The Rise and Fall of Dentente

Concerned about the risk of a direct conflict and the financial cost of their rivalry

Wanted to invest more in their own economies and the welfare of their people

The United States and the USSR never quite took the fatal step of fighting a direct was with one another

Tried to reduce tensions

Both sides lived in fear of a war, which would involve nuclear weapons

the United States and the USSR strayed cooperating with each other and less friendly countries.

Nixon was succeeded by General Ford BUT dentente period changed with the appointment of Jimmy Carter as the US President

1979: Carter abandoned detente and took a much more aggressive approach towards the USSR + Brezhnev thought the USSR was not gaining from the sentence

Both sides began to criticise each other’s actions again and accused the other of breaking their promises

For example, Carter blamed the USSR for not settling disputes peacefully. According to Carter, the USSR was making things worse by supplying arms to its allies in war zones such as Angola and Ethiopia. Brezhnev countered that the United States was doing pretty much the same in Central and South America, as well as in South Africa.

Accused each other of trying to get around the various nuclear arms limitation treaties

1979: Soviet invasion of Afghanistan