Khrushchev+1955-60

=__**Khrush**____**chev 1955 - 1**____**960**__=

Mao thinks he is now the new leader of world communism Khrushchev comes to power in 1955
 * Stalin died in 1953
 * He was irrative and impulsive
 * He is nagged by never achieving Stalin's authority
 * 1956: De-Stalinisation -Secret Speech 'different roads to Socialism'
 * Stalin's tyrranical way of ruling is not right. There should not be such a strict government. There was a large amount of people, who were released from the Soviet concentration camps. This was a shock for people in Russia, however people could not disagree with Khrushchev.

Khrushchev wants to be seen as the new leader of world communism and not Mao, because USSR is a superpower
2.Arms Race accelerated
 * When he came to power two things were in place:
 * 1) Globalization ofthe Cold War
 * Excelerated "zero-sum" mentality because of the Korean War
 * Europe "frozen" - Germany stayed divided

__**AIMS of Khrushchev:**__
5. Cut military spending
 * 1) He believed in an inevitible success of communism
 * 2) Raise standard bases of living - create consumer goods
 * 3) Secure the Soviet Union
 * 4) Simultaneously challenge USA as well as improve relations with it- Bell notes these were contradictions to one another but Khrushchev managed to achieve both!
 * Bluffs, Ultimatums, Threats- Offensive!
 * PROBLEM: USSR was inferior: "Bomber Gap" (1956) exacerbated the strategic disadvantage - Weakness
 * Problem - The Soviet Union had a massive strategic disadvantage
 * Needs money, but has two choices:
 * 1) Spend it on consumer goods
 * 2) Spend it on the military aspects

The relations with the USA and China
One of Khrushchev's aimes was to improve relations with the USA and China. He needed to improve relations with China in order for Ho Chi Minh to recognize him as the leader of world communism. He also needed to improve the reations with Eisenhower. But because the stratigic environment was in USA's favour, he knew they were going to form him into the concessions and have the free elections in Europe. However Khrushchev could not allow that, as he knew the communists would loose in the elections.

Khrushchev believed there are 'different roads to Socialism' and that terror should not be used as a first resort. Instead, he wanted to gain the trust of the Eastrn European countries in order for the Warsaw Pact and the relations between them to improve. Stalin had been using terror to crush any revolt and killed anyone who opposed him. Thus, Easrn Europe did not want to stay in Soviet sphere of influence examples of that would be Poland 1956 and Hungary 1956. Khrushchev wanted to change that by loosening the grip and let them have some control over themselves although as soon as they started disobeying and putting USSR's authority over Eastern Europe under pressure, Khrushchev had to act.

**POLAND 1956**
Poles chose their own leaders therefore Soviet troops got prepared to take military action but Poles kept their leaders and Russian troops returned to their barracks.

**HUNGARY 1956**
There was a new leader in Hungary- Nagy. He announced the abandonment of one party government and that Hungary would withdraw from the Warsaw Pact staying neutral. From Khrushchev's point of view this could lead to the breaking of the Soviet Bloc in Eastern Europe as other countries in Eastern Europe could follow Hungary's example. Therefore, Khrushchev could not allow this to happen. The Red Army and its force were thus used to crush the revolt and the leader Nagy was executed. 1000 Soviet tanks were used to crush the revolt, there were 7000 Soviet casualties and 25 000 Hungarians dead.

= The Third World = The Third World was going to be the key to the success of communism and therefore shift the balance of power in the favour of Soviet Union.
 * ===Khrushchev "took an ardent interest in the new states of Asia and Africa" - i.e he believed the third world was the key for the shift of the balance of powers and the way to get communism win.===
 * Cheap markets - easy and not expensive way to improve the economy
 * Rich in natural resources - use it for USSR, to recover the economy
 * ==In August 1957 Soviets successfully launched "Sputnik" an earth orbiting satellite and an intercontinental ballistic missile.==
 * This transformed the stratigic environment and USSR had the advantages over USA