USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -That night, Premier Khrushchev gave the East German government permission to stop the flow of emigrants by closing its border for good.

Detailed explanation-2: -Berlin Wall, German Berliner Mauer, barrier that surrounded West Berlin and prevented access to it from East Berlin and adjacent areas of East Germany during the period from 1961 to 1989.

Detailed explanation-3: -To halt the exodus to the West, Soviet leader Nikita Khruschev recommended to East Germany that it close off access between East and West Berlin. On the night of August 12-13, 1961, East German soldiers laid down more than 30 miles of barbed wire barrier through the heart of Berlin.

Detailed explanation-4: -This ultimatum caused dissent among the Western Allies, who were reluctant to go to war over the issue. Khrushchev, however, repeatedly extended the deadline. In November 1958, Khrushchev issued the Western powers an ultimatum to withdraw from Berlin within six months and make it a free, demilitarised city.

Detailed explanation-5: -As the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev allegedly said, it was ‘the testicles of the West: every time I want to make the West scream, I squeeze on Berlin. ‘ Yet the situation was also a headache for the Soviets, as millions of East Germans defected by crossing the West/East Berlin border.