Quiz 25: Reunion: European Unification and the End of the Cold War, 1973-1999

What happened at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, and why was this significant? A) Palestinian terrorists killed Israeli athletes in an event that symbolized the Season of discontent of the 1970s. B) The games were canceled, signifying the resurgence of Communism in the 1970s and the most strained relations between East and West in decades. C) The collaboration of different nationalities and ethnicities took center stage, Indicating Germany's full return to the company of civilized nations. D) The Red Army Faction and Red Brigades of West Germany and Italy made a Public appearance, suggesting the prosperity of the 1970s. E) Greece participated in the games for the first time in decades, demonstrating the restoration of democracy and sense of stability in the country.

What prompted the oil embargo in 1973? A) European gasoline rationing B) the collapse of the Bretton Woods systems C) the stock market crash of 1973-1974 D) U.S.military support for Israel E) ethnic cleansing of Muslims in the Balkans

What was a result of the 1973 oil embargo? A) Israel declared war on Syria and Egypt. B) The Western world fell into recession. C) Greece was taken over by a military coup of conservative generals. D) The British government undertook a massive public housing initiative. E) Monarchist governments fell throughout the Middle East.

How did demographic changes undermine the European welfare states in the 1970s? A) A rise in immigration resulted in resentment toward people who were seen as unfairly benefiting from governments services. B) Declining birthrates created an imbalance between people paying into the system and those drawing benefits. C) A baby boom resulted in overcrowded schools and overwhelmed national healthcare providers. D) Delayed retirement by union members until very late in life prevented young people from being able to find jobs. E) Large numbers of working mothers created the need for expensive daycare and preschool programs.

How did unions exacerbate the recession in Britain in the 1970s? A) Insistence on cutting obsolete jobs worsened unemployment. B) High dues decreased workers' discretionary income. C) Demands for higher wages worsened inflation. D) Refusal to adopt modern techniques lowered productivity. E) Bartering networks decreased consumer spending.

Which European nation held onto its major colonial possessions in Africa into the 1970s, only to then find itself deeply involved in costly conflicts with insurgents in Angola and Mozambique? A) Britain B) France C) Spain D) Portugal E) Greece

In Spain, what type of government followed the death of Francisco Franco and an attempted coup? A) a federation of semi-autonomous regions B) an authoritarian oligarchy led by generals loyal to Franco C) a Communist regime D) a monarchy dedicated to upholding Franco's ultraconservative policies E) a stable democracy with a ceremonial monarchy

What did neoliberalism advocate? A) government ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange B) liberal policies pertaining to minority rights and immigration reform C) a renewal of post-war social welfare programs D) liberation from traditional gender-role constraints E) efforts that suggested a return to the laissez-faire policies of the previous Century

Which of the following describes an action taken by the Thatcher government in Britain? A) It raised the income tax rates for the nation's top earners and ended the poll tax. B) It prevented residents from owning public housing units, arguing that the government would take better care of them. C) It created a state-run aerospace and telecommunications program. D) It deregulated Britain's financial markets and opened them up to world competition. E) It worked closely with union workers in developing policies and strengthened The British labor movement.

What doubled Margaret Thatcher's approval rating? A) the British defeat of Argentina in the Falkland Islands B) the funding of poll taxes for local governments C) her agreeing to make concessions to striking miners D) her raising of income tax rates E) her fight to promote the welfare state

What development lowered support for Communism throughout southern and western Europe in the 1970s? A) widespread inflation B) the shrinking of the traditional working class in the transition to the post-industrial economy C) Eurocommunist reconciliation with the Catholic Church D) renewed affiliation with the Soviet Union E) a schism between French and Italian intellectuals

What did French President Mitterrand describe as a "parenthesis in the history of socialism"? A) the nationalization of large banks B) government-funded construction projects C) the internment of Marie Curie in the Parthenon D) his shift toward lower taxes and support for private businesses E) the publication of The Gulag Archipelago

Where did many important cultural developments in Europe in the 1970s originate? A) the European Union B) Chernobyl C) the fall of the Berlin Wall D) small farms E) ethnic neighborhoods of large cities

What was a primary aim of the feminist movement in Europe in the 1970s? A) the right to vote B) equal pay for equal work C) legalization of abortion D) legalization of gay marriage E) securing inheritance rights

Which of the following statements about homosexuality during the 1973-2000 period is accurate? A) By 2000, most of Europe had seen the elimination of laws against homosexual Behavior. B) On the whole, homosexuals experienced far more intolerance than in previous Periods in history. C) By 2000, same-sex marriage had been accepted in Europe. D) Homosexuals were more likely to hide their sexuality than ever before. E) France was the least accepting European country of homosexuality, due to Increasing censorship.

Which U.S.President initiated détente with Communist China and the Soviet Union? A) Jimmy Carter B) Ronald Reagan C) Dwight Eisenhower D) Bill Clinton E) Richard Nixon

Which of the following statements describes an action taken by U.S.president Ronald Reagan? A) He reinstated draft registration. B) He boycotted the Olympic games in Moscow. C) He decreased the U.S.defense budget. D) He denounced the Soviet Union as an "evil empire." E) He cut aid to Afghan insurgents.

What development revived the peace movement in Europe in the 1980s? A) the election of the Labour government in Britain B) the rise of Boris Yeltsin C) the hostage crisis at the Munich Olympic games D) the escalation of tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union E) Argentina's seizure of the Falkland Islands

Which of the following accurately defines the groups known as dissident movements that were revived during the 1970s and 1980s? A) political groups in Western European countries that called for Communist policies in the wake of more peaceful relations with the Soviet Union B) groups of artists, scientists, politicians, and thinkers who spoke in opposition to the policies and ideology of their Communist governments in the Eastern bloc C) powerful trade unions in Great Britain that made it harder for nationalized industries to cut jobs or reduce worker benefits D) protesters who denounced Jewish emigration to Israel, persecuted Russian Jews, and supported the efforts of the secret police E) groups in Germany who protested environmentalist efforts to bring about nuclear disarmament

What was the significance of the Helsinki Accords? A) They constituted a propaganda victory for the Soviet Union. B) They indicated Soviet support for reunification of East and West Germany. C) They marked Soviet willingness to give up wartime annexations. D) They provided a foundation for dissident criticism of human rights abuses. E) They exacerbated tensions between the United States and Soviet Union.

What approach did Solidarity take prior to glasnost? A) It called for free elections. B) It carved out a civil society in the middle of a Soviet satellite state. C) It denounced the Catholic Church. D) It successfully challenged the Soviet Union to invade Poland. E) It confronted powerful trade unions.

Which of the following accurately describes the accomplishments of European Communist countries in the 1980s? A) Their consumer goods were far cheaper than consumer goods in Western European countries. B) They created and enforced strong environmental protections that eliminated pollution and other ecological disasters. C) They had prevented the industrialization and urbanization of society, maintaining an agricultural society overall. D) They had put into effect post-industrial shifts to a service and consumer economy that matched those in the West. E) They guaranteed employment and services such as healthcare, child care, and education to virtually all citizens.

What was Gorbachev's general goal upon taking office? A) making the Soviet Union competitive with the West B) creating a true democracy out of a one-party system C) aligning the Soviet Union with human rights promises made in the Helsinki Accords D) establishing a "third way" between Communism and socialism E) decreasing the size of the Soviet Union by encouraging independence movements

What was the political significance of the Chernobyl disaster? A) Those in charge of the plant were executed in what constituted the first mass execution since the Stalinist era. B) Gorbachev reached out to the United States for help, marking an easing of tensions. C) The determination that an Afghani terrorist caused the disaster renewed Soviet commitment to the war in Afghanistan. D) The determination that drunken workers caused the disaster led Gorbachev to begin a campaign against alcoholism. E) Gorbachev realized there was a need for more radical political change than he had originally planned.

Which was one of the glasnost reforms? A) the privatization of major industries B) the suspension of the Communist Party C) the granting of independence to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania D) an easing of the persecution of dissidents E) the order to destroy the Berlin Wall

Why did a Polish intellectual insist that the end of Communism in Poland was not a revolution? A) The government retained Communist leaders rebranded with new party affiliations. B) The change had required years of incremental political progress. C) The governing party had changed but not the economic system. D) The change had been imposed by Soviet Union rather than arising from within. E) Revolutions are bloody, and Poland's transition was peaceful.

What form did the removal of the Berlin Wall take? A) East German citizens spontaneously destroyed it with hammers and chisels. B) Soviet officials supervised the phased removal of it. C) A bomb planted by East German dissidents destroyed it. D) The government bulldozed it as part of ceremony celebrating reunification. E) It was destroyed by flooding and never rebuilt.

How did Communism collapse in Czechoslovakia? A) Lech Walesa's Solidarity won a majority of seats in a free election. B) Playwright Václav Havel led the nonviolent Velvet Revolution. C) The government in power adopted a Bill of Rights and moved toward a free-market economy. D) The New Forum opposition group forced party leaders out of office. E) Communist leader Nicolae Ceaușescu was put on trial and executed.

What direction did Eastern bloc nations take following the collapse of Communism? A) the adoption of free markets with state ownership of industry B) the incorporation of Communist officials into new coalition governments seeking a "third way" C) a free-market economy combined with high taxes to fund social welfare programs D) a full embrace of Western democracy and free-market economies E) a command economy founded on the premise that stability was more important than prosperity

Why did West Germany push through reunification with East Germany so quickly? A) a desire to gain East Germany's industrial resources B) fear that Soviets would intercede C) fear that Western nations would block the move D) awareness that majority of voters did not back the measure E) desire to avoid social disruption that might be caused by delay

Which republics of the USSR were affected by nationalist unrest in the late 1980s and early 1990s? A) All the republics of the USSR were affected. B) Only republics with a significant Muslim population were affected. C) Only republics annexed during World War II were affected. D) Only the Balkan states and Ukraine were affected. E) Only publics with large Catholic populations were affected.

Which of the following statements accurately describes the support for independence movements in the USSR immediately prior to actual independence? A) A Union-wide referendum showed over 70 percent of the population was in favor of independence. B) Leaders of dominant ethnic groups in the non-Russian republics backed independence, often in opposition to a large percentage of residents. C) Residents of Muslim republics strongly supported independence, while those in Christian republics opposed it. D) Ethnic minorities threw support behind independence movements spearheaded by Communist officials. E) Virtually all officials within Republics opposed independence out of fear of losing the backing of Moscow.

Which pre-Soviet national identity was revived and became particularly popular during the period of glasnost? A) tsarist Russian B) Ukranian C) Latvian D) Armenian E) Lithuanian

Who led the 1991 coup against Gorbachev? A) conservative Communist Party members B) Russian nationalists C) Boris Yeltsin D) military generals E) KGB officers

How did the 1991 coup lead to the dissolution of the USSR? A) Coup leaders were strong proponents of national self-determination. B) The United States provided military aid to support Gorbachev on the condition that he promise to dissolve the Soviet Union. C) Both the coup and its failure indicated that the central government had grown weak and uninfluential. D) The coup proved that Gorbachev was a weak leader with little popular support. E) United Nations forces restored order and insisted on an independence referendum throughout the Soviet Union.

What did Francis Fukuyama describe as "the end of history"? A) threatened mutual destruction during the Cold War B) the modernization of Africa and the Middle East C) the Communist rewriting of history books during the glasnost period D) the creation of the European Union (EU) E) the resolution of conflicts over forms of government and organization of Societies

What caused tensions in Yugoslavia in the 1980s? A) a government break with Moscow's economic and political policies B) the threat of civil war between majority Slovenes and minority Croats C) terrorist attacks by radical Muslim jihadists D) resentments and distrust among the nation's seven principal ethnic groups E) a strict separation of ethnic groups into self-contained enclaves

What role did Slobodan Milošević have in the dissolution of Yugoslavia? A) His push for free-market reforms resulted in civil war. B) His aggressive pro-Serbian actions pushed other states to declare independence. C) His goading of Christian Serbs led to a backlash against Yugoslav Muslims. D) His vocal support for intermarriage among ethnic groups created panic among nationalist militias. E) As president of Slovenia, he declared that region independent, prompting other regions to do the same.

Why was there so much more death and violence in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo than in other Yugoslav regions that declared independence? A) Independence movements in these regions were well funded and heavily armed. B) Soviet backing of Bosnian and Kosovan forces escalated the conflicts. C) Anti-Muslim sentiments pushed Serbian soldiers to behave more desperately and violently. D) Women and children were used by Bosnian and Kosovan forces as human shields. E) These were the first regions to declare independence, and thus they were responded to most harshly.

What ended the conflict in Kosovo? A) US and NATO bombing campaign against Serbia B) arrest and execution of Milošević C) the surrender of the Kosovan army D) a Soviet bombing of the Kosovo marketplace E) efforts by church leaders to broker peace

What "fault line" does the text identify as being important in many of the conflicts that followed the collapse of Communism? A) Catholic-Protestant B) East-West C) Christianity-Islam D) Europe-Asia E) elite-masses

Why did Yeltsin take military action to stop Chechnya from seceding? A) to retaliate for terrorist attacks carried out in Moscow B) to stop the Russian Federation from dissolving as the Soviet Union had C) to ensure continued access to Chechnya's grain and barley D) to meet the requirements for European Union membership E) to maintain control of Grozny's ports and train stations

What was a consequence of the economic globalization that took place in Europe in the 1990s? A) an Irish economic crash B) a decline in immigration C) a decline in international bank spending D) the reindustrialization of inner cities E) company relocations and labor disruptions

What approach did most Western European politicians take to immigration in the 1990s? A) They welcomed only immigrants from non-European countries. B) They proposed a pay-for-citizenship model, ensuring that only the wealthy would immigrate. C) They offered incentives to all immigrants in order to boost population growth. D) They imposed new regulations on immigration to address voter unease. E) They focused on integrating immigrants into the larger national populations.

What was the main aim of the European Union? A) control immigration between European nations B) ensure that Communism would not resurface C) create an open market and open borders D) meet U.S.treaty demands E) maintain cultures of European ethnic groups

According to the textbook, why did some people criticize the European Union? A) the creation of tensions between France and Germany B) the refusal to allow formerly neutral countries membership C) the imposition of strict laws regarding alcohol consumption D) an increase in bureaucratic oversight and red tape E) its attempt to force uncompetitive farmers out of business

Which of the following statements accurately describes rail networks in Europe by 2000? A) They were the targets of frequent terrorist attacks. B) They were high-speed connectors of cities within and between EU member states. C) They became an efficient network for transporting freight, rarely used for personal travel. D) They were a crumbling symbol of a previous era's transportation boom E) Their maintenance was a great burden on the EU economy, resulting in the eventual discontinuation of many railroads.

Which former Eastern bloc country faced the greatest challenges in transitioning to capitalism? A) East Germany B) Estonia C) Romania D) Poland E) Ukraine

What was a result of privatization in Russia? A) The oil industry fell into disarray. B) A famine took hundreds of thousands of lives. C) The economy grew by over 40 percent. D) A small number of so-called oligarchs became very wealthy. E) The first Chechen War broke out.

What demographic change took place in Russia following the end of Communism? A) Death rates from infectious disease dropped. B) Birthrates soared. C) Immigrant populations doubled. D) Divorce rates declined. E) Life expectancy declined.

The conservative regime that took over Greece in 1967 banned the academic field of sociology.

By the 1970s, rates of crime and unemployment within public housing units were much lower than in surrounding neighborhoods.

In France, many voters who turned away from Communism embraced extreme right parties.

There was a settled, institutional quality to much of the arts in Europe in the years between 1970 and 2000.

Soviet diversion of rivers for agricultural irrigation caused the Aral Sea to dry up.

Historians agree that the actions of Ronald Reagan were the most important factor in the eventual collapse of the Soviet Union.

Gorbachev's continued public support for the "Brezhnev doctrine" emboldened independence movements in the Eastern bloc nations.

The transition to democracy was particularly challenging in Russia since Communism had first developed there, rather than being imposed by an outside force (as in the Eastern bloc countries).

The USSR had encouraged citizens to adopt nationalist identities during the years of the Cold War.

International intervention swiftly and effectively controlled the violence that arose after the dissolution of Yugoslavia.

The conflict between Russia and Chechnya drew international Muslim support for the Chechens.

The development of the World Wide Web is widely credited with pushing the Soviet Union to collapse.

The Channel Tunnel, which was built to connect Britain and Ireland, contributed to Ireland's economic boom in the 1990s.

By the year 2000, all the former Soviet satellite nations had established functioning democracies with free elections.

Most Europeans entered the new millennium with a great sense of hope, with the ideological commitments and utopian visions from between the French Revolution and World War II reinvigorated.

Why does the text describe the 1970s as a "season of discontent"? Identify and briefly describe three events and/or economic developments that contributed to this sense of instability.

How did Margaret Thatcher's economic policies differ from those of the post-war boom years? Give at least three examples.How were they received? On what larger movement did she draw?

Describe the cultural developments of the late twentieth century and how attitudes toward gender and sexuality changed.

Which developments lowered support for Communism and encouraged the growth of strong dissident movements in Eastern Europe in the 1970s and 1980s?

What were Mikhail Gorbachev's aims upon taking control of the Soviet Union, and why did his approach change? How were his reform movements and actions influential in the collapse of Communism in the Eastern bloc countries?

What role did nationalism play in the Soviet Union? What role did nationalism play in its dissolution?

How did the breakup of the USSR unfold in 1991? What were the key events? What did it become, and what was the nature of the transition?

What divisions led to the fragmentation of Yugoslavia? In which regions did conflicts turn most violent, and why?

How did economic globalization affect European states from the 1980s onward? Identify at least two benefits and two challenges that resulted.

What challenges did former Eastern bloc states face in transitioning to capitalist economies? What different approaches were tried? What factors made the challenges greatest in the former Soviet Union?