On March 23rd, 1983, President Ronald Reagan announced the Strategic Defense Initiative, signaling a massive paradigm shift in U.S. policy…
The Velvet Revolution, November 1989
In 1989, change was in the air throughout all of Eastern Europe. Mikhail Gorbachev’s policies of glasnost and perestroika –…
1989 — A Swift Look at an Incredible Year
1989 — A year filled with magic, madness, heaven and sin. Among the defining years of the 20th century, 1989…
The 1991 Iraq War – The Battle at the UN: The Gathering Storm
Although several resolutions were passed by the UN Security Council imposing sanctions on Iraq, they did not have the desired…
The 1991 Madrid Peace Conference
The Madrid Peace Conference, held from October 30 to November 1, 1991, marked the first time that Israeli leaders negotiated…
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Nixon vs. Khrushchev — The 1959 Kitchen Debate
It was undoubtedly one of the most unorthodox – and therefore memorable – settings for a major political debate. On…
Sound and the Fury — The 1954 Geneva Conference on Vietnam and Korea
In April 1954, amidst growing tensions regarding the situation in the Korean Peninsula and Indochina, the international community convened a…
The Berlin Crisis of 1961
In the early years of the Cold War, Berlin repeatedly became the focal point of tension between the U.S. and…
Yeltsin Under Siege — The October 1993 Constitutional Crisis
For Russians, it was yet another dramatic confrontation which played out in the streets of Moscow, one which marked the…
End of an Era: The August Coup and the Final Days of the Soviet Union
In August 1991, Soviet hardliners attempted to overthrow the progressive Mikhail Gorbachev, Secretary General of the Communist Party, in a…