CW - Cold War Thaws (Lesson)

Cold War Thaws

Détente and Solidarity

In the early 1970s, Willy Brandt becomes Chancellor of West Germany. On a state visit to Poland, he knelt before a memorial to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and then later drafts a treaty with the Soviet Union, Poland, and Czechoslovakia. The treaty formally accepts the current boundaries and the loss of German territory to the Soviet Union and Poland in exchange for a mutual renunciation of force (or threat of force), thus beginning the Détente.

The Détente's high point was in 1975 when the U.S., Canada, and all European nations, except Albania, signed the final act of the Helsinki Conference. It agrees that Europe's existing political frontiers could not be changed by force and accepted certain provisions that guarantee human rights and political freedoms. The hope generated by this fades as the USSR ignores the human rights portion of the agreement. Most Westerners believe the USSR is using the détente to quietly build up arms.

In 1979, the Soviets invade Afghanistan in an unsuccessful bid to save an unpopular Marxist regime. U.S. President Jimmy Carter urged economic sanctions against the USSR, but only Great Britain would support it.

In 1980, Ronald Reagan becomes president of the US and accelerates military build up in order to, in his words, go against the "Evil Empire." He concentrates on nuclear arms and the navy. Yet the 1980s showed conservatism as well, as many nations began a partnership with the U.S. Margaret Thatcher (UK) and Helmut Kohl (West Germany) were two of the strongest allies. All three sought a resurgence of the Atlantic Alliance and a coordination of military and political policy directed at the Soviet Bloc.

In the Soviet Union, the Brezhnev era (1968-1985) appeared to set the stage for Soviet harshness and re-stalinization. The USSR appeared to be stable in the 1970s and 1980s as the dictatorship was based on the collective, not the individual, and the standard of living rose. There was reinforcement built into the system as "good party members" received access to special stores and schools as well as the ability to travel. The strength of the government is partially achieved by swift and harsh punishments for protests. Open non-conformity and protest were punished primarily by having the offenders blacklisted and unable to find employment. How is this possible? The government is the sole employer. Some were imprisoned in jails or mental institutions. This eliminates the need for killing, which in turn eliminates mass disapproval.

Yet the country IS changing. It is said the "Country went through a revolution while Brezhnev slept." The urban population began to rapidly expand, exchanging old peasant ways for better education, better skills, and greater sophistication. There was an increase in scientists and specialists who were allowed intellectual freedom as research had military value. There were "encouraged" public opinion issues that were allowed to be debated and discussed in non-political terms.

Gorbachev arrives in 1986 and begins issuing reforms. The existing political structure felt that many of these reforms would fail and Gorbachev would quickly lose power, yet overwhelmingly they were accepted and influenced protest in other areas.

 

Poland

Poland had always been opposed to communism and held riots as early as 1956. As a result, collectivization never took root in Poland and the Catholic Church was allowed to continue. By 1970, however, the economy was in ruins. The USSR announced price increases, which caused the working class to protest. Factories were occupied and many strikers were shot, but a liberal communist ultimately came to power in Poland. He begins the introduction of Western capital and technology, thanks in part to the new relationship with Willy Brandt and West Germany.

Cardinal Karol Wojtyla (archbishop of Krakow) is elected Pope in 1978, taking the name John Paul II. He tours Poland and helps bring the nation together.

Photograph of the Lenin Shipyards during the strike. In 1980, strikes begin in order to protest new price increases. 16,000 workers occupy the Lenin Shipyards demanding:

  • Free trade unions
  • Right to strike
  • Free speech
  • Freeing of political prisoners
  • Economic reforms

For 18 days the workers occupied the shipyards, families brings food, and priests come to say daily mass (on cranes). The government gives in and accepts their demands.

Image: Photograph of the Lenin Shipyards during the strike. 

 

Lech Walesa, a Lenin Shipyards electrician and devout Catholic, begins to organize the new free trade union – Solidarity. It is soon joined by intellectuals and supporters of the Catholic Church. By 1981, Solidarity had a membership of 9.5 million (out of 12.5 million eligible people), a full-time staff of 40,000, published its own newspaper and its leaders had real power in negotiations with Communist leaders as they could call for a national strike. Yet they do not attempt to take political power in 1981, as the Brezhnev Doctrine would almost certainly guarantee invasion.

By December 1981, there are only minor government concessions and the leadership is seen as too moderate, thus Solidarity begins to crumble. People begin protesting, the Polish government declares martial law and arrests Solidarity's leaders, cut communications and work to "save" the nation from the threat of a Soviet invasion. However, the government is unwilling to launch a full-scale terror, which results in many areas (public transportation, schools, etc.) operating as normal. Underground support for Solidarity grows.

 

 

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