Cold War - The U2 Incident
After WWII, tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union began to increase. This period of time is referred to as the Cold War which “begins in 1945 with the Yalta conference and ends in 1991 with the dissolution of the Soviet Union.” The United States and the Soviet Union both greatly distrusted the other and feared the nuclear power that they both had during this time. One incident that illustrates this distrust is commonly referred to as the U-2 incident of May 1, 19960, in which an American U-2 spy plane was shot down in Soviet controlled airspace and captured by the Soviets. This single incident is said to have been a “disastrous setback to the reduction of international tension.”
In the year 1953 the United States did not have the use of the incredible spy satellites we have today. In an attempt to gather information on the military strength of the Soviet Union, “President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorized thirty-five million dollars to build thirteen U-2 high-altitude spy planes.” Eisenhower personally authorized each top secret flight. The plane, designed by Lockheed, was different from any other planes of the time. With a wingspan of 80 feet the U-2 was able to fly for long distances at great altitudes “of about 15 miles and carried cameras and other equipment designed to photograph and locate aircraft systems, airbases, radar stations, missile silos, and the like.” The pilots that were chosen to fly these planes were highly skilled and dedicated civilians with high security clearance employed by the Central Intelligence Agency. The planes were based in Turkey and Pakistan and routinely flew over the Soviet Union.
On May 1, 1960 the entire U-2 program came ...
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...shed America’s reputation for telling the truth in official statements.” “A.J. Liebling wrote in the New Yorker: ‘After denying we did it, admitting we did it, denying Ike knew we did it, admitting Ike knew we did it, saying we had a right to do it, and denying we were still doing it, we dropped the subject.’” The incident “was rich in public symbolism, reminding the world of the precarious balance of terror in 1960.” From the time that nuclear weapons were invented, the fear of living on the brink of a nuclear holocaust caused leaders like Eisenhower and Khrushchev to do everything in their power to protect their nations including some activities that were looked upon at the time as being immoral. The U-2 incident was only one of the many incidents throughout the Cold War that caused increased tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union.
Tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union had started since the early conference in World War Two and increased further at the War’s conclusion. These tensions developed further during the Berlin Blockade and Airlift during 1948 and 1949, China becoming communist in 1949, and the Korean War between 1950 and 1953. The events, have been labelled as the early crisis of the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union, and greatly increased tensions between the two superpowers and further led the countries into a Cold War.
The Cold War was a period of dark and melancholic times when the entire world lived in fear that the boiling pot may spill. The protectionist measures taken by Eisenhower kept the communists in check to suspend the progression of USSR’s radical ambitions and programs. From the suspenseful delirium from the Cold War, the United States often engaged in a dangerous policy of brinksmanship through the mid-1950s. Fortunately, these actions did not lead to a global nuclear disaster as both the US and USSR fully understood what the weapons of mass destruction were capable of.
The Cold War in 1945 to 1953 brought about a period of tension and hostility due to the feud between the United States and the Soviet Union. The period began with the end of the Second World War. The situation acquired the title for there was no physical active war between the two rivals. The probability of the tension got to be the fear of the then rise in nuclear ammunition. Things began to roll when a US based U2 sky plane got to take photos of some USSR intermediate ballistic missiles with the capability of transporting nuclear heads.
In 1980, it seemed like the United States was not as dominant in the world as it had been before. The Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union began after World War II. The two nations had joined forces as members of the Allies, but tensions arose after the war. The Americans were very worried about the spread of Soviet communism, and tried to prevent it with a policy of containment, where the United States would protect countries from outside oppression. The Cold War also expanded to include the race between the Soviets and Americans to create atomic weapons. Furthermore, there was a race between the two countries to put the first man in space, which was accomplished by the United States in 1961 (“Cold War History”). The Cold War was a standoff between the United States and the Soviet Union to try to prove their dominance in the world. Each country wanted to have more power and diminish the power of the other. At home, Americans were paranoid with the thought of Soviet spies and communists hiding amongst them, dubbed the “Red Scare.” President Richard Nixon and the Soviet premier Leonid Brezhnev signed the Strategic A...
Following the conclusion of the Second World War, the United States and the Soviet Union made it a priority to outdo each other in every possible facet from arsenals of missiles to international alliances and spheres of influences. Yet when the Soviets launched Sputnik on October 4th, 1957, the world changed forever. The first manmade object was fired into space, and it appeared that American technology and science had fallen behind. Yet, the public feared that not only were they now technologically inferior to the Soviets, but also deduced that if a satellite could be launched into space, a nuclear missile could just as likely reach the mainland United States. Less than a month later, the Soviets pushed the bounds of technology yet again by
Lockheed Martin was contracted by the United States to make planes for them. On May 1, 1960, a U-2 flown by the US officer Francis Gary Powers crashed in the USSR. This caused tension between the two countries. Powers was put to trail and was jailed. After this, the CIA and the USAF were both looking for a better spy aircraft. They were asked to make something that could fly faster and higher that could be more stealthy. Both the CIA and United States Air force contracted Lockheed Martin to make this plane. The first version was developed at Skunk Works, located in California. It was made in 1958. It could fly at 85,000 feet above sea level, higher than any plane. It could also sustain Mach 3 as long as it had fuel. The SR -71 was faster and could fly higher than before and its radar signature was only 1%.(Wikipedia)
U-2: Through the uses of a secret plane, U-2, flying above radar detection the United States was able to spy on the Soviet Union. This secret plane allowed the United States to take pictures and gather information. This was a great advantage for the United States, however, the Soviets detected the plane and shot it down. They, however, took the captain hostage and tried to force the Americans to admit they were spying. This did not work because America had a Soviet spy themselves so they made a trade. This was a slight advancement for America’s effort to contain communism because they were able to capture information and keep an eye on the Soviets
The cold war by the late 1950s had weaved into the everyday life of society for both countries. The announcement from the US that they will launch a satellite into orbit was challenged by the Soviets. On October 4th 1957, the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik I. This was the world’s first artificial satellite and man-made object to be in earths orbit. The launch was unexpected to the US, having caught them off guard. As a result Sputnik began to raise fears amongst the public, fearing the possible event of a nuclear attack, due to previous cold war
The relationships of the United States and the Soviet Union were driven by a complex interplay of ideological, political, and economic factors, which led to shifts between cautious cooperation and often bitter superpower rivalry over the years. The distinct differences in the political systems of the two countries often prevented them from reaching a mutual understanding on key policy issues and even, as in the case of the Cuban missile crisis, brought them to the brink of war.
In December of 1962, president John F Kennedy broadcasted, “A man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on. Ideas have endurance without death.” Even though there was little hand-to-hand combat during the Cold War, an estimated 389 men died while in air-combat. Nations experienced both victories and losses. But, without the Cold War, America (and other countries for that matter) would have never learned from their mistakes. To show their superiority, America was going to explode a bomb on the moon. Thankfully that never happened, but America and the involved countries have learned from their faults and decisions so history will not repeat itself. The Cold War, characterized as a time of constant apprehension and suspicion, produced
...ts, which were doing espionage missions, to other countries, which caused a big problem because they were then lacking “power” to “combat” the enemy devil. The KGB and the CIA did operate in similar ways and they never did work together during this time.
After WWII their relationship became even more tense due to the building of new weapons capable of destroying entire countries. The USA built and tested a new type of weapon called the Hydrogen Bomb. The Soviet Union became concerned as to whether the USA would actually use such a weapon. Because of this, the Soviet Union began designing a similar weapon. The war became an argument of who had the biggest weapon. However, neither country fired a single missile thus making this a cold war instead of a hot war (200Years).
The cold war which is the period of tension between the United States and Soviet Union drastically altered life for Americans. The tensions have still been escalating to this period. In World War 2 Russia was an ally of the us and England because the war against Germany. Although Stalin was considered a devil because of how he treated his people; he was a totalitarian dictator murdered people left and right, the political and military relationship between Russia has been on rocky ground ever since then. The fear of nuclear destruction had a big part to do with higher education, economy, immigration policy, civil rights and civil liberties. A period of time known as the red scare which was also known as the red menace had a profound effect on the American society as a whole It had an direct impact on the lives of Americans for instance with the launch of sputnik 1 which was launched in 1957 the us took measures to launch an overhaul in science education. This satellite launch emphasized that the Soviet Union had trampled the us into space. . As mentioned in a speech by Precedent john F Kennedy June, 10, 1963 “it is an ironic but accurate fact; that the two strongest powers are the two with the most danger of devastation. All we have built, all we have worked for would be destroyed in the first 24 hrs and even in the cold war with brings burdens and dangers to so many countries including this nations closest allies our two countries bare the heaviest burdens. For wee are both devoting massive sums of money to weapons. That could be better devoted to combat ignorance, poverty and disease.” (kennedy) Mad short for Mutual assured destruction or also referred to as mutual suicide on September 1867 Sec. of Defense Robert McNamara be...
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a major event in U.S History that almost led to nuclear destruction. It was over a period of thirteen days in which diplomats from the U.S and the Soviet Union were trying to reach a peaceful resolution so that they wouldn’t have to engage in physical warfare. The crisis was the hallmark of the Cold War era which lasted from the 1950’s to the late 1980’s. The Cold War was a power struggle between the U.S and Soviet Union in which the two nations had a massive arms race to become the strongest military force. The U.S considered Communism to be an opposing political entity, and therefore branded them as enemies. Khrushchev’s antagonistic view of Americans also played a big role in the conflict. The Cold War tensions, coupled with a political shift in Cuba eventually lead to the military struggle known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Cuban Missile Crisis was the point of most tension and near collapse causing the Cold War to almost shift from a passive and underground struggle to a violent and catastrophic one.
Lafeber, W. (2002), America, Russia, and the Cold War, 1945-2000. 9th edn. New-York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.