Berlin On The Brink

This study examines the 'Berlin question' from its origin in wartime plans for the occupation of Germany to the Paris Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in 1949. Tracing the blockade's origins, it explains why British and American planners during the Second World War neglected Western access to post-war Berlin and why Western officials did little to reduce Berlin's vulnerability as Cold War tensions increased.

The ultimate struggle for supremacy over Berlin begins... ... a stage-worthy walkout of the Soviet delegates from all four-power institutions sets the scene for the next step. On the world stage diplomatic relations are at a breaking point and the Soviet Union and the Western Allies face off in an unforgiving battle of ideologies. Are the Russians really willing to starve two million people in an attempt to push the Western Allies from Berlin? Presented with the fait-accompli of the Berlin blockade, cabaret singer Bruni von Sinner has no doubt about their sinister intentions. Not even the reassurances from Vladimir Rublev, a member of the Red Army Intelligence, who insists there's no such thing as a besieged city, can convince her otherwise. Landlocked in the paw of the Russian Bear, she faces the choice of giving up her freedom or slowly starving to death. She and her compatriots have only one hope to stay alive - a supply run by air. But feeding a city of this size by air is simply impossible. The entire Operation Vittles reaches a breaking point when the weather turns bad and no more planes can land. Can the Americans and British win the race against time and develop the technology needed to fly through winter with snow, ice, mist and storms? And can the engineer Victor Richards build a new airport for Berlin from scratch - with not much more than hungry workers and shovels? Because if he doesn't, the woman he loves will have to live behind the Iron Curtain for the rest of her life. Based on the historical events of the Berlin Airlift, On the Brink takes you on a roller-coaster ride of hope, disappointment, determination and courage.

Based on the historical events of the Berlin Airlift, this post-WW2 novel takes you on a roller-coaster ride of hope, determination, love, and courage. Cabaret singer Bruni uses men strictly for her own benefit - no love involved. Keeping good relations with the decision-makers of all four Occupying Powers gives her a better life than the average Berliner, but this is about to change when the Soviets clamp down on all traffic between Berlin and the Western zones. Victor, a gifted American engineer, has been tasked to do the impossible: to build a new airport for Berlin from scratch. Without much more than starving workers and shovels, can he win the race to feed the population before winter sets in and all construction must come to a halt? When the two of them first meet, it's love at first sight. But while Bruni doesn't do love, Victor is looking for a woman to marry. Will he be able to convince her that he's the right man for her? Readers raved about On the Brink: "There are many things I appreciate about Marion Kummerow's work, and one of them is that she does her research! I have a deep appreciation for the effort she puts into not only crafting a fabulous story but respecting historical details and flavors. I also appreciate that many of her novels are part of a series for addicts like me, but they are written in such a manner that they can also be stand-alone books. On the Brink, the second book in her Berlin Fractured series, is a can't-miss!" - Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "On the Brink, book two of the Berlin Fractured series, is a masterfully written and exciting portrayal that incorporates intrigue, mystery, suspense, and romance during the Berlin Airlift." - Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "On The Brink grabs you right from the start... [it] will be your new favorite book." - Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Liberal arts colleges represent a tiny portion of the higher education market, yet produce a stunning percentage of America’s leaders. But the demand for career-related education has pressured them to become vocational, distorting their mission and core values. This book is a wake-up call for everyone who values liberal arts education.

In June 1961, Nikita Khrushchev called Berlin "the most dangerous place on earth." He knew what he was talking about. Much has been written about the Cuban Missile Crisis a year later, but the Berlin Crisis of 1961 was more decisive in shaping the Cold War-and more perilous. It was in that hot summer that the Berlin Wall was constructed, which would divide the world for another twenty-eight years. Then two months later, and for the first time in history, American and Soviet fighting men and tanks stood arrayed against each other, only yards apart. One mistake, one nervous soldier, one overzealous commander-and the tripwire would be sprung for a war that could go nuclear in a heartbeat. On one side was a young, untested U.S. president still reeling from the Bay of Pigs disaster and a humiliating summit meeting that left him grasping for ways to respond. It would add up to be one of the worst first-year foreign policy performances of any modern president. On the other side, a Soviet premier hemmed in by the Chinese, East Germans, and hardliners in his own government. With an all-important Party Congress approaching, he knew Berlin meant the difference not only for the Kremlin's hold on its empire-but for his own hold on the Kremlin. Neither man really understood the other, both tried cynically to manipulate events. And so, week by week, they crept closer to the brink. Based on a wealth of new documents and interviews, filled with fresh-sometimes startling-insights, written with immediacy and drama, Berlin 1961 is an extraordinary look at key events of the twentieth century, with powerful applications to these early years of the twenty-first. Includes photographs

President Kennedy's decisive action during the 1962 nuclear confrontation between Russia and the U.S. over missle sites in Cuba is chronicled.

Includes 30 Illustrations In this expert survey Air Force Historian Robert Miller explores the Epic story of the Berlin Airlift, the confrontation of Democracy and Communism as the world teetered on the brink of the Third World War. The Berlin blockade (24 June 1948;–12 May 1949) was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War. During the multinational occupation of post–World War II Germany, the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies’ railway, road, and canal access to the sectors of Berlin under allied control. The Soviets offered to drop the blockade if the Western Allies withdrew the newly introduced Deutschmark from West Berlin. In response, the Western Allies organised the Berlin airlift to carry supplies to the people in West Berlin. Aircrews from the United States Air Force, the British Royal Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and the South African Air Force flew over 200,000 flights in one year, providing up to 8,893 tons of necessities daily, such as fuel and food, to the Berliners. Neither side wanted a war; the Soviets did not disrupt the airlift. By the spring of 1949 the airlift was clearly succeeding, and by April it was delivering more cargo than had previously been transported into the city by rail. On 11 May 1949, the USSR lifted the blockade of West Berlin. The Berlin Crisis of 1948–1949 served to highlight competing ideological and economic visions for post-war Europe, particularly Germany. The clash ultimately led to the division of that country into East and West and to the division of Berlin itself.