Right pictures Top: This picture indicates how relentless and powerful Putin was during the Cold War. Middle: This meme demonstrates the controversy between the Warsaw Pact and NATO. Bottom: This picture demonstrates the rival between NATO and Warsaw Pact.
Left Picture: Warsaw Pact Conference in Warsaw, Poland that initiated the Pact on May 11, 1955 Intro: To oppose the newly founded NATO which was composed of the United States and 11 other Western Nations, the Soviet Union and other affiliated Communist nations formed the rival alliance, the Warsaw Pact, in May of 1955. The Warsaw Pact was a direct result of the rearming of West Germany as it was admitted to NATO. Soviet leaders and many European nations on both sides of the Cold War were apprehensive about Germany becoming a military power. The Soviets saw NATO advocate for West Germany as part of the alliance and allowing it to form a restricted army and warned such actions would force them to make new security arrangements in their own spheres of influence. The Warsaw Pact was initiated less than two weeks following the formal acceptance of West Germany in NATO. Key Leaders: People's Socialist Republic of Albania: Enver Hoxha: Secretary Party of Labour of Albania People's Republic of Bulgaria: Todd Zhivkov: General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party Czechoslovak Socialist Republic: Gustav Husak: President of Czechoslovakia German Democratic Reublic: Eric Honecker: General Secretary of the German Democratic Republic Hungarian People's Republic: Janos Kadar: General Secretary of the Hungarian Socialist Worker's Party Polish People's Republic: Wojciech Jaruzelski: President of Poland Socialist Republic of Romania: Nicolae Ceausescu: President of Romania Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: Mikhail Gorbachev: General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Timeline of Significant Events: 1955: Warsaw Pact formed in Warsaw, Poland 1956: Soviet troops crush Hungarian Revolution in Budapest, Prime Minister Nagy Imre and several Hungarian leaders receive death sentence two years later 1960: May -- Soviet Union reveals that U.S. spy plane was shot down over Soviet territory 1968: August -- Soviet troops crush Czechoslovakian revolt 1985: Mikhail Gorbachev ascends to power in Soviet Union 1986: Gorbachev ends economic aid to Soviet satellites 1989: January -- Soviet troops withdraw from Afghanistan 1989: December -- Communist governments fall in Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania; Soviet empire ends 1991: April -- Warsaw Pact ends 1991: August -- End of Soviet Union Cold War Ends Members: