Author: Hope M. Harrison
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400840724
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 369
Book Description
The Berlin Wall was the symbol of the Cold War. For the first time, this path-breaking book tells the behind-the-scenes story of the communists' decision to build the Wall in 1961. Hope Harrison's use of archival sources from the former East German and Soviet regimes is unrivalled, and from these sources she builds a highly original and provocative argument: the East Germans pushed the reluctant Soviets into building the Berlin Wall. This fascinating work portrays the different approaches favored by the East Germans and the Soviets to stop the exodus of refugees to West Germany. In the wake of Stalin's death in 1953, the Soviets refused the East German request to close their border to West Berlin. The Kremlin rulers told the hard-line East German leaders to solve their refugee problem not by closing the border, but by alleviating their domestic and foreign problems. The book describes how, over the next seven years, the East German regime managed to resist Soviet pressures for liberalization and instead pressured the Soviets into allowing them to build the Berlin Wall. Driving the Soviets Up the Wall forces us to view this critical juncture in the Cold War in a different light. Harrison's work makes us rethink the nature of relations between countries of the Soviet bloc even at the height of the Cold War, while also contributing to ongoing debates over the capacity of weaker states to influence their stronger allies.
Driving the Soviets up the Wall
Author: Hope M. Harrison
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400840724
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 369
Book Description
The Berlin Wall was the symbol of the Cold War. For the first time, this path-breaking book tells the behind-the-scenes story of the communists' decision to build the Wall in 1961. Hope Harrison's use of archival sources from the former East German and Soviet regimes is unrivalled, and from these sources she builds a highly original and provocative argument: the East Germans pushed the reluctant Soviets into building the Berlin Wall. This fascinating work portrays the different approaches favored by the East Germans and the Soviets to stop the exodus of refugees to West Germany. In the wake of Stalin's death in 1953, the Soviets refused the East German request to close their border to West Berlin. The Kremlin rulers told the hard-line East German leaders to solve their refugee problem not by closing the border, but by alleviating their domestic and foreign problems. The book describes how, over the next seven years, the East German regime managed to resist Soviet pressures for liberalization and instead pressured the Soviets into allowing them to build the Berlin Wall. Driving the Soviets Up the Wall forces us to view this critical juncture in the Cold War in a different light. Harrison's work makes us rethink the nature of relations between countries of the Soviet bloc even at the height of the Cold War, while also contributing to ongoing debates over the capacity of weaker states to influence their stronger allies.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400840724
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 369
Book Description
The Berlin Wall was the symbol of the Cold War. For the first time, this path-breaking book tells the behind-the-scenes story of the communists' decision to build the Wall in 1961. Hope Harrison's use of archival sources from the former East German and Soviet regimes is unrivalled, and from these sources she builds a highly original and provocative argument: the East Germans pushed the reluctant Soviets into building the Berlin Wall. This fascinating work portrays the different approaches favored by the East Germans and the Soviets to stop the exodus of refugees to West Germany. In the wake of Stalin's death in 1953, the Soviets refused the East German request to close their border to West Berlin. The Kremlin rulers told the hard-line East German leaders to solve their refugee problem not by closing the border, but by alleviating their domestic and foreign problems. The book describes how, over the next seven years, the East German regime managed to resist Soviet pressures for liberalization and instead pressured the Soviets into allowing them to build the Berlin Wall. Driving the Soviets Up the Wall forces us to view this critical juncture in the Cold War in a different light. Harrison's work makes us rethink the nature of relations between countries of the Soviet bloc even at the height of the Cold War, while also contributing to ongoing debates over the capacity of weaker states to influence their stronger allies.
Soviet Foreign Policy Towards East Germany
Author: Achilleas Megas
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319200011
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 223
Book Description
This book examines Soviet Foreign Policy towards East Germany in the late 1980s. By focusing on the complex interaction between domestic political thought and developments in the international system, the author illustrates the hierarchical relationship between the GDR and the USSR and offers different perspectives for understanding Soviet foreign policy. The books demonstrates that shifts in Soviet policy towards the GDR stemmed, on the one hand, from the international level, in that Soviet security was legitimated by the existence of two full-fledged German states, and, on the other, may be best explained in terms of ideas and Gorbachev’s new political philosophy.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319200011
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 223
Book Description
This book examines Soviet Foreign Policy towards East Germany in the late 1980s. By focusing on the complex interaction between domestic political thought and developments in the international system, the author illustrates the hierarchical relationship between the GDR and the USSR and offers different perspectives for understanding Soviet foreign policy. The books demonstrates that shifts in Soviet policy towards the GDR stemmed, on the one hand, from the international level, in that Soviet security was legitimated by the existence of two full-fledged German states, and, on the other, may be best explained in terms of ideas and Gorbachev’s new political philosophy.
Between Containment and Rollback
Author: Christian F. Ostermann
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 1503607631
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 607
Book Description
In the aftermath of World War II, American policymakers turned to the task of rebuilding Europe while keeping communism at bay. In Germany, formally divided since 1949,the United States prioritized the political, economic, and, eventually, military integration of the fledgling Federal Republic with the West. The extraordinary success story of forging this alliance has dominated our historical under-standing of the American-German relationship. Largely left out of the grand narrative of American–German relations were most East Germans who found themselves caught under Soviet and then communist control by the post-1945 geo-political fallout of the war that Nazi Germany had launched. They were the ones who most dearly paid the price for the country's division. This book writes the East Germans—both leadership and general populace—back into that history as objects of American policy and as historical agents in their own right Based on recently declassified documents from American, Russian, and German archives, this book demonstrates that U.S. efforts from 1945 to 1953 went beyond building a prosperous democracy in western Germany and "containing" Soviet-Communist power to the east. Under the Truman and then the Eisenhower administrations, American policy also included efforts to undermine and "roll back" Soviet and German communist control in the eastern part of the country. This story sheds light on a dark-er side to the American Cold War in Germany: propaganda, covert operations, economic pressure, and psychological warfare. Christian F. Ostermann takes an international history approach, capturing Soviet and East German responses and actions, and drawing a rich and complex picture of the early East–West confrontation in the heart of Europe.
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 1503607631
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 607
Book Description
In the aftermath of World War II, American policymakers turned to the task of rebuilding Europe while keeping communism at bay. In Germany, formally divided since 1949,the United States prioritized the political, economic, and, eventually, military integration of the fledgling Federal Republic with the West. The extraordinary success story of forging this alliance has dominated our historical under-standing of the American-German relationship. Largely left out of the grand narrative of American–German relations were most East Germans who found themselves caught under Soviet and then communist control by the post-1945 geo-political fallout of the war that Nazi Germany had launched. They were the ones who most dearly paid the price for the country's division. This book writes the East Germans—both leadership and general populace—back into that history as objects of American policy and as historical agents in their own right Based on recently declassified documents from American, Russian, and German archives, this book demonstrates that U.S. efforts from 1945 to 1953 went beyond building a prosperous democracy in western Germany and "containing" Soviet-Communist power to the east. Under the Truman and then the Eisenhower administrations, American policy also included efforts to undermine and "roll back" Soviet and German communist control in the eastern part of the country. This story sheds light on a dark-er side to the American Cold War in Germany: propaganda, covert operations, economic pressure, and psychological warfare. Christian F. Ostermann takes an international history approach, capturing Soviet and East German responses and actions, and drawing a rich and complex picture of the early East–West confrontation in the heart of Europe.
The Foreign Policy of the GDR in Africa
Author: Gareth M. Winrow
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521122597
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312
Book Description
This book presents the first comprehensive account of the foreign policy of East Germany in Africa from the early 1950s to the present day. The author challenges the conventional notion that the GDR's role in Africa is solely that of a proxy for the USSR. Instead, as he convincingly argues, East German foreign policy in general and in Africa in particular, should be understood as a strategy both in pursuit of affiliation with the USSR and in search of international recognition and legitimacy.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521122597
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312
Book Description
This book presents the first comprehensive account of the foreign policy of East Germany in Africa from the early 1950s to the present day. The author challenges the conventional notion that the GDR's role in Africa is solely that of a proxy for the USSR. Instead, as he convincingly argues, East German foreign policy in general and in Africa in particular, should be understood as a strategy both in pursuit of affiliation with the USSR and in search of international recognition and legitimacy.
Russia and Germany Reborn
Author: Angela E. Stent
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400822807
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 325
Book Description
The relationship between Russia and Germany has been pivotal in some of the most fateful events of the twentieth century: the two World Wars, the Cold War, and the emergence of a new Europe from the ashes of communism. This is the first book to examine the recent evolution of that tense and often violent relationship from both the Russian and German perspectives. Angela Stent combines interviews with key international figures--including Mikhail Gorbachev--with insights gleaned from newly declassified archives in East Germany and her own profound understanding of Russian-German relations. She presents a remarkable review of the events and trends of the past three decades: the onset of d tente, the unification of Germany, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the rise of an uncertain new European order. Stent reveals the chaos and ambivalence behind the Soviet negotiating strategy that led--against Gorbachev's wishes--to that old Soviet nightmare, a united Germany in NATO. She shows how German strength and Russian weakness have governed the delicate dance of power between recently unified Germany and newly democratized Russia. Finally, she lays out several scenarios for the future of Russian-German relations--some optimistic and others darkened by the threat of a new authoritarianism. Russia and Germany Reborn is crucial reading for anyone interested in a relationship that changed the course of the twentieth century and that will have a powerful impact on the next.
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400822807
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 325
Book Description
The relationship between Russia and Germany has been pivotal in some of the most fateful events of the twentieth century: the two World Wars, the Cold War, and the emergence of a new Europe from the ashes of communism. This is the first book to examine the recent evolution of that tense and often violent relationship from both the Russian and German perspectives. Angela Stent combines interviews with key international figures--including Mikhail Gorbachev--with insights gleaned from newly declassified archives in East Germany and her own profound understanding of Russian-German relations. She presents a remarkable review of the events and trends of the past three decades: the onset of d tente, the unification of Germany, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the rise of an uncertain new European order. Stent reveals the chaos and ambivalence behind the Soviet negotiating strategy that led--against Gorbachev's wishes--to that old Soviet nightmare, a united Germany in NATO. She shows how German strength and Russian weakness have governed the delicate dance of power between recently unified Germany and newly democratized Russia. Finally, she lays out several scenarios for the future of Russian-German relations--some optimistic and others darkened by the threat of a new authoritarianism. Russia and Germany Reborn is crucial reading for anyone interested in a relationship that changed the course of the twentieth century and that will have a powerful impact on the next.
Uprising in East Germany 1953
Author: Christian F. Ostermann
Publisher: Central European University Press
ISBN: 9789639241572
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 496
Book Description
"A detailed introductory essay to provide the necessary historical and political context precedes each part. The individual documents are introduced by short headnotes summarizing the contents and orienting the reader. A chronology, glossary and bibliography offer further background information."--BOOK JACKET.
Publisher: Central European University Press
ISBN: 9789639241572
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 496
Book Description
"A detailed introductory essay to provide the necessary historical and political context precedes each part. The individual documents are introduced by short headnotes summarizing the contents and orienting the reader. A chronology, glossary and bibliography offer further background information."--BOOK JACKET.
Faustian Bargain
Author: Ian Ona Johnson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190675144
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 369
Book Description
Pre-publication subtitle: Soviet-German military cooperation in the interwar period.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190675144
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 369
Book Description
Pre-publication subtitle: Soviet-German military cooperation in the interwar period.
The New Russian Foreign Policy
Author: Michael Mandelbaum
Publisher: Council on Foreign Relations
ISBN: 9780876092132
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 216
Book Description
This book surveys Russia's relations with the world since 1992 and assesses the future prospect for the foreign policy of Europe's largest country. Together these essays offer an authoritative summary and assessment of Russia's relations with its neighbors and with the rest of the world since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Publisher: Council on Foreign Relations
ISBN: 9780876092132
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 216
Book Description
This book surveys Russia's relations with the world since 1992 and assesses the future prospect for the foreign policy of Europe's largest country. Together these essays offer an authoritative summary and assessment of Russia's relations with its neighbors and with the rest of the world since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Nikita Khrushchev and the Creation of a Superpower
Author: Sergei N. Khrushchev
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 9780271021706
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 854
Book Description
A unique account of Cold War history during the Khrushchev era by one who witnessed it firsthand at his father's side.
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 9780271021706
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 854
Book Description
A unique account of Cold War history during the Khrushchev era by one who witnessed it firsthand at his father's side.
Stalin and the Cold War in Europe
Author: Gerhard Wettig
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780742555426
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 300
Book Description
The Cold War was a unique international conflict partly because Josef Stalin sought socialist transformation of other countries rather than simply the traditional objectives. This intriguing book, based on recently accessible Soviet primary sources, is the first to explain the emergence of the Cold War and its development in Stalin's lifetime from the perspective of Soviet policy-making. The book pays particular attention to the often-neglected "societal" dimension of Soviet foreign policy as a crucial element of the genesis and development of the Cold War. It is also the first to put German postwar development into the context of Soviet Cold War policy. Stalin vainly tried to mobilize the Germans with slogans of national unity and then to discredit the West among the Germans by forcing the surrender of Berlin. Further attempts to prevail deadlocked him into a confrontation with the newly united Western powers. Comparing Stalin's internal statements with Soviet actions, Gerhard Wettig draws original conclusions about Stalin's meta-plans for the regions of Germany and Eastern Europe. This fascinating look at Soviet politics during the Cold War provides readers with new insights into Stalin's willingness to initiate crisis with the West while still avoiding military conflict.
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780742555426
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 300
Book Description
The Cold War was a unique international conflict partly because Josef Stalin sought socialist transformation of other countries rather than simply the traditional objectives. This intriguing book, based on recently accessible Soviet primary sources, is the first to explain the emergence of the Cold War and its development in Stalin's lifetime from the perspective of Soviet policy-making. The book pays particular attention to the often-neglected "societal" dimension of Soviet foreign policy as a crucial element of the genesis and development of the Cold War. It is also the first to put German postwar development into the context of Soviet Cold War policy. Stalin vainly tried to mobilize the Germans with slogans of national unity and then to discredit the West among the Germans by forcing the surrender of Berlin. Further attempts to prevail deadlocked him into a confrontation with the newly united Western powers. Comparing Stalin's internal statements with Soviet actions, Gerhard Wettig draws original conclusions about Stalin's meta-plans for the regions of Germany and Eastern Europe. This fascinating look at Soviet politics during the Cold War provides readers with new insights into Stalin's willingness to initiate crisis with the West while still avoiding military conflict.