Cold War
Cold War: East Germany Workers Uprising: In East Germany, the Soviet Union orders a division of troops into East Berlin to quell a rebellion.
In context
- When
- Wednesday, June 17 195373 years ago
- Category
- Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
- Era
- 20th century · 1950s
- Recorded from
- Wikipedia “On this day” feed
At a glance
Dates: From 1953.
What happened
The Cold War was a period of international geopolitical rivalry between the United States (USA) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc. It began in the aftermath of the Second World War and ended with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The term cold war is used because there was no direct fighting between the two superpowers, though each supported opposing sides in regional conflicts known as proxy wars.
June 17 through the years
Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.
- 1953Cold War
- 1987Dusky seaside sparrow
- 1989Interflug Flight 102
- 1991Apartheid
- 1992George H. W. Bush
- 1994O. J. Simpson
- 2009Czech Pirate Party
- 2015Charleston church shooting
- 2015White supremacy
- 2017June 2017 Portugal wildfires
- 2021Juneteenth
Also in 1953
- August 10First Indochina WarFirst Indochina War: The French Union withdrew its forces from Operation Camargue against the Việt Minh in central modern-day Vietnam.
- October 14Ariel SharonIsraeli military commander Ariel Sharon and his Unit 101 special forces attacked the village of Qibya on the West Bank, destroying 45 bui…
- June 81953 Flint–Beecher tornadoAn F5 tornado struck Flint and Beecher, Michigan, causing 116 fatalities, 844 injuries and $19 million in damage during a larger tornado…
- October 3Holy Rosary Cathedral (Vancouver)Vancouver's Holy Rosary Cathedral was dedicated by Archbishop William Mark Duke, fifty-three years after it first opened.
- March 181953 Yenice–Gönen earthquakeAn earthquake hits western Turkey, killing at least 1,070 people.
- January 6Asian Socialist ConferenceThe inaugural Asian Socialist Conference, an organisation of socialist political parties, opened in Rangoon with 177 delegates, observers…
- June 2Elizabeth IIQueen Elizabeth II was crowned at Westminster Abbey in London.
- June 2Coronation of Elizabeth IIThe coronation of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey becomes the first British coronation, and one of the first major international…
Sources
- Wikipedia article (text, CC BY-SA 4.0)
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 for adapted text · how we source this
Cite this page
“Cold War”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/cold-war-1953-june-17, accessed October 26, 2026.
Cite the underlying source as well — the source links above go to the record this entry is adapted from.
Questions about this entry
When did Cold War happen?
June 17 1953 — 73 years ago, on a Wednesday.
Where does this text come from?
Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.
How do I cite this page?
Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.
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