Notes on some episodes of CNN International Cold War Documentary

Last updated on 28th December 2014

The episode, Cold War 12 out of 24: MAD Nuclear warfare threat (1960 - 1972), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEqaBdX6LiY, 46 min. 42 secs, shook me up. Of course I knew about how nukes could devastate cities but I did not know that way back in the 60s itself, the nukes had become some orders of magnitude more powerful than the ones used to destroy Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And the two superpowers were actively considering that the other may launch a nuclear attack! I felt it appropriate to transcribe some portions of this video about how powerful nuclear weapons had become even around fifty years back, and how tense both the superpowers were about this nuclear war possibility, and have provided it as a comment in the youtube link above (Specific comment link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEqaBdX6LiY&google_comment_id=z13qutgqjl2pzb2g004ci1bpmnbgipprpxs0k).

If I recall correctly, the then (60s) Russian ambassador to the USA says in the video, both the governments of the USA and the USSR should be credited with acting wisely (eventually) to bring down/reduce the danger of nuclear war. Based on what I saw in these Cold War documentary videos and little additional reading I tend to agree.

Later generations of people in the world (including my generation and me) owe a debt of gratitude to leaders like US Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon  and USSR premiers/leaders like Nikita Khruschev, Alexei Kosygin and Leonid Brezhnev, to have somehow held back their enmity and distrust of each other's countries & governments, and pulled back from a path to nuclear war. These later generations (I must mention again, including my generation and me) were able to enjoy the fruits of the peace that came from these efforts, in most parts of the world, and lead quite happy lives as compared to the lives of people living under the real threat of a nuclear war in the sixties.

This is not part of the CNN International documentary series but is quite related: 24 Hours After Hiroshima. Full Documentary., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8QY5gt1weE.

The horror of the 1945 atomic bomb 'Little Boy' that destroyed a large part of Hiroshima and caused massive human suffering is shown in this video which includes survivor interviews. Towards the end of the video we have a short clip showing the number of nuclear explosion tests (including the two bombs, not tests, at Hiroshima & Nagasaki, I guess) conducted by the nuclear powers from 1945-1998.

Cold War 15 out of 24 China (1949–1972), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXIB7R_t1ZU

Delightful joke by then (1972) US president Nixon while on visit to China. Around 45:25 Nixon is shown a pair of ear stoppers used by the Emperor (from China's golden age) to keep from hearing criticism. US president Nixon says, "Give me a pair of (those)"! :-)

More seriously, I think that is reflective of one of the key differences between communism and democracy, which is that democracy provides citizens a right to quite freely criticize the government whereas communism, at least in the forms created & maintained by Stalin & Mao, I believe, did not (does not).

Cold War 19 out of 24: Freeze (1977 - 1981), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7qFJQPjqPw

Around 27:50 former USA president Jimmy Carter says, while reminiscing about a Vienna meeting in June 1979 to sign the SALT-II treaty, between him & his team and former USSR president Leonid Brezhnev & team, "When I proposed that we make these changes in nuclear weaponry he (Brezhnev) said, 'God will never forgive us if we don't succeed.' Coming from a leader of an atheistic, communist country, this surprised everyone. I think the most surprised person at the table was Gromyko who looked up at the sky like this (raising his hands with outstretched palms) and did his hands in a peculiar way as though this was a shocking thing for Brezhnev to say."

Ravi: I find it utterly fascinating that the Soviet leader Brezhnev referred to God in this super-powers meeting. So even before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, belief in God was making inroads in Russia. Today, in post-Soviet Russia, one gets the impression that faith in God has made a powerful comeback. Wonderful turn of events, IMHO.

Cold War 22 out of 24: Star Wars (1981 - 1988), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5oHQzjIn78

Reagan 'Star Wars' initiative; Reagan-Gorbachev arms control meetings - fascinating video.

In its initial part it shows how the initial efforts of the Reagan administration, especially its Strategic defense initiative (Star Wars), resulted in re-escalation of nuclear warfare and arms race tension between USA and USSR. Reagan's strong words against the Soviets added to the deepening tension.

After the Korean civilian airliner (in Sept. 1983) which entered (by error, it seems) Soviet Union airspace, was shot down by the Soviet Union the tension became even higher. Soviet Union feared a nuclear attack from the West!!!

The meeting (in Dec.1984) between British PM Margaret Thatcher and rising Soviet leader, but not yet the top leader, Mikhail Gorbachev seems to have broken the ice. Thatcher said that they (she) were cautiously optimistic and that she liked Gorbachev and (believed) that she (UK and the West in general, I guess) could do business with Gorbachev.

Gorbachev became the top leader of the Soviet Union in 1985. To fix the ailing economy and social problems he brought in perestroika (reconstruction) and glasnost (increased openness and transparency) in the Soviet Union. Better relations between East (bloc) and West (bloc) would free up some of the gigantic amount of money being spent on arms in the Soviet Union. The 74 year old Reagan and the 54 year old Gorbachev met at the Geneva summit in Nov. 1985 to explore ways to reduce the arms buildup. Reagan showed that even at 74 years of age, for the summit needs, he was able to physically and mentally match Gorbachev! One must appreciate the physical fitness of the former US president Ronald Reagan! The US Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) was the main stumbling block which did not allow for any arms reduction agreement at this meeting. But at least they were talking (and smiling).

In April 1986 the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster occurred (in Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union). [Ravi: BTW I was living in Brussels, Belgium, then and recall the fears among the public of radiation damage going beyond Ukraine into Western Europe but that did not happen (at least not at any significant level which would have got highlighted in the media). But there was a lot of confusion as people did not know what exactly had happened. This is in marked contrast to the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster where international media was on top of the story pretty quickly, and the Japanese govt. gave quite decent info. about the disaster so that interested people around the world, with the help of nuclear experts on TV media panels, got some reasonable idea of the damage.] Gorbachev (and Soviet Union as a whole, I guess) got the experience of the massive damage that a civilian nuclear disaster itself (as against a deliberate nuclear bomb) can cause in a civilian area (as against a nuclear bomb test site).

Reagan and Gorbachev meet again in Reykjavik, Iceland in Oct. 1986. Gorbachev stunned Reagan with offering to go for the zero option (which Reagan had proposed in earlier talks). Reagan was ready to jump at the offer (only 100 nuclear weapons for each super-power with all others being destroyed). But Gorbachev wanted Reagan to confine SDI to the laboratory. That was unacceptable to Reagan! So the talks ended without any agreement. But Gorbachev said that an "intellectual breakthrough" had been achieved.

Media and the computer were opening up the Soviet Union. The 1986 Olympics was seen live by both nations (USA and USSR). Soviet TV was changing. In March 1987 it featured a live debate with Margaret Thatcher!

A Russian (I guess) says of Gorbachev's reforms, "The main achievements of Gorbachev's policies was that, in the space of a year or two he made the fear disappear. As if by magic people had lost their fear of speaking and acting freely." [Ravi: I think that must be one of the greatest contributions that Gorbachev and his team gave to the people of the Soviet Union.]

Gorbachev meets Reagan in Washington DC, USA in Dec. 1987. Gorbachev and team felt that SDI (Star Wars) would not become a reality and so should not come in the way of an arms reduction agreement. In the press conference, Reagan says a Russian phrase which means "Trust, but verify". Gorbachev smiles and then says with a laugh, you say that in every meeting. Both leaders and the media have a good laugh. [Ravi: Terrific scene and really heart-warming to see these two super power leaders of yesteryear having reached such a level of personal rapport.] A nuclear arms reduction agreement was reached. Later, under observation of joint teams/media, USA and USSR destroyed some of their missiles. [Ravi: What a stupdendous achievement! Destroying some of the dangerous missiles instead of continuing to produce them or even increasing their production.]

In 1988 US president Ronald Reagan visited Moscow and the Kremlin. The video shows the bonhomie between Gorbachev and Reagan at the Kremlin! [Ravi: What a transformation in relationship between USA and the Soviet Union from the beginning of Reagan's term (1981) to its end (1989)! What a sigh of relief followed by decades of being almost completely free of the threat of nuclear war, for the world! I think the world owes a deep debt of gratitude to USA president Reagan & team and USSR top leader Gorbachev & team for the nuclear arms reduction agreements they eventually signed and implemented.]

Cold War 23 out of 24: The Wall Comes Down (1989), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CHj9w93_c0

What an awesome role Mikhail Gorbachev & team played as enablers of reform of the Warsaw Pact countries and enablers (though not granters) of precious freedom to the people of these countries! This video shows how the freedom loving people of Hungary, Poland and East Germany took strength from Mikhail Gorbachev & team's policies of not using Soviet force in other Warsaw Pact countries, against people desiring freedom. In fact, Gorbachev and team even used its power and influence over some leaders of these countries (like Erich Honecker of former GDR/East Germany) to make them desist from using regular armed forces (as against police) in combating peaceful protests and peaceful attempts to go to the West. Such actions of Gorbachev and team allowed the people of some countries of the Warsaw Pact to struggle for their freedom and earn it quite quickly.

Truly Mikhail Gorbachev is a hero of freedom in the Soviet bloc. However, economic pain and some social strife due to the sudden changes from communist system to a free market system seems to have been and, I guess, continues to be, a big issue in some countries of the former Soviet bloc including Russia. One wishes them all the best in this regard. In my personal opinion, freedom including freedom to worship God, is worth this pain. Freedom including freedom to worship God (in whatever religion/sect/way they want so long as it does not harm others) is priceless!

Cold War 24 out of 24: Conclusions (1989 - 1991), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2n4kjRUur4

The uncontrolled rush towards democracy in the various republics of the former Soviet Union, including Russia, leading to economic and social chaos was very sad. Could not the West have helped out with monetary aid towards the former Soviet Union from the money that had been freed up from the arms race? It seems to me that they easily could have done that and should have done that. Maybe they were just too suspicious of the former Soviet Union to do that. It seems that eventually the IMF did provide significant loans. Perhaps that money should have been provided earlier.

I guess the pro-democracy leaders of various republics of the Soviet Union including Russia thought that rushing to democracy would solve all problems quickly. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Yeltsin: (At the time of his resignation on 31st Dec. 1999) 'Yeltsin said: "I want to ask for your forgiveness, that many of our dreams didn't come true. That what seemed to us to be simple turned out painfully difficult. I ask forgiveness for the fact that I didn't justify some of the hopes of those people who believed that with one stroke, one burst, one sign we could jump from the grey, stagnant, totalitarian past to a bright, rich, civilized future. I myself believed this. One burst was not enough... but I want you to know – I've never said this, today it's important for me to tell you: the pain of every one of you, I feel in myself, in my heart... in saying farewell, I want to say to every one of you: be happy. You deserve happiness. You deserve happiness, and peace."'

Ravi: That comes across as a real touching heart-to-heart message from Yeltsin to his fellow Russians.

Well, now Russia has been on the democratic path for over two decades. I guess Russia has got stabilized in its democracy. While I don't know the economic details I think the current economic pain in some former republics of the former Soviet Union, including Russia, is temporary, and that they will come out of it soon. As an Indian who is grateful to the former Soviet Union including today's Russia for their support to India over many decades, I wish all the former republics of the Soviet Union all the very best in their endeavour to flourish as free-market economies.

[BTW I live in a spiritual town in India and have encountered many former Soviet Union people, including from Russia, as well as Americans (USA) and West Europeans, in it. We all co-exist pretty peacefully in this spiritual town.]