Why Khrushchev was not allowed to Disneyland, and why the Russians rammed US ships

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The most important events in the international arena of the second half of the 20th century concerned the Cold War between the USSR and the USA. The term itself came from the pen of the writer George Orwell, who in 1945 first used such a phrase. The beginning of the conflict was laid by the speech of former British Prime Minister Churchill, announced a year later in the presence of President Truman. Churchill said that an "iron curtain" would appear in the heart of Europe, to the east of which there was no democracy. In the global confrontation of economies, ideologies and weapons, everything happened: from the threat of a global war to curious situations.

Alien Landing on Red Square

In the spring of 1987, a young German pilot, Matthias Rust, flew to Moscow in a private Cessna jet. According to one version, the young man, for personal reasons and in the name of world peace, wanted to convey to Gorbachev a friendly manifesto on behalf of foreigners loyal to the USSR. Having reached southern Finland, he cut off all communications on board and changed course to the Moscow-Helsinki air route. The Finns, announcing a rescue operation, mistook the spot on the water for an unidentified plane that had crashed. Further, the plane was spotted by Soviet air defense. And, although the command for destruction was not followed, the anti-aircraft complexes guided the object, and several MiGs rose to intercept.

According to an international convention, it was impossible to destroy a light aircraft without good reason. The maximum is to force you to land. The servicemen suggested that the unknown plane was flown by a trainee who did not turn on the radar transponder. The operator of the radar station completely mistook Cessna for a helicopter, performing search and rescue operations nearby. When Matthias Rust sat down in the very center of Red Square, everyone was shocked. The pilot was arrested and sent to jail for 18 months.

How Khrushchev was not allowed to Disneyland

In 1959, Nikita Khrushchev went to the United States. Two non-standard wishes of the guest to the welcoming party were acquaintance with actor J. Wayne and a visit to Disneyland. The press gave Khrushchev unprecedented attention - the Soviet secretary general personally appeared before the Americans for the first time. The grandiose amusement park opened in the United States shortly before the Soviet visit and quickly became a global brand.

But Khrushchev was denied a visit. The pretext was that the American side did not vouch for the safety of the Russian guest on the territory of the huge amusement park. Khrushchev was indignant, threatened to urgently fly home, but in the end he calmed down. Upon his return to Moscow, Nikita Sergeevich even set out to build a similar facility in the USSR. He even ordered to develop a project for a Soviet park, which, with the removal of the secretary general, died on paper.

Unsuccessful tunnel

In 1977, the Americans decided to equip a secret tunnel under the building of the foreign embassy as part of the strategic project "Monopoly". While the USSR was erecting a new building in Washington for a representative office, the FBI diligently dug under it. Such a move would allow the Americans to eavesdrop on the conversations of Soviet diplomats. But in the end, Monopoly did not live up to the expectations of the US leadership, turning into a loud failure. Groundwater seeped into the hole dug, and high-tech equipment refused to work in such conditions. In addition, the maximum that the special agents managed to overhear was the dialogues from the pantry. The Soviet authorities soon became aware of the existence of a secret tunnel thanks to the recruited FBI agent R. Hanssen. In the early 90s, the tunnel was sealed.

Operation Experienced Archer

1983 was the most intense during the entire Cold War. By the end of the year, America and its allies launched Operation Experienced Archer, nearly provoking the USSR into a nuclear strike. The operation involved at least 40,000 NATO soldiers. While working out a plan of action for a probable nuclear attack by the Soviet Union, NATO missiles passed all stages of alarm, up to the option when the enemy's missiles were already in the air. And the entire headquarters, together with the top officials of the state and ministers, hid on command in the bunkers. Among them were Margaret Thatcher, Helmut Kohl, Ronald Reagan and others.

In the course of the exercises, the Americans began to understand that such large-scale maneuvers from the outside looked like preparation for a nuclear strike on Moscow. Moreover, the leadership of the Soviet Union was not informed about the exercises. Such shortcomings could have serious consequences. And Moscow's reaction followed immediately. Missiles with nuclear warheads were sent to Poland and the GDR, and nuclear submarines took over the Arctic waters. The tension was frightening, and the nerves of the Americans flinched. They organized several press conferences for Reagan, during which the president spoke about the exercises in Europe.

How Soviet ships rammed

In the 1980s, American military provocations along the Soviet border were commonplace. Particularly daring was the trick of the cruiser Yorktown and the destroyer Karon, who invaded the Soviet territorial waters of the Black Sea in 1988. The Americans looked at the boundaries of territorial waters in their own way, entering the disputable, in their opinion, water areas for reconnaissance. Defense Minister Sokolov gave the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy Chernavin the authority to actively counter the enemy. When the information about the impending violation of the borders by the American "Yorktown" and "Karon" was reported, the patrol ship "Izmail" and the search and rescue ship "Yamal" came out to meet the "guests".

Soviet sailors escorted the Americans from the Bosphorus to the border of the territorial waters near Sevastopol. After a two-day drift in neutral waters, the ships swiftly entered the borders of the Soviet Union. There was a demand to leave the territorial waters of the USSR, to which the US ships reacted with a refusal. Then it was decided to literally "push out" the uninvited guests.

First, the side of the American cruiser was ripped open by a blow from the Russian "Selfless", followed by an unfriendly destroyer hit on a tangent. The Americans tried to clamp down on the attacking ship, but the captain of the Selfless One resolutely pointed rocket launchers at them. On an attempt to lift the air, American military helicopters received a message about their readiness to shoot them down on takeoff. Further, Mi-24s appeared in the sky, and the American ships fled.

Nikita Sergeevich often found himself in funny situations. For example, when I was in America, with a soda machine.