Unit 18: Paper 3 (HL) — History of Europe

Topic 18.18: Post-war central and eastern Europe (1945–2000) Questions

Practice 20 exam-style questions for IB History Topic 18.18. Review the question stems below, then unlock the full Question Bank to access markschemes, model answers, and AI grading.

1Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q13
What name is given to the Soviet claim, articulated after the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia, that the USSR had the right to intervene to preserve socialism in any bloc state?
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2Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q14
Which country was expelled from the Cominform in 1948 after refusing to follow Moscow's orders on trade and military matters?
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3Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q12
Who became Hungarian prime minister on 24 October 1956 and later announced Hungary's withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact?
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4Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q11
In which year was COMECON founded?
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5Discuss15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q9
Discuss the social challenges faced by any one central or eastern European country during its transition away from communism.
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6Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q16
Choose the leader who became the first non-communist Prime Minister in eastern Europe since 1948, in August 1989.
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7Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q15
Approximately how many Hungarians were killed when Soviet tanks re-entered Budapest in November 1956?
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8Analyse15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q13
Analyse the impact of economic crisis on political change in central and eastern Europe in the period 1989–2000.
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9Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q17
Choose the event that triggered NATO's Operation Allied Force air campaign against Serbia in 1999.
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10Discuss15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q14
Discuss the view that the year 1989 represented a turning point in twentieth-century European history.
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11Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q15
Choose the correct description of the 'Brezhnev Doctrine' and its fate under Gorbachev.
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12Examine15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q1
Examine the reasons for the imposition of Soviet control over central and eastern Europe between 1945 and 1949.
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13Discuss15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q3
Discuss the role of economic and military structures, COMECON and the Warsaw Pact, in maintaining Soviet control over central and eastern Europe.
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14Examine15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q1
Examine the causes of the collapse of Soviet control in central and eastern Europe by 1989.
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15To what extent15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q4
To what extent was Yugoslavia's break from Soviet control in 1948 due to the unique position of Josip Broz Tito?
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16Choose1 mark
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q18
Choose the accurate description of Poland's 'Balcerowicz Plan' launched in January 1990.
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17Compare and contrast15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q5
Compare and contrast the causes and outcomes of the 1953 East German uprising and the 1968 Prague Spring.
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18Discuss15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q3
Discuss the reasons why the collapse of communism in 1989 was largely peaceful in most of central and eastern Europe but violent in Romania.
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19Evaluate15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.1 - Q8
Evaluate the importance of Western policy in explaining the survival of Soviet control in central and eastern Europe between 1953 and 1968.
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20Discuss15 marks
2026Aimnova original vault - 18.18.2 - Q6
Discuss the role of international intervention (or its absence) in shaping the course of the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s.
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