Late 20thc Foreign Affairs

OPEC & the Oil Embargo Produced a shortage of gas Long lines at the gas pumps Gas prices remain high after embargo is lifted in Spring 1974 Arab Cartel (OPEC) cuts oil sales to Israel’s allies, including the United States U.S. dependent on imports for 1/3 of their energy Oil prices skyrocket to 400% in a single year 1973 Arab/Israeli War

Iran Hostage Crisis, 1979 Iranian Revolution deposes the Shah of Iran Fundamentalist Islamic cleric, Ayatollah Khomeini comes to power U.S. allows the Shah to enter the country to be treated for cancer Anti-American Sentiment and resentment grows in Iran Iranians seize 66 American hostages & holds 42 of them for 444 days

Iran Contra Affair,  Secret arrangement in the 1980s to provide funds to the Nicaraguan Contra rebels to oust the socialist Sandinista gov’t in Nicaragua  Funds came from profits gained by selling arms to Iran.  The Iran-Contra Affair was the product of two separate initiatives during the administration of President Ronald Reagan.

Police Actions Grenada: Containment of Communism October 25, 1983 Grenadian Prime Minister is overthrown by leftist rebels with the help of Cuba Pres. Reagan sends in troops to:  Keep the island nation from becoming a Communist outpost  Protect the lives of American medical students  Most Americans approved of this action Panama: War on Drugs December 20, 1989-Jan. 31, 1990  Pres. George H.W. Bush sends 12,000 troops to invade Panama to arrest Panama’s dictator, Manuel Noriega  Noriega brought to the U.S. for trial & convicted of several charges of drug trafficking  Sentenced to 40 years in prison

The Fall of Communism Glasnost & Perestroika Mikhail Gorbachev becomes President of the Soviet Union 1985 Glasnost =Russian for “a new opening” Perestroika =Russian for “reform” or “rebuilding”

The Soviet Union breaks apart Communist governments in Europe fall apart Reagan calls for the Fall of the Berlin Wall Food Shortages Low Production Economic Recession War w/Afghanistan drains Soviet resources Gorbachev implements reforms (perestroika) that move USSR away from a state-controlled (socialist) economy Lack of funds means the USSR can’t compete militarily with the United States Gorbachev uses glasnost (a new openness) to engage in talks with Pres. Reagan regarding reform Fall of Communism

Fall of the Berlin Wall November 9, 1989 Glasnost and perestroika The fall of East Germany’s Communist government earlier in the year The fall of Communism throughout Europe

The Persian Gulf War August 2, 1990-February 28, 1991 Dictator, Saddam Hussein Wants Kuwait’s rich oil deposits Iraq invades Kuwait George H.W. Bush Builds international coalition backed by the United Nations Demands that Iraqi troops withdraw Operation Desert Storm Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf & Gen. Colin Powell execute 5 wks of devastating aerial assaults on Iraqi forces Feb. 23, 1991-Coalition forces storm Kuwait & Iraqis surrender Iraqi troops set fire to Kuwaits oil fields as they retreat

The Bosnian War March 1,1992-December 14, 1995 Yugoslavia breaks up into 6 major republics Ethnic & Religious rivalries between Eastern Orthodox Serbs, Catholic Croats, & Bosnian Muslims break into Civil War U.N. intervenes with humanitarian aid, yet atrocities continue Serbs begin attacking Croats & Bosnian & engage state sanctioned murder, violence, & rape known as ethnic cleansing Pres. Bill Clinton urges NATO to bomb Serbian strongholds. 1998, Serbs attack Kosovo. NATO forces Serbs to withdraw 1995-Dayton Accords establish a federated, multinational Bosnia

9-11 & the War on Terror Sept. 11,  Terrorists associated with Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda & the Taliban hijack 4 passenger airplanes  Two planes crash into the World Trade Center  One plane crashes into the Pentagon  A final plane, on course for the White House, is taken down in a Pennsylvania field when the passengers rush the hijackers in the cockpit.

Effects of 9-11 and America’s War on Terror War on Terror Patriot Act passed, giving law enforcement broader powers to monitor suspected terrorists Invasion of Iraq looking for Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs ) Dept. of Homeland Security created Invasion of Afghanistan

Captured & Executed Saddam Hussein December 30, 2006 Osama bin Laden May 2, 2011