the U.S. Enters the Vietnam War

In your Cold War file folder in your Google Docs account, read pages 353 to 355 of Vietnam War.

The answers are due on Friday prior to class.
1. Many neutral observers in Vietnam were critical of US policy. Explain why.
Becuase observers were against the French and they thought the French and them were similar.
2. Explain how US politicians would have defended their policies.
they would have said that they want Vietnam to be independent and not cause the domino effect in Asia.
3. The following events are not listed in correct date order. Place them in the correct chronological order. (Write the year inside the parenthesis, i.e. (1965). Then note the reason for each U.S. action, and how it brought the U.S. into deeper involvement in Vietnam.The reasons you can choose from are: No direct involvement; financial support; political involvement; military involvement. Also, note what events triggered the increased involvement.

( 1963) Assassination of JFK - Johnson becomes president---no direct involvement
( 1955) Formation of South Vietnam ----no direct involvement
( 1964) Gulf of Tonkin Incident----no direct involvement
( 1962) Number of 'advisers' reaches over 11,5000----political involvement
( 1962) JFK sends military advisers---military involvement
( 1965) U.S. Marines land at Da Nang------military involvement
( 1954) U.S. stops elections in Vietnam----political involvement
( 1963) U.S. supports South Vietnam government after army overthrow Diem----political involvement
( 1964) Viet Cong attacks on U.S. and South Vietnam bases---military involvement
(1960 ) Viet Cong formed ----no direct involvement
4. Choose two events that you think were critical in getting the U.S. involved in a war in Vietnam. Explainyour choice.
I think that the U.S. stopping elections in Vietnam was the starting point becuase the Vietnamese felt controlled and wanted to have a freedom of speech. they had been controlled by the french before so it was worse being controleld again. The vietnamese got mad making the u.s. have to deal with it and get involved becuase they started the problem. The formation of the Viet COng also made it so the Americans had to get involved because the Viet Cong group supported commusism and the U.s. was really against communism and had to stop the group before they made Vietnam communism and the domino effect would start over Asia with communism.

the cuban missile crisis

In your Cold War file folder in your Google Docs account, read pages 350 to 351 of Cuban Missile Crisis.


The answers are due on Wednesday prior to class.


1. Kennedy described Wednesday, Oct. 24 and Saturday, Oct. 27 as the darkest days of the crisis. Use the information on page 350 to explain why.
Because on the 24th the missile ships got close to the bloackade and put them in danger and then on the 27th kennedy learns that the Soviets will not take away their missiles on Cuba and now he knows he has to attack.

2. Do you think that nuclear war was ever a possibility in this crisis?
Yes I think that if the US wasn't careful and about their decisions and invaded Cuba then the Soviets would have fired the missiles and then the US would have fired back and the war would have started.

3. Is Source 26 a Soviet or an American cartoon? Explain your answer by referring to the details in the cartoon.
This is an American cartoon becuase Kenedy isn't sweating but Khrushchev which means that he is getting tired but Kennedy is not.

4. Using Source 27 list any evidence you can find for and against each of the explanations.
To bargain and to get the upper hand make the most sense because khrushchev didn't want a nuclear war per se, he didn't care about testing kennedy and he had no reason to defend Cuba. He wanted missiles there to threaten the US and scare the US so they would take their missiles in Turkey away and/or match them in the arms race.

Why did the Soviet Union place nuclear missiles on Cuba?
To bargain with the USA

To test the USA

To trap the USA

To get the upper hand in the arms race

To defend Cuba

5. Choose the explanation(s) that you think best fit what you have found out about the crisis. Explain your choice.

I think that the Soviets had the missiles on Cuba to try to bargain with the US. If they had them on Cuba then the US would be scared and they would want them off. So Soviets would be able to ask them to take away the US's in Turkey and they would take away theirs in Cuba. Though since the US refused to take their's away in Turkey the Soviets withdrew theirs becuase they did not want the Americans to start an actual nuclear war and invade Cuba.

the U.S. attempts to contain Cuba

1. Why was Cuba so important to the United States?
Becuase Americans owned most of the business on the island and had a large naval base there, Guantanomo.
2. Why do you think the Americans chose to equip Cuban exiles rather than invading themselves?
So they would be disquised, Cubans would notice Americans but would mistake Cubans as their own.
3. Why did the invasion fail?
Because the beach was armed with 20,000 Cuban troops that captured or killed all of the 1400 exiles.
4. Compare Source 17 on page 345 (in the Arms Race.pdf reading) with Source 24 on page 348. Describe how the Soviet Union missiles on Cuba changed the Cold War balance of power.
Source 17 shows the location of the US misilles and surce 24 shows the USSR's misile locations. Since the USSr now had them on Cuba they had closer bases and could release the misiles sooner whereas the US had a longer distance, it shifted the balance in favor of the USSR

eisenhower & the cold war

Read Chapter 26, section 4, Two Nations Live on Edge, (pages 828-833).



How did the United States react to the following 7 events, and why?



1. Soviet Union exploded their first atomic bomb in 1949.

Truman debated whether the US should create an even more powerful bomb and the two superpowers, the US and the Soviet Union, started on an arms race.



2. In 1951, the Iranian prime minister placed the oil industry in Iran under the Iranian government’s control.

The US was afraid that since the Iranian economy had faltered that the would go the Soviets for help, so the US gave them millions and got Shah to return to power successfully.



3. The Guatemalan head of government gave American-owned land in Guatemala to peasants.

The CIA trained an army and they invaded Guatemala and then Guatemalans wouldn't fight back so the leader of the army became president.

4. In 1956, Britain, France, and Israel invaded Egypt and occupied the Suez Canal.

Teh UN stepped in to stop the fighting and the Egyptians got control of the canal.


5. Soviet tanks invaded Hungary and fired on protesters in 1956.

The Truman Doctrine didnot let the US help Hungary because they were a satelitte nation so they did nothing and Hugarians were saddened.

6. In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik.

The US was shocked and started using their own money in attempt to match and beat the Soviets in the space race but their first attempt was a fail.

7. In 1960, the Soviet Union brought down an American U-2 piloted by Francis Gary Powers.

At first Truman denied it and then siad he would stop with u-2 flights but he did not apologize and that made the super powers very angry with eachother.