Cold+War

= = The Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States was a half century of military build-up, political maneuvering for international support, and behind-the-scenes military assistance for allies and satellite nations that began in the late 1940s and continued into the early 1990s. Both sides of the conflict wanted to avoid direct military action because of the threat of mutual nuclear destruction. But the period was punctuated by explosive situations that threatened to bring open war, including the Berlin Airlift (1948-1949), the Korean Conflict (1950-1953), the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962), the Vietnam War (1964-1975), and the Afghan Invasion (1979-1989). In December 1989, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and U.S. President George Bush officially ended the Cold War at a summit in Malta, but tensions between the two superpowers lingered for years. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =