Post-Stalin 'Thaw'

IMPACT OF DEATH OF STALIN;

• Stalin suffered a stroke on the 1st March 1953 then died four days later
• his death was met with great relief from the West where he was viewed as the key factor in the Cold War development
• Stalin's death was seen as a determining factor in the development of the 'thaw'
• the failure of the Soviet blockade in Berlin and the formation of NATO among others were all failures of Stalin's foreign policy
• his death was an opportunity for the new leader to change its approach to the West
• two months prior Eisenhower became president

DEFINITION OF 'PEACEFUL COEXISTANCE';

• after 1953, Truman and Stalin were no longer involved with the government so it changed things dramatically and this led to a hesitant move towards establishing a dialogue between the superpowers
• on the Soviet side this lead to the adoption of a policy known as 'Peaceful Coexistance'

WHY DID IT DEVELOP?;

• Malenkov had used this term in 1952 but under Khrushchev it was developed into a fully…