Partners
in a pact or alliance. The word is most often used for the countries that
fought the second World War Against the Axis powers.
Arms
Race
Competition
between the two blocs (East and West) during the Cold War. This race especially
concerned the nuclear weapons.
Bandung
Conference
The Bandung
Conference gathered 29 countries (from Africa and Asia) in 1955 in Indonesia.
It was leaded by Soekarno (leader of Indonesia) and Nehru (leader of the
Congress Party in India). Its aim was to settle a common approach of developing
countries, and to support independent movements all over the world.
Berlin
Blockade
Blockade
of the western part of Berlin by the Soviet Union. It started in May 1948
and ended in June 1949. Stalin ordered to cut all transports links between
West Germany and West Berlin. The blockade was defeated by a hudge Airlift
organised by the USA.
Blitzkrieg
Literally,
'lightning war' . A new, quick, mobile and mechanised style of warfare used
by the German Army during their conquest of Europe from 1939 to 1941.
Bolshevik
The section
of the Russian Social Democratic Party led by Lenin after the party split
in 1903. After the 1917 revolution, they called themselves the Communist
Party, and became the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1952.
Capitalism
Economic
system based on private ownership of property, profits realised by the owners
of the production means and free, competitive market.
Cheka
It was
the State security police set up by the Communists in 1917, in order to
deal with any political opponent. It became OGPU in 1923, then was renamed
NKVD in 1934, and KGB by 1955, when Kruchschev subjected it to the justice
department.
Cold
War
Used to
talk avout the all period of extreme hostility between the USA and the Western
Bloc on one hand, and the USSR and its allies on the other hand.This period
lasted from 1947 to 1989, but was particularly harsh from 1949 to 1962.
It was characterized by the arm-race, the diplomatic conflicts and disagreements,
a both-side propaganda, but over all by the refusal of any direct armed
conflict between the USA and the USSR.
Colony
Territory
occupied and ruled by another. The colonies had no real political independance,
and little influence on their economies.
Comecon
Economic
organisation created by the USSR in 1949 to react to the Marshall aid. It
was in fact set up to allow the Soviet Union to lead the economies of all
other Communist countries.
Communism
Refers
to Karl Marx idea of a classless society based on common ownership of property.
Also refers to the Soviet government of the USSR and all countries governed
by Communist parties (China, Cuba, North Korea etc...)
Concentration
camps
Prison
camps. They were used by Nazi Germany from 1933 until the end of the second
world war, but also by the Communist Party in the USSR and the Communist
countries to imprison political opponents and all 'undesirable' people whatever
the reason (religious, racial, social or sexual particularities).
Containment
This term
is used for the United States policy leaded by President Truman from 1947,
which consisted in avoiding Communist spread by any means, and especially
by economic help. The Marshall aid was part of that policy
De-Stalinisation
Process
settled by Krushshev in the USSR after the XXth congress of the Soviet Communist
Party in 1956, which consisted in discrediting Stalin way of government
(Personal dictatorship and harsh repression).
Domino
theory
This term
was used by President Eisenhower to mark out the idea that if one coutry
becomes Communist, the other coutries of the area would automatically 'fall'
to Communism. This theory was developed to justify the United State Intervention
in South East Asia (Korean war 1950-1953).
Final
Solution
Nazi plan
drawn up at the Wannsee Conference in 1942 (with Hitler and Heydrich) which
organised the extermination of all European Jews, and leaded to the Holocaust
(6 millions Jews).
Gestapo
Secret
political police in Nazi GermanyIt had unlimited powers to arrest torture,
imprison or kill opponents without any trial. As a result, the Gestapo became
the more feared section of the Nazi police. It was also present in occupied
countries during world war 2.
Glasnost
The word
is used to mark out Gorbashev policy which trended towards better information
and discussion, in order to reform economy (perestroika), and to make workers
more concerned by economic improvement.
Gosplan
Economic
planning agency in the USSR. It was settled by Lenin in 1921, and in charge
of the definition of the economic production quotas.
Great
Society
motto used
by President Johnson in 1965 to describe his general policy, and especially
the "attack on poverty", and the improvement of civil rights of
Black population.
Gulag
Russian
administration in charge of the concentration camps.
Holocaust
Literally
'sacrifice'. The term is used to design the persecution, deportation and
extermination of some 6 million Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe between 1939
and 1945. In french, this word is less used nowadays because of its religious
background. The word Shoah is now prefered.
Iron
curtain
These words
were used by Winston Churchill in 1946 (Fulton speach) to mark out the frontier
between Western and Democratic Europe on one hand and Communist Europe on
the other hand.
Keynesianism
From the
British economist John Maynard Keynes (1883 - 1946). He thought that a government
could counter the effects of an economic crisis by spending money to create
jobs thus increasing public purchasing power and raising demand for all
products.
Ku Klux
Klan
Racist
organisation in the USA. It was created in 1860, and re-appeared at the
beginning of the XXth century. It aims at the preservation of white Protestant
supremacy. It used violent means against black people, but also against
Jews or Catholics.
Kuomintang
Chinese
Nationalist Party, which hold power, leaded by Chiang Kaï Shek from
1928 until its overthrow by communists in 1949.
Lebensraum
or Living Space
The word
was used as a slogan by Nazis to describe the Eastern Europe territories
lusted by Hitler for Germany's growing population.
Maginot
line
Fortifications
along the border between France and Germany. They were built by the French
to defend France from any invasion.
Manhattan
Project
Code name
for the secret US project for research of atomic weapons during world war
two.
Maquiladoras
The industrial
manufactures called "maquiladoras" are one of the most spectacular
forms of border's exploitation by the American interests.
Settled in the Mexican territory, they depend most of time on US firms and
are the consequence of custom agreement between the two states. These allow
the importation of raw materials and the exportation of manufactured products;
the taxes at the end of the chain concern only the increase of value. The
manufacture can thus profit of the cheap labor force of Mexico.
This localization is the expression of an unequal power distribution: on
one hand financial power and power of the technical knowledge (the United
States) and on the other hand only a cheap labor power (Mexico).
These industrial implantations allowed a huge rise of urban growth. They
also attracted a flow of job-willing Mexicans. They remain an obvious example
of the utilization of under skilled workers.
Marshall
plan
US program
of economic and financial aid settled by General Marshall . It was proposed
to all needing countries in Europe, but the USSR refused it and obliged
other Communist European countries to do the same.
McCarthyism
Refers
to Senator Joseph Mc Carthy.During tthe 50s. He wanted to uncover Communism
in the United States, and so set up a congress commission to investigate
on Americans' political background and blacklist any suspect. One of the
main events of that period was the Rosenberg Trial.
Nazism
Abbreviation
for National Socialism. refers to Hitler Party which will hold power in
Germany from 1933 to the end of world war 2.
Nazi-Soviet
Pact
Secret
agreement between Hitler and Stalin in 1938. Both of thempromised not to
fight each other in case of a European conflict. They also agreed to divide
Poland in two parts. This pact ended in 1941, when Hitler invaded the USSR,
during the Barbarossa operations.
Non-Aligned
Movement
International
gathering of African, Asian and South American countries which agreed not
to subject to any of the blocs.(USA - USSR). It was created at the Bandoung
Conference in 1955. These countries also met in Belgrade (1961) and Brioni
(1965). This movement didn't have any real result, as it was formed by very
different countries with very different aims and political regimes.
Ostpolitik
The "East
Policy" adopted by German Chancellor Willy Brandt in 1969. It consisted
in opening discussions with Eastern Germany and the Communist bloc in order
to "normalise" diplomatic relations between the two German countries.
Overlord
Name of
the operation of invasion of France in June 1944.
Peaceful
Coexistence
Soviet
slogan coined by Krushchev in 1956 at the XXth Congress of the Communist
party. It meant that the blocs could leave peacefully, for Krushchev needed
to relax the arm-race to rebuild the USSR economy. Practically, it also
meant that both the USSR and the USA would not intervene in the other's
area of influence.
Third
World
This term
refers to the countries belonging neither to the developed Capitalist world,
neither to the developed Communist world.
Torch
Name of
the operation of invasion in North Africa by British and Americans in 1942
Vietcong
Communist
South Vietnamese guerilla leaded by Ho Chi Minh against the American army
between 1964 and 1973.
Vietminh
North Vietnamese
organisation, founded by Ho Chi Minh to drive the Frnch out of their Indo-China
colony.The war ended in 1954 by the Geneva agreement and the independence
of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
Zionism
Movement
to unite the Jewish people of the Diaspora (exile) and settle them in Palestine;
it arose in the late 19th century and culminated in 1948 in the establishment
of the state of Israel. The movement's name is derived from Zion, the hill
on which the Temple of Jerusalem was located and which later came to symbolize
Jerusalem itself. The term Zionism was first applied to this movement in
1890 by the Austrian Jewish philosopher Nathan Birnbaum.