Khrushchev Thaw
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In Soviet history, Khruschev's Thaw or Khrushchev Thaw refers to the period between the end of 1950s and the beginning of 1960s, when repressions and censorship reached a low point. In Russian, the term is Khrushchovskaya Ottepel or simply Ottepel (хрущёвская о́ттепель IPA: [xruˈʂovskəyə ˈotːʲepʲɪlʲ]). The term was coined after Ilya Ehrenburg's 1954 novel The Thaw, "Оттепель" (text in original Russian), sensational for its time.
In the West, Khrushchev's Thaw is known as a thaw in the icy tension between the United States and the USSR during the Cold War. The tensions were able to thaw because of Khrushchev's de-Stalinization of the USSR and peaceful co-existence theory and also because of US President Eisenhower's cautious attitude and peace attempts. For example, both leaders attempted to achieve peace by attending the 1955 Geneva International Peace Summit and developing the Open Skies Policy and Quest for Arms Agreement. The leaders’ attitudes allowed them to, as Khrushchev put it, "break the ice."
Khrushchev's Thaw developed largely as a result of Khrushchev's theory of peaceful co-existence which believed the two superpowers (USA and USSR) and their ideologies could co-exist together, without war (peacefully). Khrushchev had created the theory of peaceful existence in an attempt to reduce hostility between the two superpowers. He tried to prove peaceful coexistence by attending international peace conferences, such as the Geneva Summit, and by travelling internationally, such as his trip to America’s Camp David in 1959.
This spirit of cooperation was severely damaged by the U-2 spy plane incident. The Soviet presentation of downed pilot Gary Powers at the May 1960 Paris Peace Summit and Eisenhower's refusal to apologize ended much of the progress of this era.
