4) Little Détente

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Introduction

The Little Détente lasted between the years of 1953 (Stalin died) to 1956 (Hungarian uprising). It was the easing and relaxation of tensions, but they didn't have the potential of overcoming the Cold War. There were some breakthroughs, like destalinisation and the Geneva Summit. The unsustainable tensions, the prospect of thermonuclear war, and Stalin's death all made the Little Détente possible.

But, the Cold War order still remained. There was still mutual suspicion and fear that the opposing power was trying to achieve world domination, the German question still wasn't resolved, the arms race and space race still continued, and there was further strengthening of the blocs with Germany being integrated into NATO in 1955, and the Warsaw Pact being developed in 1955.

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Stalin’s Death and Succession

The Cold War tensions were at their worst on the eve of Stalin's death. Meaningful diplomacy had long ceased, the nuclear arms race had also become thermonuclear, and there was a general atmosphere of hysteria and suspicion. Stalin was planning another purge within the Soviet Union, and Senator Joseph McCarthy (US) continued his anti-communist witch-hunt. But Stalin's death on the 5th March 1953 sent shockwaves around the world. The Stalinised states now didn't know what to do, and he had been a very important figure in the onset and early crises of the Cold War. His death brought fluidity to the international system. New leadership was needed, but they were unsure which direction to take.

Beria, Khrushchev, Malenkov and Molotov were Stalin's heirs with Malenkov being the official leader. They all ruled together but he was the public face. They needed to create a calm atmosphere and build trust and legitimacy. The Soviet economy was in an awful state and was still a war economy rather than a consumer one which needed to change to show that communism was good. Communism needed humanising with an emphasis needing to be placed on consumer production rather than heavy industry and the armed forces.

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Continued

Their main aim was the relaxation of tensions with the west as domestic life may have struggled otherwise. But, the people believed that the west were the enemy who wanted to destroy communism. A bridge needed to be built with the west to focus on domestic priorities, redefine goals and strengthen communist values with the ability to get important techonology the west could offer which would improve their economic growth. There was a new post-Stalinist mantra of 'peaceful coexistence' which became the corner-stone in foreign policy.

Malenkov sent instructions to China and North Korea to negotiate constructively in pursuit of an armistice in Korea. The signing of the Korean armistice took place on the 27th July 1953. Malenkov now hoped the west would give peace a chance. But, he was becoming increasingly challenged by Beria and Khrushchev, and it was very questionable whether the new men in Washington would be willing to play along.

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The Eisenhower Administration

In 1953, there was also a change of leadership in the White House with Eisenhower's administration entering. He hadn't been part of the previous administration, but he was a hardened (Cold) warrior. He had experienced the transition from the Second World War to the Cold War as the Supreme Commander Allied Expeditionary Forces Europe in WWII, the Military Governor of the US occupation zone in Germany, the Chief of Staff of the US army, and the Supreme Allied Commander Europe for NATO. He believed the US was superior and and the Soviets were undermining them. He was elected on the promise to get the US out of Korea and lead it against the totalitarian Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was seen as a challenge to the US way of life and a threat to democracy and freedom.

The new US Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, shared Eisenhower's beliefs. He advocated for a more offensive 'roll-back' policy towards the Soviets. He helped in policy-making but was different to Eisenhower who just wanted to contain communism as he wanted to roll them back and reclaim the countries to the west. They both wanted to reinvigorate US foreign policy and enhance national security at a lower cost. Stalin's death meant there was an opportunity to recapture the offensive on the cheap. Pessimistic intelligence reports were coming through surrounding Soviet intentions emphasising the military potential and threat of the Soviet Union. They were also surprised by Malenkov's 'peace feelers'. But disagreements within the administration soon began with Eisenhower's hopefullness and Dulles' suspicion. The domestic opinion was also very anti-communist, but hopeful for peace. Ultimately, the administration made its commitment to peace dependent on concrete Soviet actions in Korea, Indochina and Austria.

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Continued

The Eisenhower administration was very heavily engaged in stregthening the western bloc and they developed the 'New Look' due to their new perspective. This 'New Look' placed an even heavier reliance on the nuclear deterrent. There was a reduction in defence expenditure which had been a campaign promise and rendered possible by the Korean Armistice and reduction of the US forces in Europe (using the nuclear deterrent instead and making Europe rely more on their own armies). The 'New Look' also involved the military integration of West Germany, and forces in western Europe were equipped with tactical nuclear weapons. (Strategic wiped out the enemy, whereas tactical could be used on a battlefield to win victory and were much smaller.) Europe could be transformed into a nuclear battlefield. NATO allies were soon brought on board.

But, there was some criticism of 'New Look'. Army and navy leaders were to be reduced and civilian analysts questioned the strategic rationale and the feasibility. Europe were ambivalent towards it as they feared the nuclearisation of the European battlefield, but they did accept the military/strategic rationale. Tactical nuclear weapons also allowed the Europeans to avoid a further costly build-up of conventional armed forces.

There was a complimentary indirect strategy against the Soviets that involved covert operations (CIA) mainly in the Third World (e.g. Iran and Guatemala).

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The Soviet Bloc

The 2 main elements of post-Stalinist Russia was peaceful coexistence and the modification of the Soviet model. Internationally this meant strengthening the credibilty of Soviet-European allies to make them acceptable partners to the Third World and the West. Internally it meant economic and political reforms, and the transformation of intra-bloc cooperation to strengthen political stability. Destalinisation hadn't been going as well as hoped so these measures were necessary. The Soviet Union became more lenient as it improved their support which subsequently could have allowed them to win the Cold War.

The crises in the satellite states in 1953 stimulated the reforms, specifically the Hungarian Revolution. Due to the improving situation, people believed they could gain more freedoms. But, they grew impatient and revolted when this didn't happen. After the crises, the predominant focus was on the economic character of the country. The east European economies were exhausted by a rapid pace of economic transformation based on the Soviet model. The western bloc's economy was rapidly improving due to the US investing money, but the Soviets couldn't do this. By spring 1953, there were persistent economic and political crises in eastern European regimes and revolts started with economic grievances, but these turned political and anti-communist. There were demonstrations and revolts in Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia, and an uprising in Berlin that spread to the rest of the country and became anti-communist in nature. It was put down by the Red Army, but a reform package soon followed. They asked for a lightening of repressive measures, a reduction of mass terror and violence, a qualified amnesty for political prisoners, a restoration of 'socialist lawfulness', cuts in heavy industrial output, reductions in the defence industry, increases in light industry, and a termination or decrease in collectivising agriculture (which would bring more food to the table).

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The 'little Stalins' were very selective about the reform package, with the only leadership changes taking place in Hungary. Mátyás Rákosi was replaced with Imre Nagy who kept rising and falling as a leader. Hungary was also the only country to really experience radical reforms, largely due to the rivalry between Rákosi and Nagy. But, the Soviets eventually sided with Rákosi after the fall of Malenkov in 1955. The Stalinist mechanisms of power were still preserved by some local leaders and the Soviets promoted collective leadership to reduce the concentration of power.

The Soviet Union was the ultimate arbiter, and the satellites were to remain in the Soviet empire. A more flexible and reliable model of cooperation was introduced that regulated and rationalised the established hierarchy. But, drastic measures to protect Soviet interests weren't ruled out. Some flexibility in control was required so that it didn't look tight, and they also wanted to reduce the hierarchical look. The Warsaw Pact, established in 1955, imitated NATO, and in theory was a voluntary alliance of sovereign and equal states to promote unity and Soviet dominance in the bloc.

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The German Question

The German question was the biggest issue in East-West relations and was a major preoccupation of the new men in the Kremlin until 1961. In early June 1953, the Kremlin became aware of an increasingly difficult situation and a growing unpopularity of the Soviet regime in the GDR. So, they decided to halt and partially reverse the Sovietisation of the GDR. Beria seemed to seriously consider the reunification of Germany providing it was democratic and neutral. The people had already asked Walter Ulbricht to relax the sovietisation, but he was a 'little Stalin' who only introduced limited reforms, wanted to rule alone and show no signs of weakness. So, the situation in Germany was escalated which ultimately led to the uprising of the 17th June 1953.

Soon, Beria fell from power. Khrushchev led a conspiracy motivated by the 'failure' in East Germany. On the 7th July 1953, Beria was expelled from the Central Committee, and in December, he had his trial and execution. This was essential in Khrushchev's rise to power. Following this, there was a shift in policy towards East Germany which was made official in 1955. He used a defensive strategy as the GDR needed stabilising due to it losing in comparison to the west. So, things like the Stasi were introduced which were modelled on the Soviet example with many being trained in the KGB.

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The GDR had an extensive degree of international sovereignty, but was still closely connected to the Soviet Union and held a Soviet security role. It was the founding member of the Warsaw pact in May 1955. Free and fair elections were allowed to take place, which was risky as there seemed to be a general move to American thinking due to the success of West Germany. In 1956, the Nationale Volksarmee (NVA) was created, East Germany's military forces. The Geneva Conferences of July and October 1955 were also important as France, the UK, the US and the Soviet Union all came together hoping for a confirmation of the détente. But it became largely concerned with Germany and ended in failure. Because of this, the two-state solution seemed to be the only answer.

The long-term Soviet strategy for Germany involved the existence of 2 German states, the strengthening of the GDR, a decoupling of the FRG from the west, a European security system without the US, a rapprochement between the GDR and FRG, and the reunification of both states under a Soviet banner. But, this was unnacceptable to the western powers. Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and FRG declined.

The neutralisation of Austria is important to note. In early 1955, the Soviets said that a peace (state) treaty could be signed with Austria without the prior settlement of the German question. This was guaranteed against a future Anschluss. There were Austro-Soviet negotiations in Moscow in spring 1955, and on the 15th May, the Austrian state treaty was signed by the victorious powers. Austrian sovereignty was re-established, foreign troops were evacuated by the 31st December, and they achieved permanent neutrality.

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Continued

The Soviet rationale for the neutralisation of Austria included the fear that following West German rearmament, the western occupation zones of Austria could be integrated into NATO. They also knew it was a neutral security buffer between the blocs and a neutral wedge in NATO's defences. The US accepted the neutrality despite fears of it becoming a springboard towards western disintegration and a potential neutral invasion route.

The shift of the Soviet position on Austria created hopes in Germany and the rest of Europe for a lasting détente. It was hoped there might be reunification in exchange for the neutralisation of Germany. But, Moscow still favoured the 2-state solution, and Germany itself was divided unlike Austria. Germany was also too politically, economically and strategically important. The Soviet desire to retain their position in central Europe through the GDR was also too strong.

Finnish neutrality was achieved when the Soviets withdrew from Porkalla on the 19th September 1955. Their neutrality was thus based on good relations with the Soviet Union. They were forced into the treaty, but it did allow them to gain sovereignty.

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