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Cold War

The Cold War was a state of geopolitical tension after the end of World War II. It pitted the Eastern Bloc (the Soviet Union and its allies) against the Western Bloc (the United States, its NATO allies).

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All Content on this topic

Stanislav Petrov

Soviet officer who averted nuclear war with US dies

Stanislav Petrov, a former Soviet military officer dubbed "the man who saved the world," has died.
HistorySeptember 19, 2017
Deutschland Heiner Geißler schwarz/weiß

German Cold War figure Heiner Geissler dies

Heiner Geissler served as secretary general of the Christian Democrats from 1977 and 1989.
PoliticsSeptember 12, 2017
John Le Carre

John le Carre's Cold War spy returns

George Smiley is back after nearly three decades: John le Carre's spy will return to bookshelves in Germany in October.
LiteratureSeptember 8, 2017
Symbolbild Deutschland-Vietnam

Suspected Vietnamese agent held in Berlin

Czech authorities handed over to Germany a suspected Vietnamese agent involved in last month's Berlin kidnapping.
PoliticsAugust 24, 2017
USA International Spy Museum, Washington, DC

Spying for summer fun

With polygraphs and picnics, Spy Camp teaches tradecraft to tweens.
PoliticsAugust 15, 2017
Berlin Gedenken an die Opfer des Mauerbaus

The Berlin Wall: A city torn in two

The Berlin Wall went up in almost a single night in 1961. It took nearly three decades to come down.
PoliticsAugust 13, 20176 images
Sigmar Gabriel

Berlin warns Vietnam over alleged kidnapping

Germany says it is pondering punitive measures against Vietnam for the alleged abduction of an oil executive in Berlin.
PoliticsAugust 4, 2017
Film still Atomic Blonde (2017)

Charlize Theron as the 'Atomic Blonde'

The South African boasts leading roles in numerous action films. Here's a look at her exciting career.
CultureJuly 18, 201711 images
Cuban and US flags in Havana

Russia slams Trump's 'Cold War' Cuba rhetoric

The US president partially reversed Washington's diplomatic and commercial opening to Cuba that was unveiled in 2014.
PoliticsJune 18, 2017
1990 Kohl signing reunification treaty, smiling

Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl dies, aged 87

Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl has died. In office for 16 years, he was the longest serving post-war chancellor.
PoliticsJune 16, 2017
Konrad Adenauer exhibition at DHM Berlin (BOK+Gärtner)

How Konrad Adenauer's Cold War strategy aimed at reunification

Fifty years after the death of West Germany's first Chancellor, a Berlin exhibition explores his policies.
CultureApril 18, 20178 images
Symbolbild Waffen Waffenhandel Waffenlieferung Rüstung Rüstungsexport

Arms trade 'biggest since Cold War'

Demand from the Middle East and Asia has driven the transfer of arms to its highest level in decades, a study shows.
BusinessFebruary 20, 2017
Filmstill "The Same Sky"

East Germany, Spies and the Cold War - in a series!

'The Same Sky' paints a portrait of divided Berlin in the 1970's - in the middle of the cold war.
CultureFebruary 19, 2017
Deutschland Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz 2017

Lavrov calls for 'post-West' world order

The Russian world view, as advocated by its foreign minister, is to see countries develop bilateral relations.
PoliticsFebruary 18, 2017
Marschflugkörper Cruise Missile Symbolbild

Russia violates Cold War treaty with cruise missile test

The news comes just as the Trump administration finds itself without a national security adviser.
PoliticsFebruary 15, 2017
Uruguay Marsch der Stille für Wahrheit und Gerechtigkeit

Italy convicts eight over Cold War murders

An Italian court has ruled South American military dictatorships conspired to kill each other's political opponents.
Human RightsJanuary 18, 2017
TV-Mehrteiler Deutschland '83 Filmstill

A key year in the Cold War: 'Deutschland 83'

The TV series "Deutschland 83" deals with the role played by Germany in 1983 during the Cold War.
CultureNovember 22, 20168 images
US Militärflugzeug F-35A Archivbild 2013

Global arms trade – game of diplomacy and war

Moscow and Washington are rivals once again, using arms exports to frustrate each other's plans.
ConflictsNovember 19, 2016
Moskau, Roter Platz, 9 Mai

'Russia is such a wonderful enemy'

With Cold War animosity back in style, can young people look past the old stereotypes?
PoliticsNovember 8, 2016
Brüssel NATO Generalsekretär Jens Stoltenberg

NATO secretary general: 'We are not in a Cold War'

As tensions rise between Russia and the West, Jens Stoltenberg explains why he still thinks there is no new Cold War.
PoliticsNovember 4, 2016
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif (R) meeting with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu at the Prime Minister House in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan

Cold War foes forge closer ties

Pakistan and Russia will hold their first-ever joint military exercises later this year, say media reports.
September 12, 2016
Mathias Bölinger, head of DW's investigative unit

CDU's conservative folklore

Mathias Bölinger
Reinstating conscription is the CDU's latest idea. Is the party serious? DW editor Mathias Bölinger doesn't think so.
August 24, 2016
Berlin Brandenburger Tor

The Brandenburg Gate turns 225

Inaugurated on August 6, 1791, the Brandenburg Gate has been through the best and the worst of European history.
August 4, 2016
USS Lassen

US warship to visit New Zealand after three-decade stand-off

The US Navy will send a naval ship to New Zealand in November, ending a three-decade stand-off over nuclear armament.
July 21, 2016
A radio broadcast mast

N. Korea resumes Cold War-style coded broadcasts

North Korea restarts coded radio broadcasts in the South, thought to be targeted at its spies operating across the borde
July 20, 2016
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Afghanistan and Russia dominate key NATO summit

NATO leaders met on Friday and Saturday in Warsaw to discuss the alliance's involvement in Afghanistan and its biggest military revamp since the end of the Cold War.
July 9, 201601:58 min
NATO Gipfel in Gruppenbild

NATO and Russia want dialogue, not new Cold War

Russian President Vladimir Putin says he's ready to talk.
July 8, 2016
Toni Erdmann Film, Copyright: Komplizen Film

How German cinema is reinventing its image abroad

Amidst the success of "Toni Erdmann," which opens the Munich Film Festival, how is it going for German cinema abroad?
June 30, 2016
A NATO air patrol mission flies over the Baltics

NATO's Baltic arms buildup 'to prevent conflict'

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has said military deployment in the Baltics is not part of "a new Cold War."
June 2, 2016
NATO-Flagge

NATO talks refugees, Russia and 'Islamic State'

In Brussels, NATO ministers intend to finalize their biggest military buildup since the Cold War.
May 19, 2016
Vladimir Chizhov, Russian ambassador to the EU (Photo: DW/M. Martin)

'Bad times for East-West diplomacy'

Vladimir Chizhov, Russian ambassador to the EU, discusses the crisis in Ukraine and NATO expansion.
May 18, 2016
Deutschland Car-to-go an der East Side Gallery in Berlin

Memorial Sites: Cold War and Berlin Wall

Historically significant sites, from the East Side Gallery, to the Wall Museum, to Checkpoint Charlie.
May 18, 2016
Costa Rica Flüchtlinge aus Kuba

Cuban migrants force way into Costa Rica

Costa Rica has stopped over 1,000 Cubans from entering the country as renewed US-Cuba ties spark a wave of migration.
April 14, 2016
Ostsee Russisches Kampfflugzeug und US-Kriegsschiff

Russian jets fly 'unsafe' passes over US ship

Russian warplanes have made several "aggressive" passes near a US guided missile destroyer, US military says.
April 14, 2016

Easter marches against war and violence

Thousands have demonstrated against war and for a more welcoming refugee policy in 60 marches and vigils across Germany.
March 26, 2016

Obama addresses Cuba's people

US President Barack Obama has said in a speech that his Cuba visit will finally end the Cold War in the Americas.
March 22, 2016
Kuba Präsident Raul Castro

US-Cuba thaw goes on

The US eases restrictions on Cuba ahead of Obama's visit.
March 15, 2016
Filmstill Billy Wilder Eins Zwei Drei

The Cold War: Battling Ideologies on Film

The Cold War between the West and the Soviet Bloc has inspired many spy thrillers – to this day.
March 7, 2016
Bridge of Spies

ʺBridge of Spies:" Spielberg's new thriller

Steven Spielberg shot a spy movie in Berlin and Potsdam.
March 7, 2016

KINO - The Movie Magazine | 05.03.2016

KINO presents a special show about the Cold War on film and the new thriller by Steven Spielberg.
March 7, 2016
Photo of the Altengrabow Soviet training grounds, 2004, Copyright: Martin Roemers

'A Disneyland of the Cold War'

There's no culture of commemoration for the Cold War, but photographer Martin Roemers has created a visual memorial.
March 2, 2016
Relikte des Kalten Krieges EINSCHRÄNKUNG

What's left of the Cold War? Photos by Martin Roemers

Bunkers, tanks and surveillance - What relevance do relics of the Cold War have today?
CultureMarch 2, 20166 images
Deutschland Lech Walesa in Berlin

Spy claims reemerge against Lech Walesa

The hero of Polish independence, Lech Walesa, has rejected accusations of working for the Communist-era secret police.
February 17, 2016
Phillip Breedlove NATO U.S. Air Force

NATO commander seeks to avoid 'Cold War'

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, General Breedlove said NATO is taking 'appropriate defensive measures'
February 14, 2016
München Sicherheitskonferenz - Dmitri Medwedew

Medvedev: 'New Cold War'

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said tensions between Russia and the West have reached Cold War levels.
February 13, 2016
Litauen Vilnius 1991 Massenprotest

Lithuania puts ex-Soviet soldiers on trial

Lithuanian authorities have opened a mass trial against 65 former Soviet officials for their role in a 1991 crackdown.
January 28, 2016
Film still Deutschland '83 Filmstill

On the brink of nuclear war in 1983: 'Deutschland 83'

"Deutschland 83" features the Cold War through a spy's story. It won the best drama award at the International Emmys.
CultureNovember 26, 2015
Bridge of Spies

"Bridge of Spies”: Spielberg’s New Thriller

Steven Spielberg shot a spy movie in Berlin and Potsdam. Now it’s premiered in Berlin.
November 16, 2015
Glienicke Bridge, Germany, Copyright: Ralf Hirschberger/dpa

Spielberg's 'Bridge of Spies'

It was filmed in Berlin and a German actor stars with Tom Hanks. Spielberg's film tells an incredible but true story.
November 13, 2015
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@dwnews - World reactions to Helmut Schmidt's death

November 10, 201501:56 min