The Refugee Problem
Khrushchev’s First Ultimatum
The U2 incident – May 1960
Khrushchev’s Second Ultimatum
The Berlin Wall
Consequences of the Berlin War
- Berlin Blockade failed, Germany had been unofficially divided
- 1952 both sides sealed their borders
- Border between west and east berlin remained open
- West Berlin at this time developed rapidly
- High standards of living and freedom
- East Germany had the opposite
- Lack of jobs, poor wages, no consumer goods, forced collectivisation and no political freedom
- Refugees took advantage of this and between 1949-61 an estimate 2.7 million people escaped to the west through West Berlin
- Many were highly skilled doctors, engineers, managers and scientists
Khrushchev’s First Ultimatum
- Khrushchev had to act and in Nov 1958 he declared that the whole of Berlin official belonged to East Germany and demanded that the USA withdraw its troops and berlin to be a ‘free city’ administered by East Germany
- Eisenhower refused
- However did not want to start a war
- Agreed to hold an international meeting on Berlin’s future
- Led to Geneva and Camp David meetings 1959
- No solution appeared but it was agreed to hold further talks in 1960
The U2 incident – May 1960
- In May 1960, the USSR shot down an American U2 spy plan over Russia
- Pilot, Gary Powers was captured
- Khrushchev used this incident to expose America’s spying programme to the world
- Excellent propaganda for the USSR and strengthened Khrushchev negotiating position
- 1960 Paris Conference on Berlin doomed to fail
- Khrushchev enraged
- Demanded Eisenhower punish leaders of U2
- Eisenhower refused
- Khrushchev walked out
Khrushchev’s Second Ultimatum
- Vienna Conference of 1961, Khrushchev challenged the new US president John F Kennedy to withdraw US troops from Berlin within 6 months or declare war
- JFK refused to remove troops
- Started to prepare for war
- Committing the US government to an additional $3.2 billion of defence spending and $207 million on nuclear fallout shelters
- USA also had more nuclear weapons than the USSR
- Therefore Khrushchev backed down but still had the Berlin refugee problem to solve
The Berlin Wall
- Refugee problem had become serious
- East German President, Walter Ulbricht was demanding that Khrushchev do something otherwise he would use force to close the border
- This might risk war
- Khrushchev solution was to build a wall separating East and West Berlin
- Therefore solving the refugee problem
- On the night of 12th August 1961, East German troops erected a barbed wire fence around the whole of West Berlin
- Over time a brick wall was built
Consequences of the Berlin War
- Tensions reduced
- Refugee problem had been solved which reduced tensions
- East Germany no longer feared a brain drain and Eastern Europe would no longer be exposed to the attractions of capitalism
- Propaganda Victory for USSR
- It allowed Khrushchev to avoid war whilst appearing strong
- Propaganda Victory for USA
- Kennedy visited West Berlin in 1963 to show his solidarity with the people there
- Ich bin ein Berliner – propaganda victory – Soviets had to wall people in to win
Ways to Linking Causes
- Refugee crisis was the long-term reason for tensions over Berlin but the decision to build the wall was triggered by the U2 incident – it led to the breakdown of peace talks leaving the construction of a wall as the only sensible option for long-term peace in Berlin.
- The main reason for building the wall was the attraction and success of West Berlin itself. The existence of West Berlin was a propaganda victory for the West and could lead to social disorder and protest in Eastern Europe. This island of capitalism produced a disruptive effect in East Germany and had to be closed down. The final trigger for the wall was the pressure put on Khrushchev by Walter Ulbricht. Khrushchev had to act and the construction of the wall was thus the only option left rather than war.