What was the cold war and what happened during?

I want to know everything you can tell me about the cold war and what went on during the cold war. I also want to know how the war effected the postwar period.|||First off, how do you not know what the cold war is?





The cold war begins with the end of world war two, and the use of two atomic bombs against Japan.





Second, the cold war was a high tension nuclear stand off between the USA %26amp; Soviet Union. Most people never realized how close we came to nuclear annihilation. The most famous incident being the Cuban missle crisis.





The cold war was also halmarked by the crusade against communism. Begining with what is known as the McKarthy era in the 1950's.Noteable incidents being the Korean war %26amp; Vietnam war.





Post cold war period begins with the fall of the Soviet Union, or better said the fall of the Soviet economy in the year 1989. This caused Russia to sell large amounts of high grade fissionable material to what the USA calls in some cases radical states. Also large portions of this high grade fissionable material have been decommisioned and left in poor at best storage facilaties (tin wherehouses with a chain link fence surrounding). Thus the threat of a nuclear conflict is still if not a greater danger to the west today as it was then. I say greater for the fact that our enemies today are not afraid of mutaully assured destruction or "M.A.D.", the principal that kept the Soviets from striking the states. This is a you kill us and we'll kill you so nobody wins kind of thing. Not only is the post cold war era marked with complacency it is scared with poor leaders %26amp; undereducated peoples who fail to understand the repercushions of nuclear conflict on a large or small scale.





Smotyn, your answer is correct except for the Soviet invasion of Afganistan. There were no formal American troops in country at that time. It was small numbers of CIA oppritives helping the Mujahadin(I don't think I spelled that right) over throw the Soviet state. There were no troops because we did not want to instigate a direct war with Russia for this would lead to nuclear conflict.|||It has been said the Cold War started as the Second World War finished, due to the tension between the Soviets and Allies





In 1979 when over 70,000 Russian Troops invaded Afghanistan.





There was already a lot of tension between the Soviet Union and the ALLIED forces due to the separation of Germany. After the 2nd World war Germany and Berlin were split into 4 (France, America, Britain, USSR). France, America and Britain joined together to form West Germany, and the USSR created East Germany. West Germany soon prospered due to America's money, whilst East Germany feel into depression.





In short, people tried to move from East Germany to the West for better living conditions - hence the Berlin Wall - to stop East German citizens from leaving into the West.





Massive outbreaks between the USSR and ALLIES began, continuous arguments and disagreements.





Later, when the USSR marched into Afghanistan to support a similar style political parties struggle... American troops were soon to follow.





The American troops went in to Afghanistan to flush out Russia, as they saw this invasion as an offense as bad as the Second World War. The Cold War situated around this, as USSR army planes flew outside their own zones into ALLIED territory, Nuclear War was a constant threat between the Soviets and Allies.





Finally Gorbachev took control of Russia and helped end the Cold War by calling for economic revival in Russia's suffering economy.