Discover published sets by community

1948-1949: The first major international crisis of the Cold War, where the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, road, and canal access to the sectors of Berlin under Western control.

1950-1953: A conflict between North Korea, with the support of China and the Soviet Union, and South Korea, with the support of the United Nations, particularly the US.

1956: Egypt nationalizes the Suez Canal, previously controlled by British and French interests, leading to a failed intervention by Britain, France, and Israel.

1956: A nationwide revolution against the Hungarian People's Republic and its Soviet-imposed policies, eventually crushed by the Soviet army.

May 1, 1960: A United States U-2 spy plane was shot down by the Soviet Union, leading to heightened tensions and the cancellation of a summit meeting between the US and the USSR.

1961: A crisis where the USSR demanded the withdrawal of US armed forces from Berlin, culminating in the erection of the Berlin Wall.

October 1962: A 13-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union over Soviet ballistic missiles deployed in Cuba, the closest the Cold War came to escalating into a full-scale nuclear war.

1968: A period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II.

1969: A series of military clashes between Soviet and Chinese forces at the border, part of the larger Sino-Soviet split.

December 24, 1979 - February 15, 1989: The Soviet Union invades Afghanistan to support the communist government against insurgent groups.

Established on August 14, 1980: A Polish labor union that was the first non-Communist Party-controlled trade union in a Warsaw Pact country, significant for its role in the fall of communism.

November 2-11, 1983: A ten-day NATO command post exercise that the Soviets might have mistaken for an actual operation, nearly leading to a nuclear conflict.

October 25–December 15, 1983: A US-led invasion of Grenada, following a coup and fears of a pro-Soviet shift.

Revealed in November 1986: A political scandal in the United States that occurred during the second term of the Reagan Administration, involving the sale of arms to Iran and the diversion of proceeds to Contra rebels in Nicaragua.

November 9, 1989: The physical barrier separating West Berlin from East Berlin and the rest of East Germany was opened, leading to the eventual reunification of Germany.

June 4, 1989: Chinese troops opened fire on their own citizens during a pro-democracy protest in Beijing, an event with global Cold War implications.

August 19–21, 1991: A failed coup d'état attempt by members of the Soviet Union's government that aimed to take control from Mikhail Gorbachev.

Announced on March 23, 1983: A proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic strategic nuclear weapons, also known as 'Star Wars'.

November 1, 1955 - April 30, 1975: A long, costly armed conflict that pitted the communist regime of North Vietnam and its southern allies against South Vietnam and its principal ally, the United States.

November 17–December 29, 1989: A non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, marking the end of communism in the country.

December 13, 1981 – July 22, 1983: Imposed by the People's Republic of Poland's government to crush political opposition, particularly the Solidarity movement.

1957-1975: The competition between the Soviet Union and the United States to achieve firsts in spaceflight capability, highlighting Cold War tensions and technological advances.

October 6–25, 1973: A war fought by a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria against Israel, with both the US and the USSR supporting their respective allies.

April 17–20, 1961: An unsuccessful invasion of Cuba by Cuban exiles, supported by the U.S. government.