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The Turbulent Development of Czechoslovak Middle Eastern Policy in the Years 1948-1955
Taterová, Eva
This chapter aims to introduce and interpret the development of Czechoslovak foreign policy to the Middle East in 1948-1955 in the\ncontext of the ongoing Cold War using the case studies of Czechoslovak bilateral relations with Israel and Egypt. After the communist coup in\nFebruary 1948, Czechoslovak foreign policy encountered essential changes that also influenced Czechoslovak attitudes towards the Middle\nEast. While in the late 1940s there was an effort to maintain the existing local partnerships (e.g. the continuing support to the\nemerging State of Israel), the early 1950s brought a significant shift of Czechoslovak Middle Eastern policy due to the international and\ninternal political factors. As result, Czechoslovakia started to focus on the development of close mutual relations with some Arab countries.\nIn this sense, the year 1955 is considered a milestone regarding the Egyptian-Czechoslovak arms deal which set an important precedent for\nsimilar contracts of military cooperation between Czechoslovakia with the other regional actors.
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The influence of the Czechoslovak and Soviet communist regime on the operation of the Christian Peace Conference and its president J.L. Hromádka from the late 1950s to the late 1960s
Peka, Radek ; Nešpor, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Nodl, Martin (referee)
The main theme of this thesis is the Protestant theologian Josef L. Hromádka (1889 - 1969) and the Christian Peace Conference, which was officially founded in Prague in 1958 as of reaction of several Prague theologians to the threat to world peace during the coming Cold War. In general, we can state that this thesis deals with the influence that the then communist regime in Czechoslovakia had on the work of this organization. We can declare that the professional community no longer doubts that the CPC was directed by the state apparatus, but we will take a closer look at how exactly the leadership of the communist organization did that. In essence, how the regime nomenclature of Czechoslovakia, but also of other countries of the socialist camp, influenced the organizational, material, financial, personnel, as well as content aspects of the conference from the late 1950s to the late 1960s. We will also analyze the internal view of President Hromádka by the Czechoslovak secret services in this period of time. The thesis aims to move the scientific and public debate about Hromádka and the Christian Peace Conference. Key words: Josef Lukl Hromádka, Christian Peace Conference, Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren, Jaroslav Němec Ondra, secret...
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Reflection of historical facts in a fantastic example of the Star Wars saga
Hadrabová Rauschgoldová, Scarlett ; Beneš, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Kudlová, Klára (referee)
The thesis deals with the issue of depicting long-past and entirely topical historical events in the Star Wars film saga. Given the current size of the Star Wars universe, this work must be limited to films known as "Episodes" (numbered I through IX) and two relatively new feature spin-offs, while everything else will be mentioned only marginally. This work maps in detail how each of the three trilogies of this saga, as well as both spin-offs, show the main problems of the time in which they arose and to which other historical facts they want or can refer. The aim of the work is thus to show that the genre widely regarded as "escape" and "completely detached from reality" reflects historical reality very strongly by its specific artistic means. Keywords Star Wars, historical reality, science fiction, speculative fiction, space opera, SF movie, story, neomyth, George Lucas, Cold War, politics
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Sartre and His Perception by Czech Intellectuals in 1960s
Molodkina, Irina ; Matějka, Ondřej (advisor) ; Tomalová, Eliška (referee) ; Emler, David (referee)
The relationships between the power blocs during the Cold war have been researched by scholars. The question of the influence of Western ideas and representatives on the political thought in Czechoslovakia is still discussed. Although major differences were happening due to the work of institutions, their functioning was not possible without specific personalities. The aim of this thesis is to show how Jean-Paul Sartre and his arrival to Prague in 1960s did influence Czech intellectuals. The issue is approached by the review of the biography of the French philosopher, highlighting crucial events that linked him more with the Czechoslovak society, and then analyzing the way the Czech intellectuals reacted to his ideas and statements. Sartre was chosen as an intellectual who was uniting both, the East and the West, and went through a change of views, after the occurrence of several international events with the direct intervention of the USSR. Realistic views of the Czech representatives are facing relatively optimistic ideas of Sartre on the reformation of the Marxist ideology and preservation of it as the ruling one.
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The foreign policy of the United States of America towards Nicaragua after the Cuban Revolution
Černá, Kateřina ; Perutka, Lukáš (advisor) ; Raška, Francis (referee)
This thesis examines the foreign policy of the United States towards Nicaragua between 1961-1973. When the John F. Kennedy administration took office in 1961, there was concern about developments in Cuba and, in particular, the possibility of a similar fate in Latin American countries. This concern gave rise to the largest foreign aid program up to that time, the Alliance for Progress. Although it was a comprehensive aid scheme taking into account both economic and social issues, the results of the Alliance were contradictory. Nicaragua was a case in point. This paper uses the case study method to explain the results of the Alliance for Progress using Nicaragua as an example. By synthesizing literary sources and secondary literature, the various objectives of the Alliance for Progress are evaluated. The first part of the thesis examines the political situation of the United States both domestically and globally. The second part of the thesis describes the nature of the Alliance for Progress, the fulfilment of its goals, and the implications for the people of the Republic of Nicaragua. The thesis concludes that in the case of Nicaragua, the Alliance for Progress succeeded in the economic sphere. However, the vast majority of social issues remained unresolved and the Alliance's main objective, to...
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Between Global Ambitions and Economic Pragmatism: Czechoslovak Experts in Angola and Mozambique in the Cold War
Menclová, Barbora ; Kolenovská, Daniela (advisor) ; Koura, Jan (referee) ; Pešta, Mikuláš (referee)
In the mid-1970s, the Soviet Union and its allies, strengthened by the Helsinki Conference's success and the United States' international weakening after the defeat in Vietnam, launched a new global offensive. One of their priorities became cooperation with the newly established states in Sub- Saharan Africa - Angola and Mozambique. In addition to continued military support, the Eastern Bloc states invested in their industrialization, agriculture, and key infrastructure, which were supposed to contribute to the development of both states. In the case of Czechoslovakia, like other European socialist countries, sending experts to Angolan and Mozambican factories and other institutions became part of its foreign policy. By the end of the Cold War, several hundred Czechoslovak citizens had gained work experience in Angola and, later, Mozambique. The aim of the dissertation dealing with this key Czechoslovak foreign policy strategy in the broader Cold War context is to contribute to the current academic discussion on the forms of socialist globalization and the approach of the East to the Global South in the late Cold War. Based on the archival documents and interviews with witnesses, it explores Czechoslovakia's intentions in pursuing its expertise in these Lusophone countries after 1975. Further, it...
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Media coverage of the Pentagon Papers affair in the newspapers Rudé právo, The New York Times and The Times
Šimečková, Karolína ; Bednařík, Petr (advisor) ; Charvát, Jakub (referee)
The bachelor's thesis "Media portrayal of the Pentagon Papers affair in The New York Times, Rudé právo and The Times" focuses on the events related to the Pentagon Papers affair from mid-1971, specifically the analysis of newspaper texts on the topic. The problem of this scandal is captured in the period before its revelation (from May 31 to June 13, 1971), two weeks after its disclosure in June (from June 13 to June 30, 1971), and up to mid-July (from July 1 to July 14, 1971). Within the theoretical part of the thesis, the concept of propaganda is explained, along with an introduction to the newspapers themselves, their history, and contemporary characteristics. Subsequently, the historical-political context of the Pentagon Papers affair is explained, including a brief background on the Vietnam War and two key figures and their role in revealing the report to the public. During the comparative analysis of the newspapers The New York Times, Rudé právo, and The Times, the topics, content of texts, lexical level of articles, as well as the style of presentation and news value of individual contributions are monitored. The aim of the thesis is to create a comprehensive overview of the different processing of the identical scandal by newspapers with different tendencies, caused not only but primarily...
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Reagen-Gorbachev Summits and Their Impact
Kalousek, Robin ; Pondělíček, Jiří (advisor) ; Perutka, Lukáš (referee)
My thesis will be dealing with the last yet very important chapter of the Cold war. In the theoretical part I will focus on importance of the summits. There are two major approaches concerning the summits, I will shortly describe each one of them. After that, I will shortly mention the political career of Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, their political views and goals respectively. After that I will shift my attention to the core of my thesis, therefore bilateral intermediate range ballistic missiles treaty and summits between two statesmen that took place in Geneva, Reykjavik, Moscow and Washington D.C. In the final part, there will be summary and my views on the given issue. At the very end, there will be sources and attachments.
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The influence of the alleged existence of a "bomber gap" on diplomacy and strategy of the United States of America in the crisis of 1956 during the first presidential period of D. D. Eisenhower
Krebs, Martin ; Pondělíček, Jiří (advisor) ; Raška, Francis (referee)
The "bomber gap" crisis is not well known in the general Cold War consciousness. In addition, the generally accepted and, from my point of view, simplified course of the formation of the "bomber gap" can be questioned using relevant sources, and the same is true of the dating event, which is also treated very loosely. If the course of this event was questioned, it is necessary to look for the cause of the "bomber gap" in a different, than generally accepted plane, referring to the observation during the air show. Some authors thus offer an explanation of the "bomber gap" both from the point of view of political economy and from the point of view of the human factor in the secret services. The second view of the "bomber gap" concerns both crises taking place at the end of 1956, the Suez Crisis and the Hungarian Uprising. Although it would seem that strategic air power and nuclear bombs will be a key factor and play a more important role in solving both crises, where both strategies and doctrines of the two great powers, the doctrine of the liberation of Eastern Europe from communism and the Soviet doctrine of penetration into the countries of the Third, indirectly clashed world. At first glance, the strategic air force here played a secondary role, the capacities of both countries for a nuclear...
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