Khrushchev UN shoe-banging incident
E417855
The Khrushchev UN shoe-banging incident was a dramatic 1960 episode in which Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev angrily pounded his shoe on his desk during a United Nations debate, symbolizing the intense confrontational style of Cold War diplomacy.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Khrushchev UN shoe-banging incident canonical | 1 |
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Cold War event
ⓘ
United Nations General Assembly incident ⓘ diplomatic incident ⓘ |
| action |
angry desk-pounding
ⓘ
shoe-banging on desk ⓘ |
| approximateDate | October 1960 ⓘ |
| associatedWith | Nikita Khrushchev’s volatile public persona ⓘ |
| became |
iconic image of Khrushchev
ⓘ
symbol of Soviet bluster ⓘ |
| body | United Nations General Assembly ⓘ |
| chronologicalContext |
Eisenhower administration
ⓘ
surface form:
Eisenhower administration period in the United States
post-Stalin Soviet leadership era ⓘ |
| city | New York City ⓘ |
| controversy |
disputes over exact details of whether the shoe actually struck the desk
ⓘ
uncertainty about how Khrushchev obtained or removed the shoe ⓘ |
| country |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| countryOfMainParticipant | Soviet Union NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| culturalImpact |
referenced in discussions of UN decorum
ⓘ
referenced in political satire ⓘ |
| date | 1960 ⓘ |
| decade | 1960s ⓘ |
| duringSession | Fifteenth session of the United Nations General Assembly ⓘ |
| emotionalTone |
anger
ⓘ
outrage ⓘ |
| hasLanguageDepiction | widely recounted in memoirs and histories of the Cold War ⓘ |
| historicalReputation |
notorious example of Cold War theatrics
ⓘ
one of the most famous moments in UN history ⓘ |
| legacy |
frequently cited as an example of undiplomatic behavior at the UN
ⓘ
used as a metaphor for loud, aggressive diplomacy ⓘ |
| location | United Nations Headquarters ⓘ |
| mainParticipant | Nikita Khrushchev ⓘ |
| mediaCoverage | extensive international press coverage ⓘ |
| notableFor |
public display of anger by a head of government at the UN
ⓘ
use of a shoe as a political prop ⓘ |
| objectUsed | shoe ⓘ |
| organizationContext | United Nations ⓘ |
| politicalContext | Cold War ⓘ |
| relatedTo |
East–West diplomatic tensions
ⓘ
United States–Soviet Union relations ⓘ
surface form:
Soviet–American rivalry
|
| setting | plenary meeting of the UN General Assembly ⓘ |
| symbolized |
Soviet defiance toward Western powers
ⓘ
intense confrontational style of Cold War diplomacy ⓘ |
| timePeriod | 20th century ⓘ |
| topicOfDebate |
criticism of Western colonial powers
ⓘ
decolonization ⓘ |
| typeOfProtest | dramatic physical gesture ⓘ |
| visualIconography | images and cartoons of Khrushchev waving or banging a shoe ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.