Changes

Washington decided on a strategy of containment, as embodied in the the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] ('''NATO''') military alliance set up in 1949.  The [[NSC-68]] was a secret 1950 plan adopted at the highest levels of the American government to set the overall strategy, and a further step was taken in 1951 with the establishment of the Mutual Security Agency to coordinate U.S. economic, technical and military aid abroad.  

Washington decided on a strategy of containment, as embodied in the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] ('''NATO''') military alliance set up in 1949.  The [[NSC-68]] was a secret 1950 plan adopted at the highest levels of the American government to set the overall strategy, and a further step was taken in 1951 with the establishment of the Mutual Security Agency to coordinate U.S. economic, technical and military aid abroad.  

The basic goal of containment was to prevent further Communist expansion, hoping that the internal weaknesses of the Soviet system would soon lead to its collapse.  The problem with containment was that it meant fighting wars against Communist expansion, especially in Korea in 1950-53, and in Vietnam 1963-73;  and had the basic flaw that the enemy could choose the time and place of movement, while America and its allies had to defend everywhere at all times.  In 1949 [[Mao Zedong]] and his Communists won the civil war in China which would make the objective of containment even more unobtainable(as seen in the Chinese intervention in Korea).

The basic goal of containment was to prevent further Communist expansion, hoping that the internal weaknesses of the Soviet system would soon lead to its collapse.  The problem with containment was that it meant fighting wars against Communist expansion, especially in Korea in 1950-53, and in Vietnam 1963-73;  and had the basic flaw that the enemy could choose the time and place of movement, while America and its allies had to defend everywhere at all times.  In 1949 [[Mao Zedong]] and his Communists won the civil war in China which would make the objective of containment even more unobtainable(as seen in the Chinese intervention in Korea).

==Breakup of the Soviet Union and Wars End==

==Breakup of the Soviet Union and Wars End==

The Western democracies, under the leadership of the United States under President [[Ronald Reagan]] won the Cold War with a policy that rejected detente and containment and instead relied on [[Rollback]].  An important element of this victory  was Reagan's decision to commit to increased military spending, such as the  "[[Strategic Defense Initiative|Star Wars]]" program.  Reagan's decisions to intervene in Afghanistan while pursuing an arms race exacerbated structural weaknesses in the Soviet economy and pushed the USSR into an early decline.

The Western democracies, under the leadership of the United States under President [[Ronald Reagan]] won the Cold War with a policy that rejected détente and containment and instead relied on [[Rollback]].  An important element of this victory  was Reagan's decision to commit to increased military spending, such as the  "[[Strategic Defense Initiative|Star Wars]]" program.  Reagan's decisions to intervene in Afghanistan while pursuing an arms race exacerbated structural weaknesses in the Soviet economy and pushed the USSR into an early decline.

In 1985, [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] become General Secretary of the Communist Party.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/11/newsid_2538000/2538327.stm Gorbachev Becomes Soviet Leader], ''BBC'', 11 March 1985.</ref>  Recognizing the systemic problems faced by Soviet society, he attempted the twin reform programs of [[Glasnost]] (openness) and [[Perestroika]] (restructuring).  Combined with the disaster at Chernobyl and losses in the war in Afghanistan, the effects of Gorbachev's reforms quickly spun out of control.  Glasnost allowed media attention to focus on problems which had long been buried by the state's propaganda regime, causing widespread dissatisfaction among Soviet citizens.  In 1989, a wave of constituent republics began to seek autonomy from the Soviet Union.  Most attempts at succession (with the exception of Lithuania) were met with no Soviet resistance.

In 1985, [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] become General Secretary of the Communist Party.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/11/newsid_2538000/2538327.stm Gorbachev Becomes Soviet Leader], ''BBC'', 11 March 1985.</ref>  Recognizing the systemic problems faced by Soviet society, he attempted the twin reform programs of [[Glasnost]] (openness) and [[Perestroika]] (restructuring).  Combined with the disaster at Chernobyl and losses in the war in Afghanistan, the effects of Gorbachev's reforms quickly spun out of control.  Glasnost allowed media attention to focus on problems which had long been buried by the state's propaganda regime, causing widespread dissatisfaction among Soviet citizens.  In 1989, a wave of constituent republics began to seek autonomy from the Soviet Union.  Most attempts at succession (with the exception of Lithuania) were met with no Soviet resistance.