The Cold War (1948–1953) is the period within the Cold War from the incapacitation of the Allied Control Council in 1948 to the conclusion of the Korean War in 1953.
A satellite state or dependent state is a country that is formally independent but under heavy political, economic, and military influence or control from another country. The term was coined by analogy to planetary objects orbiting a larger object, such as smaller moons revolving around larger planets, and is used mainly to refer to Central and Eastern European member states of the Warsaw Pact during the Cold War, as well as to Mongolia and Tuva between 1924 and 1990, all of which were economically, culturally, and politically dominated by the Soviet Union. While primarily referring to the Soviet-controlled states in the Central and Eastern Europe or Asia, in some contexts the term also refers to other countries under Soviet hegemony during the Cold War, such as North Korea, Cuba, and some countries in the American sphere of influence, such as South Vietnam. In Western usage, the term has seldom been applied to states other than those in the Soviet orbit. In Soviet usage, the term applied to states in the orbit of Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and Imperial Japan, whereas in the West the term to refer to those has typically been client states.
A puppet state, puppet régime, puppet government or dummy government is a state that is de jure independent but de facto completely dependent upon an outside power and subject to its orders. Puppet states have nominal sovereignty, except that a foreign power effectively exercises control through economic or military support. By leaving a local government in existence the outside power evades all responsibility, while at the same time successfully paralysing the local government they tolerate.
In the field of international relations, a client state, is a state that is economically, politically, and militarily subordinated to a more powerful controlling state. Alternative terms for a client state are satellite state, associated state, and dominion, condominium, self-governing colony, and neo-colony, protectorate, vassal state, puppet state, and tributary state.
A demilitarized zone is an area in which treaties or agreements between states, military powers or contending groups forbid military installations, activities, or personnel. A DZ often lies along an established frontier or boundary between two or more military powers or alliances. A DZ may sometimes form a de facto international border, such as the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Other examples of demilitarized zones are a 14 km (8.7 mi) wide area between Iraq and Kuwait; Antarctica ; and outer space.
In the field of international relations, a sphere of influence is a spatial region or concept division over which a state or organization has a level of cultural, economic, military, or political exclusivity.
Supreme Allied Commander is the title held by the most senior commander within certain multinational military alliances. It originated as a term used by the Allies during World War I, and is currently used only within NATO for Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation.
The Cold War was a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc, that started in 1947 and lasted to 1991.
A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power influence, which may cause middle or small powers to consider the great powers' opinions before taking actions of their own. International relations theorists have posited that great power status can be characterized into power capabilities, spatial aspects, and status dimensions.
A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, a transitional government or provisional leadership, is a temporary government formed to manage a period of transition, often following state collapse. Provisional governments are generally appointed, and frequently arise, either during or after civil or foreign wars, or during difficult times such as during invasion, economic crisis, or widespread infiltration of saboteurs and counter-revolutionaries such as during the French Revolution.
The causes of World War II have been given considerable attention by historians. The immediate precipitating event was the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany on September 1, 1939, and the subsequent declarations of war on Germany made by Britain and France, but many other prior events have been suggested as ultimate causes. Primary themes in historical analysis of the war's origins include the political takeover of Germany in 1933 by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party; Japanese militarism against China, which led to the Japanese invasion of Manchuria and the Second Sino-Japanese War; Nationalist uprising in Spain, which led to the Spanish Civil War; or Italian aggression against Ethiopia, which led to the Second Italo-Ethiopian War.
The Western Bloc is an informal, collective term for countries that were officially allied with the United States during the Cold War of 1947–1991. While the NATO member states, in Western Europe and Northern America, were pivotal to the bloc, it included many other countries, in the broader Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa with histories of anti-Soviet, anti-communist and, in some cases anti-socialist, ideologies and policies. As such, the bloc was opposed to the political systems and foreign policies of communist countries, which were centered on the Soviet Union, other members of the Warsaw Pact, and usually the People's Republic of China. The name "Western Bloc" emerged in response to and as the antithesis of its Communist counterpart, the Eastern Bloc. Throughout the Cold War, the governments and the Western media were more inclined to refer to themselves as the "Free World" or the "First World", whereas the Eastern bloc was often referred to as the "Communist World" or less commonly the "Second World".
This is a timeline of the main events of the Cold War, a state of political and military tension after World War II between powers in the Western Bloc and powers in the Eastern Bloc.
The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during World War II (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers. Its principal members by the end of 1941 were the "Big Four" – United Kingdom, United States, Soviet Union, and China.
An international zone is any area not fully subject to the border control policies of the state in which it is located. There are several types of international zones ranging from special economic zones and sterile zones at ports of entry exempt from customs rules to concessions over which administration is ceded to one or more foreign states. International zones may also maintain distinct visa policies from the rest of the surrounding state.
The aftermath of World War II saw the rise of two global superpowers, the Soviet Union (USSR) and the United States (US). The aftermath of World War II was also defined by the rising threat of nuclear warfare, the creation and implementation of the United Nations as an intergovernmental organization, and the decolonization of Asia and Africa by European and East Asian powers, most notably by the United Kingdom, France, and Japan.
In many periodizations of human history, the late modern period followed the early modern period. It began around 1800 and, depending on the author, either ended with the beginning of contemporary history in 1945, or includes the contemporary history period to the present day.
The decolonisation of Asia was the gradual growth of independence movements in Asia, leading ultimately to the retreat of foreign powers and the creation of several nation-states in the region.
Bolivia, created by Gran Colombia as a buffer between Peru and Argentina during the Upper Peru question [4] 
Uruguay, served as a demilitarised buffer between Argentina and the Empire of Brazil during the early independence period in South America [5] [6] 
Paraguay, maintained after the end of the Paraguayan War in 1870, as a buffer separating Argentina and Brazil [7] 
Georgia, a colony established by Great Britain in 1732 as a buffer between its other colonies along the Atlantic coast of North America and Spanish Florida [8] 
Ecuador, served as a "cushion state" between Colombia and Peru, which had a bigger extension[ clarification needed ] and military force and fought a war in the 1820s. [9] 
North Korea, during and after the Cold War, has been seen by some analysts as a buffer state between the military forces of China, the Soviet Union and those of South Korea, Japan, and the United States (stationed in South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan from 1954 to 1979). [10] 
Manchukuo was a pro-Japanese buffer state between the Empire of Japan, the Soviet Union, and the Republic of China during World War II.
Thailand, historically known as Siam, was an independent buffer state between the British Raj, British Malaya, French Indochina, and their competing colonial interests in Laos and Cambodia. [11] [12] 
Korea acted as a buffer zone between the growing superpowers of Imperial Japan and the Russian Empire.
The Far Eastern Republic was a formally independent state created to act as a buffer between Bolshevik Russia and the Empire of Japan. [13] [14] 
Afghanistan was a buffer state between the British Empire, which ruled much of South Asia, and the Russian Empire, which ruled much of Central Asia, during the Anglo–Russian conflicts of the 19th century. Later, the Wakhan Corridor extended the buffer eastwards to the Chinese border. [15] 
Tibet, 
Nepal, 
Bhutan, and 
Sikkim were buffer states between the British Empire and China. Later, during the Sino-Indian War of 1962, they became buffers between China and India as the two powers fought along their borders. [16] [17] 
Mongolia acted as a buffer between the Soviet Union and China until 1991. It currently serves as a buffer between Russia and China. [18] 
Lebanon is a buffer state between Israel and Syria.
Iraq and 
Bahrain are buffer states between Iran and Saudi Arabia. [19] [20] 
Morocco served as a buffer state between the Ottoman Empire, Spain, and Portugal in the 16th century. [21] 
Botswana) was initially created as a buffer between the British Empire and the two Boer republics of the Orange Free State and the Transvaal Republic until the Second Boer War. [22] 
Switzerland has been a buffer state between Italy, Austria, France, Germany, and other state powers in medieval and modern Europe.
The United Kingdom of the Netherlands, composed of today's Belgium and Netherlands, was created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to maintain peace between France, Prussia, and the United Kingdom. The kingdom existed for 15 years until the Belgian Revolution.
Belgium acted as buffer state between France, the German Empire, the Netherlands, and the British Empire before the First World War.
Austria acted as a buffer state between Germany and Italy during the interwar period.
Poland and other states between Germany and the Soviet Union have sometimes been described as buffer states, both as non-communist states before World War II [26] and later as communist states of the Eastern Bloc. [27] 
Yugoslavia, which broke with the Soviet Union before the formation of the Warsaw Pact, became a buffer state between NATO and the Eastern Bloc during the Cold War.
West Germany and 
East Germany were also regarded as buffer states between NATO and the Warsaw Pact during the Cold War in Europe.
Sweden and 
Finland were sometimes regarded as buffer states between NATO and the Soviet Union.[ by whom? ] More recently, the Russo-Ukrainian War has helped push both countries into joining NATO.
New Hebrides served as a buffer between the United Kingdom and France in Oceania during the New Imperialism period.
Papua New Guinea served as a buffer state between Indonesia, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. Indonesia accused both the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu of supporting the Free Papua Movement during the Papua conflict. [28] 
