Ronald Reagan became US President in 1981. Reagan was elected on a programme of right-wing policies and made no secret of his dislike of Communism and the USSR, calling it 'the Evil Empire'. He was a controversial figure: his supporters relished his clear, simple and powerful messages; his critics regarded his views as simplistic and potentially dangerous. He supported anti-Communist forces in numerous conflicts around the world, most notably in Afghanistan, and also in Central America, where US money supported the anti-Communist Contra forces.

Reagan came to power at a time when other leaders in Europe held broadly similar views, above all the UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. He believed in the importance of outdoing the USSR in defence spending, increasing the US outlay to $32.6 billion.

In 1982, he gave the go-ahead for the Strategic Defense Initiative (popularly known as 'Star Wars'). This was a system using satellites and lasers that could destroy missiles before they hit their targets. Clearly, a weapon such as this could change the whole nature of nuclear war. The reality of the SDI was a long way from the hype, but the reaction it aroused was typical of the tensions and paranoia which characterised the Cold War early in Reagan's presidency.

Over time, however, Reagan developed a good working relationship with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. By the late 1980s, the two men were able to make progress in arms control and building better relations generally between the superpowers.