The Cold War was a 45-year rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union that emerged from their opposing ideologies of capitalism and communism. It involved threats and denouncements between the two superpowers without direct military conflict due to fears of nuclear war. Key events included the Cuban Missile Crisis, which brought the two countries closest to nuclear war, as well as Soviet invasions of countries like Afghanistan and involvement in conflicts like the Berlin Airlift. The Cold War ended in 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union.

1. The Cold War Danny Smith, Alex Shebly, Ryan Roberson, Jalen Camp

2. Intro The Cold War was a rivalry between the United States and Russia that lasted over 45 years. The rivalry emerged out of ideological differences between communism and capitalism.

3. Who, what, when, where? Who: The Cold War was between the United States and the Soviet Union What: A non-violent war where both sides threatened and denounced (to announce the ending of a treaty) each other; Because of different opinions on government systems. The Soviet Union believed in communism, while the United States believed in capitalism. When: 1945-1991- 46 Years of verbal threats, until the Soviet Union collapsed. Where: The United States and Russia were the countries involved.

4. Target Question #1-Why is it called the Cold War? According to Timothy Berg “Since both the Americans and the Soviets had the atomic bomb after 1949, they did not want to fight a "hot" war against each other for fear of destroying the world. Not wanting to destroy humanity, they engaged in a "cold" war. Rather than fighting each other directly.” Each side wanted the other to have absolute fear of them in case of a military battle.

5. Cuban Missile Crisis This crisis was the boiling point in the Cold War, it was the closest the world ever came to a nuclear war. Fidel Castro took power in Cuba in 1959. Castro nationalizes American property and investments(Private property was taken). Us responds by restricting all trade with Cuba in 1960.

6. Cuban Missile Crisis- Bay of Pigs Invasion This invasion was an attempt to overthrow Castro. Unfortunately the attempt failed which made tension between the Us and Cuba grow. Within an hour of fighting it was no secret that the exiles were going to lose. The invasion was stopped by Cuban army and all exiles were killed or imprisoned. Because of the invasion, Castro was scared that the US was going to try to take over again. From then on Castro was in fear of another US raid.

7. Cuban Missile Crisis- Operation Mongoose Kennedy approved a new secret plan to overthrow Castro and his new revolutionary government in Cuba. Operation Mongoose intended to completely disrupt the Cuban government and economy, while also removing Castro.

8. Target Question #2- What other countries were involved? Besides the United States and the Soviet Union the other countries involved in the Cold war were Cuba, Berlin, Afghanistan, and Germany. All of these countries played important roles in the Cold War.

9. Berlin Airlift From 1948-1949: During the airlift, Berlin only had two airfields. Berlin was divided into four sectors: American, British, French, and Soviet after WWII. The Tempelhof runway was in the US sector and the Gatow runway was in the British sector. Tempelhof’s runway was used for small planes and fighters. The airlift brought supplies needed by air transportation.

10. Afghan Invasion From 1979-1989: Ten year conflict involving the Soviet Union that supported the Marxist government. Soviet Union deployed 40th army, and the troops withdrew from the conflict on May 15, 1988. The invasion was over 9 months later.

11. Groups’ Point of View We think the Cold War was a much more civilized way of war instead of physical warfare. Although there was the threat of nuclear war, it passed and the United States ended with no damage as apposed to an actual war.

12. Conclusion Looking back to the period of the Cold War, there was a panic over nuclear war and communism. The fear of nuclear war gripped the nation and didn’t let go until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

13. Works Cited "Cold war." Military Cold war. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2010. <http://www.globalsecurity.org/ military/ops/cold_war.htm>. "An Overview of the Crisis." Cuban missile Crisis. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2010. <http://library.thinkquest.org/11046/days/index.html>. "Cold War." Europe Since 1914: Encyclopedia of the Age of War and Reconstruction. Ed. John Merriman and Jay Winter. Vol. 2. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2006. 620-628. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 14 May 2010.