Peroids of the Cold War

The Cold War, fought between the capitalist powers of the United States and Western Europe, and the socialist powers of the USSR and its allies, could be divided into numerous distinct periods, which faced differing social and geopolitical conditions than others.

## Escalation Period (1945-1949)

The Escalation Period describes the beginning years of the Cold War which would determine the later material realities and conditions faced in the war. The Cold War could be said to have first started in the final year of World War II, when the allies were emerging victorious and negotiations had already begun on dividing up occupation of land after the war. The first rifts in the Cold War could be seen with Stalin's aggressive nature of declaring occupation zones in all Axis nations, including Germany, Austria, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Japan, and Finland. The United States, France, and Britain agreed to these terms, on the condition that several nations occupied by the Soviets would also be divided, including Yugoslavia and Poland. The Korean peninsula was also divided, eventually leading to the Second Pacific War.

Tensions between Cold War blocs further escalated due to border conflicts and civil wars in Korea and Greece. During the Greek Civil War, both sides intervened, marking the beginning of violent hostilities and conflict towards each side. Ultimately, Greece was divided, with North Greece later being incorporated into the Balkan Federation. Finally, a tipping point was reached in 1949, when Stalin approved a North Korean invasion into the South, as the UN began a full blockade of the USSR and China and blamed them for all hostilities and bloodshed.

## Supplemental Period (1949-1975)

The Supplemental Period would see the greatest amount of direct bloodshed between both sides and the closest the world has ever gotten to nuclear war. It first began with the Second Pacific War, which would later end in complete occupation of the Korean Peninsula by Soviet and Chinese forces in 1952, largely due to the unpopularity of the Southern Rhee regime. However, the opposite was true in Japan, as the Japanese government brutally cracked down on dissent and murdered communist sympathizers. Though the North held out, South Japan was finally able to conquer the North and maintain full control over its territory. Although fighting ensued for another year, no major gains were made as peace was finally agreed to in 1953. The Second Pacific War marked the second major conflict of the war, which resulted in many more deaths due to the intense bombing campaigns of the US.

Both sides saw relative growth and success during this period. Korea was able to rebuild itself and transform into one of the most successful economies in Asia, proving the success of socialism. Most of Eastern Europe was quickly rebuilt after the war, as those countries enjoyed relative growth. The creation of the Balkan Federation and Visegrad Federation saw improvement for all areas involved. Though not many more revolutions occurred then, the USSR supported communist revolutions worldwide while the US provided arms against them.

This period was also the peak of the arms race and technological competition. The US and USSR both held fierce competition on the development of technology, nuclear arsenal, military supplies, and space exploration.

## Stagnation Period (1975-1990)

By the mid-1970s, the socialist bloc began to experience stagnation due to being isolated from trade. Although this period saw early successes in Asia and Africa, such as the establishment of the Angolan, Mozambican, and Zimbabwean People's Republics in Africa, as well as the victories of socialism in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, this period saw many socialist economies regress and stagnate.

In 1978, due to isolation from the rest of the socialist bloc, China reformed its markets. Things escalated further when China invaded Vietnam in 1989 due to Vietnam's subsequent invasion of Democratic Kampuchea (now Cambodia) and the ousting of Pol Pot.

The USSR was among those that faced major stagnation. In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became premier of the USSR, enacting numerous economic and political reforms. His opposition only grew stronger, as these reforms failed and opposition voices gained major political power, including Boris Yeltsin.

## Quiescent Period (1990-2000)

On 1990, Gorbachev was ousted in the August Coup, being replaced by Gennady Yanayev, resulting in major turmoil within the union. Both loyalists and separatists still held major positions of power within the union, refusing to back out of their seats, leading to a full civil war. NATO occupied several parts of the USSR, securing a major nuclear arsenal, but would pull out of these territories by agreement of the USSR once the loyalists began to take back territory. Though several occasions during the war remained hot, no nuclear weapons were used, avoiding catastrophe amidst violence and death of the war.

In the midst of conflict, Yanayev enacted major economic reforms himself, allowing capitalist markets to gain more power in an economy struck by war.