Assess the extent to which Khrushchev’s policy of peaceful coexistence eased Cold War tensions.
Level
A Level
Year Examined
2021
Topic
International history, 1945–92
👑Complete Model Essay
Assess the extent to which Khrushchev’s policy of peaceful coexistence eased Cold War tensions.
Khrushchev's Peaceful Coexistence: Easing or Masking Cold War Tensions?
Nikita Khrushchev’s rise to power in the Soviet Union brought about a shift in Cold War dynamics. His policy of ‘peaceful coexistence’, a departure from Stalin’s aggressive stance, aimed to reduce international tension and foster competition with the West through means other than direct military confrontation. While this period witnessed some easing of tensions, notably in cultural exchanges and arms talks, the extent to which Khrushchev’s policy genuinely lessened the underlying Cold War rivalry remains debatable. This essay will examine the complexities of peaceful coexistence, arguing that while it provided a veneer of cooperation, it ultimately failed to dismantle the deep-seated mistrust and ideological conflict at the heart of the Cold War.
Early Signs of a Thaw: De-Stalinization and Dialogue
Khrushchev’s policies initially signaled a potential thaw in the Cold War. His denunciation of Stalin at the 20th Party Congress in 1956, the ‘secret speech’, shocked the communist world and implied a move away from Stalinist repression. This, coupled with Khrushchev's overtures to Tito of Yugoslavia, suggested a more flexible approach to international communism. The Austrian State Treaty (1955) further illustrated this shift, as the Soviet Union agreed to Austria’s neutrality, a compromise unthinkable under Stalin. Furthermore, the initiation of cultural exchanges between the US and USSR, including Khrushchev’s 1959 visit to America, generated cautious optimism. The ‘spirit of Camp David’, as the media dubbed it, seemed to point towards a future of dialogue and reduced hostility.
Underlying Tensions: Ideological Competition and the Arms Race
However, beneath this facade of peaceful coexistence, the fundamental tensions of the Cold War persisted. Both superpowers remained committed to their respective ideologies and spheres of influence. Eisenhower’s “New Look” policy, focusing on nuclear deterrence and covert operations, illustrated that the US remained wary of Soviet intentions. Khrushchev, despite advocating for peaceful coexistence, simultaneously bolstered the Soviet military, forming the Warsaw Pact in 1955 as a counterbalance to NATO. The ‘missile gap’, a period of perceived American inferiority in ballistic missile technology, fueled anxieties in the West, further exacerbated by the Soviet launch of Sputnik in 1957. Khrushchev’s rejection of Eisenhower’s “Open Skies” proposal at the 1955 Geneva Summit demonstrated his reluctance for complete transparency, highlighting the continued atmosphere of suspicion.
Crises and Confrontation: Hungary, Berlin, and the Brink of War
Events in the late 1950s and early 1960s exposed the fragility of peaceful coexistence. The Soviet suppression of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956 starkly revealed the limits of Khrushchev’s tolerance for dissent within the Soviet bloc. The Berlin Crisis of 1958, culminating in Khrushchev’s ultimatum for Western withdrawal from Berlin, brought the superpowers to the brink of conflict. Although Khrushchev eventually backed down, the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, a tangible symbol of Cold War division, underscored the enduring tensions. Additionally, the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, a perilous standoff sparked by the Soviet placement of nuclear missiles in Cuba, brought the world closer to nuclear war than ever before. While the crisis was ultimately averted through negotiation, it demonstrated the potentially catastrophic consequences of Cold War mistrust and miscalculation.
Conclusion: A Limited Thaw
In conclusion, Khrushchev’s policy of peaceful coexistence, while offering a glimmer of hope, ultimately failed to significantly ease Cold War tensions. It did succeed in opening up channels for dialogue and cultural exchange, providing a framework for managing competition without resorting to direct military conflict. However, this period also witnessed some of the most dangerous confrontations of the entire Cold War, revealing the inherent instability of a world divided by ideology and nuclear weapons. While Khrushchev’s approach marked a departure from Stalinist aggression, it fell short of genuine détente. The underlying tensions and mistrust that characterized the Cold War remained largely intact, ensuring that the rivalry between the superpowers continued to shape the international landscape for decades to come.
Bibliography
⭐Gaddis, John Lewis. *The Cold War: A New History*. Penguin Books, 2006.
⭐Holloway, David. *The Soviet Union and the Arms Race*. Yale University Press, 1984.
⭐Service, Robert. *Khrushchev: A Political Life*. Harvard University Press, 2009.
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Introduction
This essay will assess the extent to which Khrushchev’s policy of peaceful coexistence eased Cold War tensions. It will analyse Khrushchev’s attempts at détente alongside the events that suggest his policy ultimately failed.
Khrushchev’s Peaceful Coexistence
Khrushchev’s adoption of the policy of peaceful coexistence with the West, alongside his de-Stalinisation policy, signalled a thaw in the Cold War.
⭐Negotiated the end of the post-war occupation of Austria.
⭐Declared that there are ‘different roads to communism’.
⭐Called for a reduction in defence expenditures and reduced the size of the Soviet armed forces.
⭐The 'secret speech' denouncing Stalin in 1956 seemed to signal a relaxation of Cold War tensions.
The Rise of Suspicion
Despite initial optimism, the policy of peaceful coexistence failed to prevent further Cold War tensions.
⭐The US remained suspicious of Khrushchev’s intentions, especially after the Soviet invasion of Hungary in 1956.
⭐The launch of Sputnik 1 and the development of intercontinental ballistic missiles contributed to US fears of a missile gap and intensified the space race.
⭐Khrushchev’s rejection of Eisenhower’s ‘Open Skies’ proposal exacerbated tensions.
The Berlin Crisis and the Cuban Missile Crisis
The Berlin crisis and the Cuban missile crisis were major turning points in the Cold War.
⭐Khrushchev’s ultimatums over West Berlin in 1958 and the subsequent construction of the Berlin Wall highlighted the ongoing tensions.
⭐The Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 brought the world to the brink of nuclear war, demonstrating the inherent dangers of peaceful coexistence.
The Limited Success of Peaceful Coexistence
Despite its failures, Khrushchev's policy of peaceful coexistence did achieve some limited success.
⭐The establishment of a hotline between Moscow and the White House.
⭐The signing of the Limited Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty in 1963.
Conclusion
Khrushchev’s policy of peaceful coexistence had a mixed impact on Cold War tensions. While it initially showed promise, events like the Berlin Crisis and the Cuban Missile Crisis ultimately demonstrated that the policy failed to prevent significant tensions. Peaceful coexistence was a step in the right direction, but it did not offer a lasting solution to the ongoing ideological conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States.
Extracts from Mark Schemes
Assess the extent to which Khrushchev’s policy of peaceful coexistence eased Cold War tensions.
Khrushchev’s adoption of the policy of peaceful coexistence with the West, alongside his de-Stalinisation policy, signalled a thaw in the Cold War. In 1955 he agreed to negotiate an end to the post-war occupation of Austria and allow a neutral country to be created. In the same year, he told Tito, the Yugoslav leader, that ‘there are different roads to communism’. He also called for a reduction in defence expenditures and reduced the size of the Soviet armed forces. On 24 February 1956, at the Communist Party’s Twentieth Congress, Khrushchev made a speech denouncing Stalin. It became known as the ‘secret speech’ as it was read in a closed discussion but the US State Department soon obtained a copy. It seemed as if there would be a relaxation of Cold War tensions.
In the late 1950s, the United States and the Soviet Union initiated a cultural exchange programme and, in 1959, Nikita Khrushchev visited the United States briefly meeting Eisenhower at Camp David. Predictions of improved future relations were reported which praised ‘the spirit of Camp David’ showing both superpowers were willing to enter into dialogue. It seemed that Khrushchev never intended peaceful coexistence to end competition between the two superpowers, merely that it would be peaceful competition. Both sides remained suspicious of each other’s ideological stance. Eisenhower’s 'New Course’ foreign policy included the use of greater nuclear weapons, a policy of massive retaliation, and brinkmanship. In 1955 Khrushchev set up the Warsaw Pact, and its members had plans of how to wage nuclear war against NATO. Khrushchev also rejected Eisenhower’s ‘Open Skies’ proposal at the Geneva Summit in 1955, which proposed that United States and the Soviet Union exchange maps indicating the exact location of every military installation in their respective nations.
In addition, the United States was suspicious of Khrushchev’s intentions, especially after he sent troops into Hungary in 1956 to crush the revolts there. In 1957, the Soviets launched their first intercontinental ballistic missile which created US fears of a missile gap between the Soviet Union and the United States and began the space race with the launch of Sputnik 1, the first satellite. The problem of Berlin caused tension too; in November 1958, Khrushchev announced that unless the West removed its forces from West Berlin within six months, he would allow the East Germans to control the access routes. The West stood firm, and Khrushchev eventually backed down but West Berlin remained an area of tension. A summit meeting in Paris in 1960 was stopped by the shooting down of a U2 spy plane over Moscow and in 1961 Khrushchev ordered the building of the Berlin Wall after Kennedy’s ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’ speech.
Moscow also took every opportunity to promote its interests in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In January 1961, Khrushchev declared at an informal summit meeting in Vienna that Moscow would provide active support to national liberation movements throughout the world. The Cuban Crisis of 1962 saw the two sides on the brink of nuclear war. The crisis ended when Khrushchev agreed to remove Russian missiles from Cuba in exchange for a promise from the United States to respect Cuba’s territorial sovereignty. It also led to a hot line being established between the Kremlin and the White House, and the Limited Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty was signed in Moscow on 5 August 1963, by the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom.