Periods of detente dot the Cold War timeline however, the end of each detente was marked by a specific and flagrant inequality that invariably led to additional hostilities. It is interesting to note two of the events that ended periods of detente. Specifically, the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Communists and the erection of the Berlin Wall marked the end of two of the most notable periods of detente. Those events also helped to shape world opinion about the Soviet Union and opened the Communist movement to many criticisms from former allies.
An Uneasy Truce
President John F. Kennedy led the world through the Cuban Missile Crisis and faced down the Soviet enemy. Out of the resolution from the Cuban Missile Crisis came an uneasy truce that essentially began the next to last stage of the Cold War. Soviet designs on America were clear to everyone in the world.
Future policies enabled the U.S. To further enhance the concept of mutually assured destruction which tied the hands of the Soviets, and enabled the Americans to focus on winning the hearts and minds of the individuals in the puppet states of the Soviet regimes. As the latter part of the twentieth century progressed, serious cracks in the Soviet empire became visible and were exploited by American policies.
The Soviet Destruction
In 1981, President Ronald Reagan assumed the Presidency of the United States and faced off with the nuclear armed Soviet Union.
Reagan pursued policies that angered U.S. allies and produced vast crowds of European protestors; he was...
But his eyes were on the Kremlin. Reagan's ability to rearm in the midst of a deep recession, and his readiness to decry the Soviet empire while remaining popular, made a deep impression. (Sicherman)
Reagan demonstrated that he was willing to make decisions regardless of their popularity to assure the defense of the United States. At first, Reagan focused on containment but quickly adopted policies that were designed to weaken and eventually destroy the "evil empire." Reagan's willingness to use stark terms and back them up by strong policies eventually led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The Fall of Communism
When Communism eventually fell it occurred as a result of decades of geopolitical pressure and a concerted effort of Western powers working in conjunction to defeat an enemy of the world. But the fall of Communism has as much to do with the nature of the ideology and its inevitable rejection by individuals yearning to be free. Communism showed that it breeds bitter antagonism, suspicion and mistrust which inevitably lead to its own destruction. The world owes a debt of gratitude to great American leaders and freedom loving people around the world that hastened the destruction of the former Soviet Union.
Works Cited
Leffler, Melvyn P. "Bush's Foreign Policy." Foreign Policy Sep. 2004: 144
Sicherman, Harvey "His eyes on the Kremlin, President pushed USSR downfall." The World
Paper 22 Jun. 2004
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