Richard Nixon And Detente
- Elected 37th President in 1968
- Promised to end the Vietnam war
- Pulled troops but increased bombing campaign, implemented Vietnamization
- Began a policy of Détente to lessen Cold War tensions
- Resigned after being implemented in Watergate scandal, 1972
Détente (A Relaxation of Tension)
- Reasons why U.S. sought détente:
- Nuclear and Strategic Parity - The Russians had caught the U.S. in most military areas (caused them to want to think of other options)
- Early Success:
- Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (limit the spread of Nuclear weapons) Signed by Johnson in 1968 (France and China do not sign it)
- Many, like Henry Kissinger, felt détente was just a new form of containment
The Watergate Scandal
- As Nixon was about to run for the 1972 election the Republicans were accused of a crime
- 5 men were caught trying to break into the Watergate hotel (headquarters for the Democrats) to place bugs
- The investigation led to much more corruptness and also implicated Nixon in the cover up
- Nixon resigned before he could be impeached
Ostpolitik
- German for ‘east politics’
- Western German leader, Willy Brandt wished to unite the Germanys
- Wanted improved relations between the two
- 1972 a Basic Treaty was signed with East Germany
- Accused of selling out to the communist East Germany, others see it as another détente move
The Helsinki Accords, 1975
- USA, USSR, France, UK and 31 other countries met in 1975 in Finland
- Agreed to:
- Accept European frontiers (Diplomatic victory for USSR and relieved tensions in Eastern Europe)
- To Respect human rights (in particular the USSR)
- To make easier the movement of people across borders
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT)
- Talks began in 1969, between US and USSR
- By 1972 the first SALT treaty (SALT I)agreed that both countries would limit their number of ICBMs
- SALT II, 1979, intended to accomplish nuclear parity
- SALT II got interrupted by the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
- 1980 Ronald Reagan became President and ended detente