WORLD HISTORY
“WEAPONS” OF THE COLD WAR
Proxy Wars
Name: ________________________________ Period: _____
“The Cold War isn't thawing; it is burning with a deadly heat. Communism isn't sleeping; it is, as always, plotting, scheming, working, fighting.” – Richard M. Nixon
Question: What is a “proxy war,” where did they occur, and how did they impact the Cold War?
What is a “Proxy War”? A Proxy War is “a conflict between two nations where neither country
directly engages the other.” During the Cold War, direct engagement between the US and USSR
would likely have escalated into full nuclear war, so it was avoided. Instead, both sides offered
assistance in other countries in an attempt to indirectly attack each other’s interests.
Proxy War Goals
 While both sides certainly would like to have seen their adversary completely eliminated, and
their way of life victorious all around the world (capitalism/communism), this was an
unrealistic goal – especially as the arms race increased nuclear arsenals.
 Generally speaking, the primary goal of the US and its allies during the Cold War was the
containment of communism – to keep it from spreading beyond the USSR, China, and the
handful of other places that it existed.
 Communist nations also sought to block the spread of capitalism, while also attempting to
spread communism.
 Proxy wars gave both sides the opportunity to either advance their own agenda, block the
other side’s agenda (or deny it an advantage), or both.
President Truman addressed Congress in 1947, asking
for money and military support to help Greece and
Turkey resist communism inside their countries.
The 38th Parallel (38o N Latitude) was the dividing line
between communist North and non-communist South
Korea at the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950.
Questions to Consider:
1. What were the superpowers able to accomplish through proxy wars during the Cold War?
2. Overall, how effective do you believe proxy wars were as a “weapon” of the Cold War?
The Vietnam War, which began with minimal US
assistance in 1954, turned into a major involvement by
the early 1970s, and a political disaster for the US.
Afghanistan quickly became the USSR’s “Vietnam”
after their 1979 invasion, as US-backed rebels kept up
guerrilla tactics that forced them to withdraw by 1989.
Partial Timeline of Cold War Proxy Wars and Related Events
1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990
1947 1949 1951 1953 1955 1957 1959 1961 1963 1965 1967 1969 1971 1973 1975 1977 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989