United Nations

An international organization formed after WWII (1945) to promote international peace, security, and cooperation, Its effectiveness was neutralized (made ineffective) by US and Soviet dominance during the Cold War.

Betray

expose (one's country, a group, or a person) to danger by treacherously giving information to an enemy.

buffer

a country or area lying between two rival or potentially hostile greater powers, which by its existence is thought to prevent conflict between them.

Accusation

a charge or claim that someone has done something illegal or wrong

Suppression

holding back or restraining, to put down by authority or force

Diplomacy

The practice of conducting negotiations between countries; managing international relations

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, that declares the rights and freedoms of all human beings.

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

military alliance formed to counter Soviet expansion; It was formed in the wake of World War II to keep the peace and encourage political and economic cooperation on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.

Warsaw Pact

Alliance against democracy, supporting communism; An alliance between the Soviet Union and other Eastern European nations. This was in response to the NATO

collective security

A system in which a group of nations acts as one to preserve the peace of all

Yalta Conference

1945 Meeting with US president FDR, British Prime Minister(PM) Winston Churchill, Soviet Leader Stalin and France during WWII to plan for post-war; the Big Three agreed that after Germany's unconditional surrender, it would be divided into four post-war occupation zones, controlled by U.S., British, French and Soviet military forces. The city of Berlin would also be divided into similar occupation zones.

Geopolitical

relating to politics, especially international relations, as influenced by geographical factors (location, terrain, land size, climate, soil and raw materials)

Command Economy (Communism)

an economy in which production, investment, prices, and incomes are determined centrally by a government.

Containment

American policy of resisting further expansion of communism around the world

Truman Doctrine

The United States would help any nation resist communism in order to prevent its spread.

Marshall Plan

a plan for aiding the European nations in economic recovery after World War II in order to stabilize and rebuild their countries and prevent the spread of communism.

Soviet Satellite States

East Germany, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, Albania, these countries were placed under control by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II that were controlled until 1991. The Soviet Union wanted the Satellite Nations because it would give them a defense against future attacks from the West and become a buffer zone (Eastern bloc) for the Soviet Union and West Europe . Another reason was because they wanted a way to spread communism in these countries easily.

Iron Curtain

Imaginary border made by the Soviet Union after World War II to seal off itself and its dependent eastern and central European allies from open contact with the West and other noncommunist areas. The border between the states that were members of the Warsaw Pact (in Eastern Europe), and those that were not (then called The West). This border was between East Germany and West Germany, between Czechoslovakia and Austria, and between Hungary and Austria.

Berlin Airlift

airlift in 1948 that supplied food and fuel to citizens of west Berlin when the Russians closed off land access to Berlin

Berlin Wall

A wall separating East and West Berlin built by the German Democratic Republic during the Cold War to prevent its population from escaping Soviet-controlled East Berlin to West Berlin

De-Stalinization

social process of neutralizing the influence of Joseph Stalin by revising his policies and removing monuments dedicated to him and renaming places named in his honor

Proxy Wars

These were wars fought between other countries, but with each side getting support from a different superpower (U.S. or U.S.S.R.). Examples of proxy wars include the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Yom Kippur War, and the Soviet Afghanistan War.

Domino Theory

the idea that if a nation falls under communist control, nearby nations will also fall under communist control

DMZ (Demilitarized Zone)

region on the Korean peninsula that demarcates North Korea from South Korea.where both countries agreed to place no soldiers or weapons