New Cold War

(i) The process of detente lost its momentum after the Helsinki Conference. Relations between the USA and the Soviet Union became so sore that by 1980 it appeared that Cold War had come back. The new tensions came to be described as the New Cold War.

(ii) The New Cold War was based on balance of power. In the New Cold War a new power bloc, namely the PRC, emerged as a power that could not be defeated or ignored.

(iii) The intervention of the Soviet army in Afghanistan in 1979 was the turning point.

(iv) The New Cold War was marked by the efforts of both the countries to spread their influence mainly outside Europe. Conflicts outside Europe assumed greater significance than ever before.

(v) Detente for the Soviet Union meant acceptance of status quo in Europe only. In Indo- China, Africa, Afghanistan etc., both the countries supported opposing groups.

(vi) The Soviet Union replaced the President of Afghanistan by one favourable to it. Nearly 1,00,000 Soviet soldiers were stationed in Afghanistan.

(vii) America regarded the positioning of Soviet soldiers in Afghanistan as a threat to Iran and moved her warships in the Gulf. Both the countries were deeply involved in developing the new weapons of destruction. The US President, Ronald Reagan, approved of the plan to develop a new weapons system, the Strategic Defence Initiative (SDI) which was also known as Star Wars.