cold War

As tensions continued to augment profoundly throughout the latter half of the Cold War period, they brought forth a movement from a previous bipolar conflicting course, to one of a more multipolar nature. These tensions were now not only restricted to the Soviet Union and United states, but amongst multiple other nations of the globe. It became a general consensus that a notion of ‘peace’ was sought globally, hence, the emergence of détente. The nature of this idea in the short term conveyed itself to be an act of change for the conflicting nations, however, in the long term it proved to be a blatant continuity, ultimately acting as a ‘mechanism for domestic fortification’ which prompted a more divisive tone. It became apparent that by the prime 1970’s Cold War countries were now seeking a state of relaxation in political and international tension, détente, through measures of diplomacy and negotiation. Actions, influences and treaties such as the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, the establishment of SALT 1, the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty of 1972 and the Shanghai Communique of 1972 evidently help reinforce that the concept of détente brought a period focused on lessening the tensions of international relations and ultimately achieve political relation for the future of the Cold War, although the success and impact of this era is abhorred by many historians who have concluded that détente didn’t activate any positive changes to the cold war, and was conclusively a failure.

Reagan became president in 1981, which means that he was president of the U.S. during a time in which the Cold War began to draw to a close. (Fischer, 1997, p.477). Whereas his predecessors used détente, a more relaxed approach in order to reduce tension between the U.S. and USSR, Reagan and his advisers rejected this strategy (Authors, People and a Nation, p.833). This led to a turning point in the Cold War. Even though the Cold War ended in 1991, two years after Reagan’s presidency, Reagan is still known to have made a huge influence on ending the Cold War. This essay will investigate his actions and how they might have influenced the ending of the Cold War, by looking at how Reagan expressed his distrust toward the Soviet Union and communism, the ways in which Reagan expanded the arms race in order to bankrupt the USSR and other ways in which he tried to sabotage the Soviet economy, but also

The idea of détente or relaxation of the Cold War “was more abstract proposition.” (Gillon p. 1114) It intentions were to modify relations between the United States and the Soviet Union and the Peoples Republic of China. The hope was that détente would slowly alter Soviet policy overtime and eventually end of the Cold War. Kissinger believed that Soviet and U.S. could establish a partnership, believing that U.S.S.R would grow to become dependent upon the U.S. through détente. In the 1960’s the Soviet Union had a “struggling economy in desperate need of

The Cold War was a significant time for the United States and the Soviet Union, while the rest of the world watched intently. Although no actual war took place, both of these powerful countries did their best to promote their political and ideological ideas while trying to gain some ground in the seemingly never ending arms race. This war was driven by both fear and the strive to become the strongest and most powerful country. During the time of the Cold War, the United States proved to be a strong influence over Canada. Given its location, it was obvious as to which side Canada was on. While Canada believed in the same ideologies as the US, this nation was still reluctant to fully emerge themselves into the hysteria that had been emerging in the US. However, even though Canada had just received world recognition for its contribution during the Second World War, this large yet acutely populated country had much still to prove. During this time, Canada just recently became a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). But while Canada was making huge steps in their peacekeeping and military growth, there were still rumours of espionage circling the country.

After World War II, Soviet Union expansionism in Eastern Europe fueled America’s fears of Russia controlling the world. The United States had been aware of Soviet communism and became concerned about the safety of the country. From then on, the USSR and the United States competed in an arms race, starting with military buildups. This became known as the Cold War and was an international power struggle for both nations. For about forty-five years, the Cold War between the United States of America and the Soviet Union took place. During this conflict, the two nations never directly confronted each other on the battlefield, but deadly threats were traded for years. The president at the time, Ronald Reagan, used U.S. policy and diplomacy to attempt

The Cold War was a state of economic, diplomatic, and ideological discord among nations without armed conflict. The Cold War was between the United States and the USSR because these were the two major powers after WWII. Basically, the Cold War was a series of proxy wars that had taken place back in time involving surrounding countries. One of the main causes for Cold War was that the Soviet Union was spreading communism and the United States didn’t like that so they were trying to contain communism. However, in the end they failed. Many events took place in other countries. In Korea, Vietnam, Latin America, and China, communism took over; however, before it did, major wars had taken place. The cold war between the U.S. and the Soviet Union worsened the condition of countries involved. The Cold War broke countries into two parts that turned against each other, the United States and the Soviet Union used these countries to fight their war and caused a big disturbance to daily life, and the Communist States fought the Non-Communist States; however, the end results of these wars only caused more damage in these countries.

After more than forty years, the Cold War era ended in 1991 largely due to Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Despite being allies during WWII, the United States and the Soviet Union had an acrimonious relationship from 1947 to 1991. This period of time was known for the military build-up of each country, ultimately resulting in a nuclear missile stand-off. President Reagan’s goal of “peace through strength” was the basis for negotiations with the Soviet Union that ended the threat of nuclear war by eliminating the use of intermediate-range nuclear missiles.

In the early phase of the Cold War, both superpowers, the US and the USSR, had to face the threat of rising tensions and rivalries between each other. They wanted to prevent the expansion of hostile ideologies and simultaneously act in favour of their own interests. Such desires, in the example of the US, resulted in the establishment and subsequent development of the policies of containment and brinkmanship. Generally, the former was operating on the principle that communist governments will eventually fall apart as long as they are prevented from expanding their influence and it was adopted by H.S. Truman’s administration in 1947. While the

The Cold war, a threatening competition between the United States and the Soviet Unions, kept going from the late 1940 's until the breakdown of the Soviet Union in 1991. The war was "icy" just in that the United States and USSR never battled one another in an immediate military encounter, however both superpowers debilitated one another with atomic destruction and partook oftentimes in "intermediary wars" by supporting associated countries in various "hot" wars set up like Korea, Vietnam, and Angola. The Cold War characterized both nations ' outside strategies through the a large portion of the twentieth century, as the Americans and Soviets sought partners to keep up and enlarge their separate effective reaches around the globe. Every side saw the chilly war as a fight between the developments, in the overall conflict between the American free enterprise, and Soviet socialism, one and only could win. For over forty years, the Soviet-American clash hung overwhelming over worldwide issues, forming the world with gigantic military developments, an endless atomic weapons contest, serious surveillance, and furious mechanical rivalry as every side attempted to pick up the high ground in planning for the nuclear "hot war" all people dreaded would some time or another come.

Détente is a fascinating policy in and of itself. In order to draw the two challenging superpowers closer to America, Nixon decided that he would have to play off the mutual fears of the other. In other words, he told both China and Russia the same things and just substituted in the opposite country’s name. In the end, a shaky peace was established between the heretofore-irreconcilable ideologies of Communism and Capitalism. Through it came a flood of treaties and agreements which paved the way towards

The United States came out of World War II ready to concentrate on domestic issues, but unfortunately, the more pressing issue of the Cold War needed addressing. Democracy and communism challenged the world order and the United States and the USSR took center stage on determining the world’s economic, social and political future for the next forty-five years. Each American president handled the power differently, acted on what he thought was in the best interest of the United States, and took on the Cold War through words and actions that often translated to real war but never directly with Russia.

With this book, a major element of American history was analyzed. The Cold War is rampant with American foreign policy and influential in shaping the modern world. Strategies of Containment outlines American policy from the end of World War II until present day. Gaddis outlines the policies of presidents Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon, including policies influenced by others such as George Kennan, John Dulles, and Henry Kissinger. The author, John Lewis Gaddis has written many books on the Cold War and is an avid researcher in the field. Some of his other works include: The United States and the Origins of the Cold War, 1941-1947, The Long Peace: Inquiries into the History of the Cold War, We Now Know: Rethinking Cold War

The cold war, which lasted from approximately 1947- 1991, was a state of political and military tension between the powers of the western and the eastern bloc- as championed by the United States and the Soviet Union. During the period of the seventies through the early eighties, the Soviet Union, under the leadership of Brezhnev entered into a period of détente- the easing of hostilities and strained relations- with the United States. In comparison to Khrushchev’s policies of near brinksmanship, one can say that Brezhnev pursued a more peaceful foreign policy. During this period, hostilities between both powers began to diminish and peace long hoped for was close to being realized. However, Brezhnev’s policies were not enough to guarantee peace and in the period of 1979-85, the second phase of the cold war started. It wasn’t until the advent of the Gorbachev government in 1985 that peace talks were resumed and policies that truly ended the cold war were implemented. This paper will seek to explore the USSR’s foreign policies under Khrushchev and Gorbachev, while seeking to understand why the period of the détente did not lead to the end of the cold war. Why was the Gorbachev administration was so successful in guaranteeing peace, where the Brezhnev administration was not? To understand the answer to this question, one first has to explore the foreign

This essay will address why the three main approaches to world politics did not predict the end of the Cold War. Firstly it will briefly give a background insight into what the Cold War was. Then it will go on to explain what characterises the three main approaches to world politics which are Realism, Pluralism and Structuralism, it then will briefly look at the distinctive theory behind them. Lastly the essay will analyse whether or not the three main approaches could have predicted and anticipated the end of the Cold War.

The period of détente between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War lends one the opportunity to study how the two powers worked to achieve some of their common interests, such as mutual security, prevention of further conflict, and expanded trade. To examine how the détente of the 1970s worked, one must begin with analyzing what the concept of détente describes in the geopolitical case. Going forward, we also must examine what factors led to both superpowers seeking “high détente,” as Stevenson puts it, in the period following the Cuban Missile Crisis and their initial response. Along with this, once can note the various aspects of détente, including missile treaties, trade agreements, and other accords, allowing us