H-Diplo
Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation
(Jordan)
Page published by Seth Offenbach on Sunday, September 28, 2014
HIST 390.3 THE COLD WAR AND ITS HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION
Instructor: Dr. Pamela Jordan
Class meeting time: Th., 12:30-3:20 pm
Spring 2008
University of Saskatchewan
High stratosphere winds with their juvenile whistle.
A thought-like white cloud, in search of mankind.
''Oh, where are you flying?'' said missile to missile,
There is nothing ahead and nothing behind.
--Joseph Brodsky (Russian-American Poet and Nobel Laureate, 1940-96)
Course Description
How distinct was the Cold War as a period in international history? Above all, as Mike Sewell notes
in The Cold War (Oxford, 2002), “It was the first confrontation in which the major powers had the
ability to destroy life on earth.” Beyond this fundamental distinction, the Cold War is marked by
unique ideological, economic, military, and political features, which we will investigate through the
aid of scholarly readings and primary sources. Like any history, the interpretation of Cold War
events, developments, and relations among political actors continues to change, as historians gain
access to more declassified documents, major actors who are willing to be interviewed, and – as time
passes – simply gain more perspective on the many dramatic events that took place between 1946
and 1989.
In our weekly meetings, we will explore major topics in the history and historical literature of the
Cold War. These topics will include its origins; brinkmanship; the Sino-Soviet split; the USSR and its
Satellite States; Third World proxy wars in Africa and Asia; Cold War culture; détente; the end of the
Cold War; and Cold War legacies. Our goal is not to cover every facet of the Cold War in
chronological order (this is not a 200-level survey course), but to target certain topics that will help
us draw conclusions about its place in international history and its impact on the world today. The
class format in any given week will consist of a lecture by Professor Jordan (50% of the class period),
followed by oral presentations and discussion (50%).
Course Objectives:
(a) Define and distinguish among key concepts.
(b) Identify major controversies in Cold War historiography and explain why they persist.
(c) Interpret the history of key developments in the Cold War.
(d) Strengthen your critical thinking skills both in writing and orally, including your ability to analyse
course readings and interpret primary sources. Think of yourself as a history detective!
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
1
H-Diplo
Method Of Student Evaluation
·
Quality of participation (20% of final grade); attendance (5%) and quality of discussion (15%).
·
Quiz on February 7 (5%); multiple-choice format.
·
1 oral/written critique of a scholarly article or book excerpt (15% of final grade) See p. 9.
·
1 research paper (30% of final grade), 15 pages, due March 28 by 5pm. See pp. 10-11.
·
Final examination (30% of final grade). Open book, take home examination consisting of a
choice of essay questions. Questions passed out on the last day of class. Due Tues., April 15, by 5pm.
Required Texts
Please purchase the books and the coursepack at the U of S bookstore.
·
Mike Sewell, The Cold War. Cambridge University Press, 2002. [Sewell in class schedule]
·
Jussi M. Hanhimaki and Odd Arne Westad, eds. The Cold War: A History in Documents.
Oxford University Press, 2004. [Hanhimaki and Westad in class schedule]
·
Klaus Larres, and Ann Lane (eds.), The Cold War. Blackwell, 2001. [Larres and Lane in class
schedule]
·
Rampolla, Pocket Guide to Writing in History.
·
Coursepack of Readings. [marked as *Coursepack in class schedule]
·
Readings on PAWS, as marked in class schedule.
Useful Web Sites
·
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/ National Security Archive, George Washington University
·
http://library.usask.ca/dbs/ddrs.html Declassified Documents Reference System. Access
through the U of S Library system.
·
http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~hpcws/ Harvard Project on Cold War Studies
·
http://cwihp.si.edu Cold War International History Project, Woodrow Wilson International
Center for Scholars, Smithsonian Institution
·
http://www.coldwarfiles.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.flash Cold War Files, including
declassified documents
·
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/ CNN Cold War Special
·
http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/coldwar.htm Documents relating to US Foreign Policy
during the Cold War (by a Mount Holyoke College, Massachusets, professor)
·
http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/soviet.exhibit/entrance.html Soviet archives exhibit at the US
Library of Congress
·
http://www.coldwar.org Cold War Museum, Fairfax, Virginia
Class Rules
The class format in any given week will consist of approximately 50 percent lecture by Professor
Jordan and 50 percent discussion/oral presentations. In every class, we’ll define new terms and
discuss controversies of historiography. First and foremost, the instructor and students must respect
everyone’s right to express his or her own opinion. Prof. Jordan has no political agenda to prove and
instead will typically play devil’s advocate. On the other hand, she will not tolerate bigotry or
arguments that regress into yelling matches.
In order to do their best in this course, students must attend regularly and participate meaningfully
in class discussions. The participation mark consists of attendance (5%) and quality of discussion
(15%). Prof. Jordan will evaluate your performance in class discussion every week (except in the first
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
2
H-Diplo
class). How to earn a high mark: ask informed questions and make informed comments that show
you have read the required readings for class. You must bring with you to each class the required
readings for that day. You should alert the instructor when you’ll need to leave class early.
Prof. Jordan will evaluate your weekly performance in class discussion on a 3-point scale:
·
0=did not speak in class that day or, when prompted, did not try to answer or pose any
questions (i.e., your comments showed that you did not read the required readings with appropriate
attention—for example, your comments may not have referred directly to the readings and may have
been vague)
·
1 (– or + included)=participated in discussion in a meaningful way (i.e., showed you
understood the readings and could ask informed questions and make informed comments based on
the readings).
·
2 (- or + included)=outstanding performance (i.e., sophisticated analysis of reading, comments
and questions made connections between readings, added information/theory from outside of
readings, added to what students previously had said).
Due to a personal or family emergency, if you cannot attend class on the day of your oral
presentation, you may present the following week. However, if you do not have a legitimate excuse
and do not notify Prof. Jordan before missing class, you will be unable to make up the assignment,
which is 15% of your total mark for the course.
Deadlines for written assignments: Please submit your research paper and oral presentation text by
the deadline date. Prof. Jordan will not grant extensions, unless a student has a legitimate excuse
and tells the instructor about the problem at least one day before the deadline. Examples of a
legitimate excuse: illness (need a doctor’s note) or death in the immediate family (also need
confirmation). If a student does not have a legitimate excuse for handing in a paper late, the
instructor will deduct 3 points from the paper for every day it is late, including weekend days. If you
want to contest a mark, you must submit to Prof. Jordan a written statement outlining specific
grievances and then set up an appointment with her to review the matter.
ANTI-PLAGIARISM POLICY
Prof. Jordan routinely checks written student assignments for plagiarism, including the text of their
oral presentation (please see p. 9).
Scholarship is premised on academic honesty and integrity. Authors must properly acknowledge the
primary and secondary sources upon which they base their ideas and arguments so that original
contributions are readily identifiable. Failure to do so is unethical and constitutes plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a very serious offense. It involves the unattributed copying and presentation of another
person's thoughts, writings, or discoveries from another source - including purchased essays, the
essays of other students, or material from the Internet - as your own. Plagiarism also includes close
paraphrasing - changing only a few words from the sources. You must write your essays and other
written AND oral assignments in your own words. It is also unethical to hand in the same essay to two
different classes, unless you have made a special arrangement with the instructors of both classes.
All instructors must report all cases of plagiarism to the Undergraduate Director who will keep a
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
3
H-Diplo
record of each occurrence. Following college procedure, the undergraduate director will forward all
cases of gross plagiarism to the College of Arts and Science's Committee on Academic Dishonesty.
If you are accused of plagiarism, you must testify before the Committee on Academic Dishonesty.
Students found guilty of plagiarism are often penalized harshly. For example, usually they fail the
assignment in question, and then an additional number of points are deducted from their total mark
for the course. If you’re found guilty of three acts of plagiarism, you’ll be expelled from the U. of S.
For more information on academic honesty, consult the University's website at www.usask.ca/honesty
SCHEDULE
Important: Under each class heading/date, readings are listed. Some are in your textbooks, while
others are in your coursepack or on our PAWS site. You are required to have completed these
readings by the morning on which the class meets to discuss them and to arrive prepared to answer
the discussion questions listed under each class heading. During the prior week’s class, individual
students will sometimes be assigned a specific document in the Hanhimaki/Westad book to comment
on in class the following week.
Week I Thursday, January 3
Topic: Introduction to the course. Themes. Basic overview of stages of the Cold War. Important
concepts and terms. Origins, 1917-45. Was the Cold War principally an ideological confrontation,
largely a contest for geopolitical supremacy among the superpowers, or a mixture of both?
Readings:
·
Sewell, “Introduction,” The Cold War (2002) and “Chapter 1: Origins of the Cold War to 1946”.
·
Larres and Lane, Chapter 1: “Introduction: The Cold War as History,” The Cold War (2001).
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, “Introduction” (pp. ix-xvii) and Chapter 1 “Origins, 1917-45.”
Week II Thursday, January 10
Topic: The Early Cold War (mid-1940s to 1950)
Discussion Questions: When and why did the Cold War begin? Was it inevitable? Was one side (or
one person) more culpable than the other(s) for starting it? Why or why not?
Readings:
·
Sewell, Chapter 2 “The Cold War Takes Shape.”
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 2 (only pp. 36-38, Doc. 2.1, Doc. 2.4, Doc. 2.10, Doc. 2.11);
Chapter 3 (only pp. 70-72, Doc. 3.5, Doc. 3.10,); Chapter 4 (only pp. 105-8, Doc. 4.1, Doc. 4.4, Doc.
4.6, Doc. 4.8, Doc. 4.11); and Chapter 14 (only Doc. 14.1).
·
Lares and Lane, pp, 17-19; Chapter 2 by Leffler and Chapter 3 by Gaddis.
·
* On PAWS: Amy Knight, “Conclusion,” in How the Cold War Began: The Gouzenko Affair and the
Hunt for Soviet Spies (2005).
Week III Thursday, January 17
Topic: PART I: Case Studies in Brinkmanship, 1951-63 (Focus on: the Korean War, the 1954 Taiwan
Straits Crisis, the 1954 Germany Crisis)
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
4
H-Diplo
Discussion Questions: Which key events/incidents/crises brought the US and USSR to the brink of war
during this period, and why? Why didn’t a nuclear war ensue as a result of superpower tensions? How
did the two ideological enemies deal with these first attempts at conflict management on a global
scale?
Readings:
·
Sewell, Chapter 3 “Brinkmanship”
·
Larres and Lane, Chapter 4 by Larres.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 3 (total); Chapter 6 (only pp. 176-79 + Docs. 6.4-6.9, 6.11);
Chapter 14 (Doc. 14.4, 14.5, 14.6).
Week IV Thursday, January 24
Topic: PART II: Case Studies in Brinkmanship, 1951-63 (Focus on: Bay of Pigs, April 1961; KennedyKhrushchev meeting, 1961; Berlin Wall, August 1961; Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962)
Discussion Questions: What characterized the Kennedy-Khrushchev relationship and made it so
fascinating to historians? What role did personalities play during the Cuban Missile Crisis? What effect
did the decision-making processes of the US and USSR have on the course of the CMC? How did the
CMC change superpower relations?
Readings:
·
Sewell, Chapter 4 “The Cuban Missile Crisis.”
·
Larres and Lane, pp. 65-8 and Chapter 5 (by Zubok and Pleshakov).
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 14 (Docs. 14.8 and 14.9); and Chapter 15 (Docs. 15.1 and
15.2).
Week V Thursday, January 31
Topic: The Sino-Soviet Split and its Aftermath
Discussion Questions: Why did the USSR and the People’s Republic of China experience tensions
beginning in the late 1950s? Was there only one cause or many? Garver article: What does he argue
about Mao’s thinking? How did the split manifest itself in later decades? (see Low book excerpts). Did
the Soviets and Red Chinese ever reconcile their differences?
Readings:
·
Sewell, pp. 67-68, 75 (document 3.3), 105.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 6, pp. 176-9; Docs 6.3, 6.12, 6.13, 6.14, 6.15, 6.16; Chapter 8:
Doc. 8.8 only; Chapter 15: Doc. 15.6 only.
·
POSTED ON OUR PAWS SITE (Mao-foreign-policy.pdf). John W. Garver, “The Opportunity Costs of
Mao’s Foreign Policy Choices.” The China Journal 49 (January 2003): 127-36.
·
* COURSEPACK Excerpt from The Sino-Soviet Confrontation Since Mao Zedong by Alfred D. Low
(East European Monographs, 1987), pp. 27-71.
Week VI Thursday, February 7 QUIZ TODAY
Topic: The Soviet Bloc: The USSR and its Satellite States
Discussion Questions: Did all the leaders and mass publics of the satellite states of Eastern Europe
want communist rule, particularly as dictated by Moscow? Why or why not? How did “Sovietization”
occur? How did certain leaders and mass publics resist Soviet control and establish their own paths to
economic development?
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
5
H-Diplo
Readings:
·
Sewell, pp. 37-8, 63-66, 99-102.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 8 pp. 242-4; Docs. 8.1, 8.3-8.7; Chapter 14 (Doc. 14.10); and
Chapter 17 (Docs. 17.8, 17.9, and 17.14 only).
·
* COURSEPACK Ben Fowkes, Chapter 4, Eastern Europe, 1945-69 (Harlow, England: Pearson
Education, 2000).
·
*COURSEPACK Robert Bideleux and Ian Jeffries, A History of Eastern Europe: Crisis and Change
(Routledge, 1998), pp. 545-61.
·
* On PAWS Judy Stoffman, “Revolution revisited,” TORONTO STAR, Oct. 15, 2006.
Week VII Thursday, February 14
Topic: The Arms Race and Arms Control
Discussion Questions: Why did the US and USSR experience an arms race, especially once US and
USSR leaders knew they each had enough nuclear weapons to annhilate the planet? Which power had
the stronger strategic forces? How did each side monitor the other’s nuclear forces? Did deterrence
save the planet?
Readings:
·
Sewell, brief sections on the arms race and arms control treaties, pp. 88-9, 93, 96-7, 103-4, 1067, 118-20, 123, 125, 135.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 9 (entire); and Chapter 17 (Doc. 17.13 only).
·
* COURSEPACK John Gaddis, “Nuclear Weapons and the Escalation of the CW,” in We Now
Know: Rethinking Cold War History (1997).
·
* COURSEPACK Paul Rogers, “Learning from the Cold War Nuclear Confrontation,” in Dobson
(ed.), Deconstructing and Reconstructing the Cold War.
·
* On PAWS, Michael MccGuire, Nuclear Deterrence, International Affairs 82:4 (2006): 771-84
·
* On PAWS, Ron Rosenbaum, “The Return of the Doomsday Machine?,” Slate.com, August 31,
2007.
·
Our course outline, p. 13 (on Cold War-era nuclear weapons treaties)
Week VIII Thursday, February 28
Topic: The Third World’s Role in the Cold War (main focus: Vietnam and Angola)
Discussion Questions: Did people in Third World countries share common experiences and viewpoints
during the Cold War period? Which ones remained unaligned (not allied with either the US or USSR),
and why? What were the major proxy wars between the US and USSR or China? How did the US,
USSR, and China try to gain influence in developing countries? How did the UN try to resolve violent
conflicts in developing countries, and how did the Cold War rivalries prevent collective security in the
UN context from being achieved?
Readings:
·
Sewell, pp. 95-96, 114-18.
·
Larres and Lane, Chapter 6 “The Vietnam War and the Superpower Triangle,” by Richard
Crockatt.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 7, pp. 209-10, read three documents; Chapter 11 (entire);
Chapter 12, pp. 379-81; Docs 12.4, 12.5, 12.9-12.12; Chapter 16 (Docs. 16.1); and Chapter 17 (Docs
17.6 and 17.7 only).
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
6
H-Diplo
·
* COURSEPACK Weiss, Forsythe, & Coate, “The Reality of UN Security Efforts During the Cold
War,” in The United Nations and Changing World Politics (2004 edition).
·
* COURSEPACK Odd Arne Westad, Chapter 6 “The crisis of decolonization: Southern Africa,” The
Global Cold War (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005), pp. 207-49.
·
Our course outline, pp. 14-15 (sections on Vietnam and Angola).
Week IX Thursday, March 6 RESEARCH ESSAY PROPOSALS DUE
Topic: Cold War Culture
Discussion Questions: Most scholarly emphasis in this field has been on military and diplomatic
developments. However, what do social and cultural factors, including ideological differences, tell us
about the Cold War experience? What factors, characteristics, and misperceptions best defined Cold
War culture in the West and the East? Who benefited and suffered from these factors, characteristics,
and misperceptions? What did the “average person” in First World (Western democracies) and Second
World (communist) countries experience during the Cold War?
Readings:
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 13 (entire); and Chapter 8 (Doc. 8.2 only).
·
* COURSEPACK Patrick Major and Rana Mitter, “East is East and West is West?,” in Across the
Blocs: Cold War Culture and Social History (2004), ed. by Rana Mitter and Patrick Major.
·
* COURSEPACK Valerie Korinek, “’It’s a Tough Time to Be in Love’: The Darker Side of
Chatelaine during the Cold War,” in Love, Hate, and Fear in Canada’s Cold War (2004), ed. by Richard
Cavell.
·
* On PAWS Carlin Romano, “Cold-War Cultural Tactics Should Be a Hot Topic,” Chronicle of
Higher Education, March 3, 2006.
Week X Thursday, March 13
Topic: Détente, 1963-79
Discussion Questions: Why did Détente occur, and when did it really start? How would you
characterize superpower behaviour at this time? Why did Détente end, and what were the causal
factors?
Readings:
·
Sewell, Chapter 5 “Détente”
·
Hahnimaki and Westad, Chapter 15 (only, pp. 481-3; Docs. 15.3, 15.4, 15.5, 15.7, 15.8, 15.9,
15.10).
Week XI Thursday, March 20
Topic: The Renewal of Cold War Tensions, 1979-1985 (focus on War in Afghanistan and President
Reagan’s anti-communist crusade)
Discussion Questions: What factors/developments precipitated the renewal of Cold War tensions at
this time? How did the superpowers attempt to cope with these tensions, well or poorly, and why did
they behave in this way?
Readings:
·
Sewell, Chapter 6 “Renewed Confrontations.”
·
Larres and Lane, Chapter 7 “The Failure of the Détente of the 1970s,” by Raymond Garthoff.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 14 (Doc. 14.12); Chapter 16 pp. 516-8 + Docs 16.5-16.13; and
Chapter 17 pp. 553-5 + Docs. 17.6, 17.7, 17.10 and 17.11 only.
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
7
H-Diplo
Week XII Thursday, March 27
Topic: The End of the Cold War
Discussion Questions: Why did the Cold War end? Were impersonal forces (such as economic crisis,
general corruption, and decay in the USSR) or actual people (such as Ronald Reagan and/or Mikhail
Gorbachev) more central to the Cold War’s demise?
Readings:
·
Sewell, Chapter 7 “The End of the Cold War.”
·
Larres and Lane, pp. 181-3; and Chapter 8 “Who Won the Cold War?,” by H.W. Brands.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 18 (entire).
·
* ON PAWS David Greenberg, “The Empire Strikes Out - Why Star Wars Did Not End the Cold
War.” Foreign Affairs, March-April 2000 v79 i2 p136. Book review of Way Out There in the Blue:
Reagan, Star Wars and the End of the Cold War, by Frances FitzGerald (2000).
·
* On PAWS Stephen Sestanovich, ``Not Much Kinder or Gentler,`` New York Times, February 3,
2005.
****RESEARCH ESSAYS DUE ON FRIDAY, MARCH 28, BY 5pm****
WEEK XIII THURSDAY, APRIL 3 LAST DAY OF CLASS
Topic: Cold War Legacies
Discussion Questions: In what ways is Cold War behaviour still evident? What are the main Cold War
legacies? What did we learn from the Cold War? Have we already forgotten its lessons, to our peril?
Readings:
·
Sewell, “Conclusion.”
·
Larres and Lane, Chapter 9 “Some Lessons from the Cold War,” by Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.
·
Hanhimaki and Westad, Chapter 19 (entire).
·
* On PAWS Mikhail Gorbachev, `History is Not Preordained: A New Cold War Can Be Averted,`
The Guardian, January 18, 2007.
YOU`LL RECEIVE THE FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS IN CLASS; DUE APRIL 15 BY 5PM ON DOOR OF ARTS 717.
PRESENTATION OF AN ACADEMIC JOURNAL ARTICLE OR BOOK EXCERPT
During one week of class, each student will be required to present an academic article or book
excerpt related to the week`s topic. Either Professor Jordan can suggest one (please ask her at least
a week ahead of time), or you may choose one yourself. If you do want to do the latter, let Prof.
Jordan know at least a week ahead of time what it is, to make sure it fits the criteria for being
academic (written by a scholar, uses citations, and—if it’s an article—published in a peer-reviewed,
academic journal). Example 1: for the class about Third World proxy wars, you could present an
article about the superpowers’ role in the war in Angola (1970s-80s). Example 2: For Cold War
culture, you could present an article about Soviet-bloc visual artists. Your presentation must be
between 10 and 15 minutes long. You will sign up on Day One for a presentation.
Potential sources for your article (if you’d like to choose your own):
·
Journal of Cold War Studies (Harvard) You can access this journal online via Project Muse (a
database that our library subscribes to). If you don’t know how to access it, you can ask a reference
librarian for assistance any time the library’s open.
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
8
H-Diplo
·
Diplomatic History Journal. Available in hard copy in our main library or via an online
database called Ingenta.
·
Search online databases for articles in other scholarly journals through our library’s Web site.
These include: JSTOR, Project Muse, Academic Search Primer, and Expanded Academic ASAP. Make
sure you tick off the box for peer-reviewed journal, when it’s available. Not everything in Academic
Search Primer or Expanded Academic ASAP is an academic journal, so please beware.
You must also submit to Prof. Jordan in class on the day of your presentation:
1) a copy of the text of your presentation, along with a bibliography of sources you may have used in
helping you prepare the presentation; Plagiarism warning: Using sources other than the source
you`re presenting without citing them in your bibliography/footnotes of the text of your presentation
constitutes plagiarism. Last year, two of my students were found guilty of plagiarism when they used
secondary sources in their presentations without citing their sources (they both plagiarized sources
verbatim from Web sites). They were severely penalized by a College Committee on Academic
Honesty, and both ended up receiving final marks in the 60s.
2) a photocopy of your article or book excerpt. You will also answer questions posed by the instructor
and students about the reading after your presentation.
During your oral presentation, you must answer:
·
What major themes/topics does the article/book excerpt address?
·
Who is the author? What is his/her background? What, if any, are his/her biases?
·
What are the author’s main arguments?
·
What are the main strengths and weaknesses of those arguments? For example, your
presentation should examine whether or not the arguments and evidence used to support them are,
in fact, compelling/persuasive. (For older articles and books) Is the information outdated?
·
How does this reading expand on our assigned readings for the day? (for example, any
disagreements with what is argued in the required readings?, what’s left out or included?)
Due to a personal or family emergency (I would need an excuse in writing from a doctor), if you
cannot attend class on the day of your oral presentation, you may present the following week.
However, if you do not have a legitimate excuse and do not notify Prof. Jordan before missing class,
you will be unable to make up the assignment, which is 15% of your total mark for the course.
RESEARCH PAPER DUE MARCH 28 by 5pm (on my office door ARTS 717 +email me a copy)
See the next page for a paper evaluation sheet (how Prof. Jordan will mark your paper).
Students must write a research paper on a topic of their choosing re: the Cold War (can`t focus
mainly on theory; this is a history paper) that is no less than 15 typed pages in length (the 15 pages
consist only of the text of the paper, excluding the title page, citations, and bibliography). The text
must be double-spaced, 12-pitch only, with margins no wider than 1 inch on all four sides. Please
consult the Rampolla book for guidance about writing essays and using citations (endnotes). Students
must use endnotes and include a bibliography at the end of the paper. Please note that Prof. Jordan
checks all papers for possible plagiarism. If you’re unsure about how to cite sources legally, please
see www.usask.ca/honesty and review the plagiarism policy outlined on p. 3 of this course outline.
For every day late, Prof. Jordan will deduct 3 points from your paper’s total mark.
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
9
H-Diplo
Structure of Paper (in order of appearance):
1. Title page
2. Fifteen pages of text (at least): Intro (including thesis statement, research question(s), and brief
outline of paper); body of paper; conclusion. (3 points will be deducted for every missing page of
text)
3. Endnotes on separate pages from the 15 pages of text.
4. Bibliography
In class on March 6, students must hand the instructor a research proposal containing:
·
a brief description of the topic
·
a thesis statement
·
main research question or questions
·
a basic outline of the structure of the paper (does not need to be any more than one page long)
·
a bibliography
If you do not submit a proposal (you cannot do so after 4pm on March 11), the instructor will deduct
10 percent from the mark of your paper.
Students are invited to submit drafts to Prof. Jordan for her review and comments. However, she’ll
review drafts only up to March 21, so please turn them in early to her.
Important Information about Sources:
Students must actively use at least six academic sources (books and articles in academic journals).
This means that at least six academic sources must be cited in the endnotes (in addition to the
bibliography). You are encouraged to search the Journal of Cold War Studies for articles. You can
access this journal online via Project Muse (a database that our library subscribes to). If you don’t
know how to access it, you can ask a reference librarian for assistance any time the library’s open.
You must refer to at least one primary source (official declassified document, memoir, transcript,
photograph) in the text of your paper and cite it in your endnotes/bibliography. The Web sites listed
on p. 2 of this course outline may help you find primary sources: http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/
National Security Archive, George Washington University; http://library.usask.ca/dbs/ddrs.html
Declassified Documents Reference System; http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~hpcws/ Harvard Project on
Cold War Studies; http://cwihp.si.edu Cold War International History Project, Woodrow Wilson
International Center for Scholars, Smithsonian Institution. You may use primary or secondary
sources featured in our required course readings, but no more than half your academic sources can
come from our required course readings. You may also want to search periodical databases such as
JSTOR or Expanded Academic ASAP for more academic sources.
ESSAY EVALUATION FOR HIST 390.3
Student name:
Overall MARK:
Semester: T2 Winter 2008 submitted: ____ on time ____ late (-3 points for each day late)
Page Length: ___ more than 15 pages ___15 pages
____less than 15 pages (-3 points for each
missing page)
***Page length (no less than 15 pp. of text, double spaced, 12-pitch font, margins no wider than 1
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
10
H-Diplo
inch, no skipping extra spaces bt paragraphs)
MECHANICS
Excellent
Good
Av.
Below
Problematic
Average
Excellent
Good
Av.
Below
Problematic
Average
Excellent
Good
Av.
Below
Problematic
Average
Spelling/grammar
Consistent use of endnotes (-3 if endnotes are not
used)
Bibliography (style; correctly identifying sources,
esp. from the Internet?)
STYLE & RESEARCH
Quality of prose
At least 6 academic sources? At least one primary
source cited in endnotes/bibliography?
Effective use & interpretation of sources
ORGANIZATION &ARGUMENT
Introduction: include thesis statement, main
question(s), and brief statement of your outline
(what you plan to do in the paper)
Conclusion: summarize the main points
All questions answered thoroughly
Main points used to analyze sources, not just to
narrate or story-tell
Paragraphs are organized well; transitions are clear
COMMENTS:
Cold War Historiography/Theories
Cold War historiography consists of diverse views about the Cold War’s origins and end game.
Scholars differ based on their opinions of what factors were most influencial—for example, ideology,
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
11
H-Diplo
national security interests, misperceptions, economic imperatives. Even today, there is no single
consensus about the Cold War, although, as you’ll read below, many scholars have returned to the
Traditional/orthodox view now that more Soviet and E. European archives have been opened to
scholars. Initially, scholars tended to emphasize US behaviour and sources largely because they
didn’t have access to Soviet/EE documents until the 1990s.
Traditional/orthodox view: the dominant theoretical framework of US policy makers and many
American scholars during the CW. Soviets were to blame for starting and perpetuating the Cold War
because of their expansionist goals that were hostile to Western security. A relatively hierarchical
and unified Communist bloc existed under the USSR’s leadership. The perceptions of Western
decision-makers that the Soviet bloc was expansionist along coordinated lines largely directed from
Moscow were accurate. Soviet power was checked only when the US and its allies began to take
steps to contain it. Examples of Traditional/orthodox thinkers: George Kennan, Adam Ulam, Hugh
Seton-Watson. Traditional Russian imperial expansionism is emphasized. Conservative bias: USSR as
totalitarian state, not to be trusted=justified national security state and heavy defense spending in
the US. Many archival sources that were released after the end of the Cold War lend credence to
traditional/orthodox analyses (Sewell, p. 4), esp. the view that ideological differences fueled the start
of the Cold War. Even John Lewis Gaddis (see below under Post-Revisionism) now admits that
ideology played a major role in provoking Cold War tensions and crises, esp. at the beginning of the
Cold War.
Realism: The Realist interpretation focuses above all on the primacy of power politics. Realists
argue that the Cold War was inevitable because of expansionist needs of both the US and USSR.
Examples of Realists: H. J. Morgenthau, N.A. Graebner, and Henry Kissinger. Realists underemphasize the role of ideology in shaping foreign policy. The Cold War involved two states that were
pursuing their national security interests in a contest for supremacy. Neither the US nor the USSR
wanted the other to gain the leading edge (meaning to achieve a preponderance of power). As a
result, each pursued an arms race and formed alliances with states that were friendly to them.
Balance of power framework. Some experts group Realism with the Traditional view, but I think it’s
possible to give Realism its own category, because its adherents don’t particularly blame any one side
for perpetuating the CW.
Revisionism: Theoretical approach developed by left-leaning scholars during the Vietnam era.
Examples of Revisionists: William Appleman Willliams, Lloyd Gardner, Walter LeFeber. Revisionists
viewed the USSR as defensive and passive and the US as aggressive. They assumed US foreign policy
was driven by the need for capitalist expansion, including the perpetural search for new markets and
raw materials in developing countries. Larres/Lane, p. 6: Revisionists focused on economic factors
driving the expansion of capitalism; also influenced by Sovietologists’ models of bureaucratic,
interest-group politics under Brezhnev. View that American empire was no more moral than its
Soviet counterpart.
Post-Revisionism: The post-revisionist interpretation, which emerged in the 1970s and lasted
through the 1980s, stressed that the Soviets and Americans both misperceived each other’s
behaviour and were equally reactionary; in other words, they shared responsibility for starting and
perpetuating the Cold War The analysis also focused on bureaucratic decision-making processes.
Examples of Post-Revisionists: John Lewis Gaddis and Robert (Bob) Grogin, who taught at the U of S!
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
12
H-Diplo
Larres/Lane, p. 9: “American hegemonic behaviour is more accurately described as defensive rather
than offensive expansion.” Larres/Lane, p. 10: “it was Stalin’s ill-defined but relentless search for
security at the expense of his neighbours combined with the failure of the western powers to
recognize his ambitions and draw the lines firmly enough to deter him that led to the CW.” John
Lewis Gaddis, The United States and the Origins of the Cold War (1972) is an example of postrevisionism. Gaddis combined elements of the traditional/orthodox historical approach with that of
revisionism, Larres/Lane, p. 8. Ideological, economic, demographic/ethnic, partisanship factors all
played a role in shaping US foreign policy.
NUCLEAR ARMS TREATIES AND NEGOTIATIONS: A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
(adapted from the 2004 World Almanac, pp. 164-65, and information on atomicarchive.com)
Limited Test-Ban Treaty. Signed August 5, 1963 by the US, USSR, and UK. Prohibited testing of
nuclear weapons in space, above ground, and under water.
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT). Adopted July 1, 1968. Limits spread of nuclear material for
military purposes by agreement not to help nonnuclear states acquire or make nuclear weapons. 188
states have ratified the treaty. North Korea withdrew in 2003.
Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I). Signed by the US and USSR on May 26, 1972. A five-year
agreement that set limits on the number of missile launchers each side could maintain: 1,710 for the
US (1,054 ICBMs=intercontinental ballistic missiles and 740 SLBMs=submarine-launched ballistic
missiles) and 2,358 for the USSR (1,618 ICBMs and 740 SLBMs). Also, froze the # of strategic
ballistic missiles at 1972 levels. Construction of additional land-based ICBM silos were prohibited,
while SLBM launcher levels could be increased if corresponding reductions were made in older ICBM
or SLBM launchers. Modernization of launchers was allowed, however, if kept within specific
dimensions. Negotiations ran from 1969-72. SALT I extended in 1977.
Antiballistic Missile Treaty (ABM). Signed at the same time as SALT I. Limited antiballistic missiles
to two sites of 100 antiballistic missile launches in each country. Amended in 1974 to 1 site in each
country. The US (George W. Bush administration) withdrew from the treaty in 2002.
Threshold Test Ban Treaty. Signed by US and USSR on July 3, 1974. Limited underground testing of
nuclear weapons to 150 kilotons.
SALT II. Signed by the US and USSR on June 18, 1979. Limited each side to 2,400 missile launchers
and heavy bombers. Ceiling was set to apply until 1985. Also set a sub-ceiling of 1,320 ICBMs and
SLBMs with multiple warheads on each side. SALT II never ratified because President Jimmy Carter
opposed Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. Signed by the US and USSR on December 8,
1987. Eliminated all US and Soviet intermediate- and shorter-range nuclear missiles from Europe
and Asia. Entered into force in 1988 after being ratified by US Congress and Soviet legislature.
Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START I). Signed by US and USSR on July 31, 1991. Goal to
reduce strategic nuclear arms by about 30% in 3 phases over 7 years. The first treaty to mandate
reductions by the US and USSR. Ratified by US Senate in 1992. However, due to complications with
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
13
H-Diplo
the break-up of the USSR, Russia did not begin to enact the measures in this treaty until after 1994.
POST-COLD WAR
START II. Signed by the US and Russia on Jan. 3, 1993. Goal to reduce US and Russian long-range
nuclear arsenals to approximately one-third of their then current levels within a decade and disable
and dismantle launching systems. US ratified START II in 1996, Russia in 1997. Both countries later
agreed that START II would not be fully implemented until 2007. However, in 2002, Russia withdrew
from START II after the US announced its withdrawal from the ABM Treaty.
Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). Adopted by dozens of UN member states on
September 24, 1996 (US and Russia signed). CTBT bans all nuclear weapons tests and other nuclear
explosions. Goal to help prevent nuclear powers from developing more advanced weapons and
limiting the ability of other states to acquire these devices. US has not ratified; Russia has.
Nuclear Arms Reduction Treaty (Treaty of Moscow). Signed by the US and Russia on May 24, 2002.
Commits the US and Russia to cutting nuclear arsenals to 1,700 to 2,200 warheads each, down from
approximately 6,000 each, by 2012. Joint committee set up to monitor implementation. Either side
may withdraw from treaty’s terms with 90 days’ notice.
TIMELINES: Vietnam, Angola, and Afghanistan
Vietnam
19th Century: conquest by France. Vietnam becomes French colony.
1940: Japan occupied Vietnam
August 1945: Vietminh Independence League, a number of nationalist groups led by Ho Chi Minh
(communist) forced out Bao Dai, former emporer of Annam, head of the Japan-sponsored regime.
1946-54: France battled Vietminh (nationalist and communist) forces. French lost and pulled out of
Vietnam in 1954 after losing battle at Dienbienphu. July 1949: Bao had formed a State of Vietnam
with French approval. China backed Ho Chi Minh. Geneva Agreement July 1954: Cease-fire signed
providing for buffer zone 17th parallel, withdrawal of French troops from the North and elections to
determine country’s future. The agreement allowed the Communists to gain control of territory north
of the 17th parallel with its capital in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh as president. South Vietnam comprised
39 southern provinces. US opposed the agreement.
October 1955: Ngo Dinh Diem proclaimed the south the Republic of Vietnam and became its
president. Had US backing.
1954 onwards: COLD WAR CONFRONTATION BEGINS--Communists in the North sought to take over
the South. The North provided aid to Vietcong guerillas in the South. The USSR and China supplied
weapons to the Communists. The US began sending military advisors to help the anti-communists in
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
14
H-Diplo
the South. Northern aid to Vietcong guerillas intensified in 1959; large-scale troop infiltration began
in 1964 with Soviet and Chinese arms assistance. Large northern forces were stationed in border
areas of Laos and Cambodia.
1963: Buddhists in the South denounced the Diem government’s authoritarianism and brutality. This
action paved the way for military coup in South in Nov. 1963; Diem overthrown/killed. Several other
military coups followed.
1964: US launched air strikes against North Vietnam. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution empowered
President LBJ to take more aggressive action in Vietnam and prompted the Soviets to increase aid to
N. Vietnamese. National Liberation Front communist guerillas in S. Vietnam=Vietcong
1965: US raids stepped up and US troops became combatants. From 1965, US bombing of North
intensified.
1965-69: The Soviets and Chinese competed for influence over the N. Vietnamese through aid.
January-February 1968: Communist Tet Offensive increased LBJ’s “credibility gap.”
1969: US troop strength reached a high of 543,400 in April. But Vietcong and North Vietnamese
continued to mount new offenses, and no US troops crossed the 17th parallel into N. Vietnam.
From 1969: Nixon administation began to withdraw ground troops in response to domestic
opposition to the war.
1970: US invaded Cambodia and placed troops in Laos.
Late December 1972: US warplanes conducted massive bombing raids over Northern cities of Hanoi
and Haiphong. By early 1973, the US had dropped more tonnage of bombs on Vietnam than they had
during all of WWII.
January 27, 1973: Cease-fire agreement signed in Paris by US, North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and
Vietcong. Called for S. Vietnam’s right to self-determination and reunification by peaceful means.
Never implemented.
Early 1975: N. Vietnamese forces attacked remaining S. Vietnamese gov’t outposts in Central
Highlands.
April 30: Saigon regime surrendered to N. Vietnam. N. Vietnamese Communists assumed control
over entire country.
July 1976: Vietnam officially reunited under Communist control.
1977-80 Heavy fighting between Vietnam and Cambodia (Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge). VietnameseChinese relations worsened; China cut economic aid. Feb. 1979: China attacked 4 Vietnamese border
provinces in response to Vietnam’s invasion of Cambodia.
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
15
H-Diplo
Feb. 1994: US annnounced end to 19-year trade embargo with Vietnam after MIA remains returned.
July 1995: US grants Vietnam diplomatic recognition.
Angola
1975: the Portuguese pulled out of Angola and left behind a political vaccuum. Three groups
struggled for power. 1) The MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola) was leftist and
received training from Cuba and arms from Moscow. Cuba first sent advisers and later thousands of
troops to fight alongside the MPLA. Moscow began shipping hundreds of tons of arms, tanks and
missiles to support the Cubans and the MPLA. The MPLA was first led by Agostinho Neto and then
later led by Jose Eduardo dos Santos (became president of Angola in 1979). 2) The FNLA (National
Front for the Liberation of Angola) led by Holden Roberto was radically anti-Communist. It was
supplied with outdated U.S. arms from Zaire/DRC. 3) UNITA (National Union for the Total
Independence of Angola) led by Jonas Savimbi sought American backing and rec’d US arms. The
United States supported the FNLA and UNITA against the MPLA. The United States ruled out direct
intervention in Angola with American troops. Afterall, the US was still licking its wounds from
Vietnam. Washington turned secretly to South Africa for troop assistance. SA sent troops and
supplies to UNITA. In October, South African troops with U.S. backing joined UNITA and invaded
Angola from their bases in Namibia. South African and American hopes of a quick victory over the
MPLA were crushed, though.
1976: After a series of setbacks, the combined Cuban-MPLA forces -- well-equipped with Soviet
weaponry – won control of most of Angola bc they outgunned the UNITA-South African army.
Late 1970s: The CIA was secretly providing money to anti-communist forces in Angola to recruit
mercenaries from Africa, America and Europe. Several of these mercenaries were captured, tried and
executed by the MPLA. Opposition to events in Angola grew in the U.S. Congress -- and lawmakers
there cut off additional CIA funds. But the civil war continued, outlasting the Cold War itself.
1988-89: Climax of war. Results included MPLA’s defeat of South African troops at the battle of
Cuito Cunavale. Gorbachev agreed to a deal by US Asst Secretary of State Chester Crocker to pull
out the 30,000 Cuban troops from Angola.
May 1991: the MPLA gov’t and UNITA signed a peace accord.
Sept. 1992: Peace seemed imminent in September 1992 when Angola held national elections. But
then UNITA renewed fighting after being beaten by the MPLA at the polls.
November 1994: UNITA signed a new peace treaty with the government, but the UNITA rebels were
slow to demobilize.
August 1997: the UNSC imposed sanctions on UNITA.
In August 1998: Angola sent thousands of troops to Congo-Kinshasa (Zaire/DRC) to support Laurent
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
16
H-Diplo
Kabila’s regime.
March 1999: The UN ended its mission in Angola, but the civil war continued. Up to 1.5 million lives
may have been lost - and 4 million people displaced - in the quarter century of fighting.
February 2002: government troops killed rebel leader Jonas Zavimbi; his death ended UNITA’s
insurgency and strengthened the MPLA’s hold on power.
April 2002: UNITA agreed to a truce, formally ending the civil war. However, fighting continued bt
gov’t forces and separatist guerillas in the oil rich Cabinda region.
December 2002: Fernando da Piedade Dias dos Santos takes office as Prime Minister. President Jose
Eduardo dos Santos has held office since 1979.
Afghanistan
1973: King Zahir Shah was deposed after three years of drought and economic downturn. Later that
year, Mohammad Daoud came to power in a coup. Daoud had been the King’s prime minister and
one of his relatives. He made Afghanistan a republic and created a constitution. He rec’d aid from
both the US and USSR, but ended up moving right to gain the support of Islamic countries.
1978: Likely with Soviet approval, the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) launched a
Marxist coup and overthrew Daoud’s regime. The PDPA wanted to end feudalism in Afghanistan and
introduce socialism and land reform. But it experienced an Islamist backlash in rural areas and also
proved incompetent at governing. By 1979, the PDPA had lost a great deal of popular support.
Sept. 1979: Prime Minister Hafizullah Amin, who headed the hardline faction of the PDPA, overthrew
President Nir Mohammad Taraki, who headed another faction. Amin’s policies were more radical
than Taraki’s were, and they provoked even more popular opposition to the PDPA regime. The PDPA
made several requests for Soviet aid throughout 1979. But Amin was also putting out feelers to the
US for support, and this angered the Soviets.
Late December 1979: Soviets invaded Afghanistan; removed Amin and installed Babrak Karmal as
leader of PDPA. The Soviets faced fierce resistance in the provinces from Muslim resistance groups
called mujahideen. The US and China sent arms to mujahideen groups.
Mid-1980s: The US intensified its aid to mujahideen groups. In fulfilling its objectives, by 1985, the
US government sent Stinger ground-to-air missiles to mujahideen to down Soviet helicopters (MI24Ds). Very effective strategy against the Soviets.
1986: Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signaled his intentions to pull Soviet troops from Afghanistan.
April 1988: UN-brokered agreement signed which provided for full Soviet troop withdrawal.
Feb. 1989: Last Soviet troops left Afghanistan. The Soviets left behind a PDPA regime under
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
17
H-Diplo
Communist President Muhammed Najibullah. Fighting between mujahideen and government forces
ensued.
April 1992: Communist President Najibullah resigned as competing mujahideen forces advanced on
Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. A week afterwards, the rebels took Kabul.
Mid-1990s: Continuing clashes between moderates and mujahideen Islamists for control over
Afghanistan.
1996: Taliban set up government in Kabul but never gained complete control over entire country.
Northern Alliance controlled areas of Northern Afghanistan, for example.
December 2001: US-led coalition overthrew Taliban regime. Interim government later appointed,
with Hamid Karzai as acting president.
January 2004: Constitution adopted.
October 2004: Presidential elections; Karzai won.
Citation: Seth Offenbach. Syllabus - The Cold War and Its Historical Interpretation (Jordan) . H-Diplo. 07-13-2015. https://networks.hnet.org/node/28443/pages/43252/syllabus-cold-war-and-its-historical-interpretation-jordan
Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
18