may 1, 1960 - Paris Summit 1960 & U2 Crisis

Description:

Paris Summit (May 16-17, 1960) :

Participants:
- President Dwight D. Eisenhower (U.S.)
- Premier Nikita Khrushchev (Soviet Union),
- Prime Minister Harold Macmillan (U.K.)
- President Charles de Gaulle (France)

Purpose:
- address Cold War issues, arms control, status of Berlin & nuclear weapons testing.

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U-2 Incident (May 1, 1960):

A U-2 spy plane was shot down by the Soviet Union over Soviet territory.

Initially denied by the U.S., later confirmed as a covert reconnaissance mission.

--> he incident strained U.S.-Soviet relations and heightened Cold War tensions.
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Repercussions on the Cold War:

-Kruschev went ballistic and walks out of the conference --> failure to adress issues of the cold war

-deterioration of US/USSR relations

- escalation of the arms race & military activities by both superpowers

Added to timeline:

Date: