Khrushchev was responsible for the building of the Berlin Wall because he wanted to stop the flow of refugees from East to West Berlin and to prevent a possible conflict with the Western powers over the status of the divided city. Khrushchev was the leader of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and he pursued a policy of peaceful coexistence with the West, but also challenged them on several issues, such as the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Berlin Crisis.
The Berlin Crisis was a series of events that escalated the tension between the Soviet Union and the Western allies over the control and access to Berlin, which was located in the Soviet-occupied zone of Germany but divided into four sectors administered by the US, Britain, France, and the USSR. After World War II, Germany was divided into two states: the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) in the West and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the East. The FRG was a democratic and capitalist state allied with the West, while the GDR was a communist and authoritarian state aligned with the Soviet Union. Many East Germans were dissatisfied with their living conditions and political repression under the GDR regime, and they sought to escape to the West through Berlin, which was an open city with free movement between sectors. Between 1949 and 1961, about 2.7 million people fled from East Germany to West Germany, most of them through Berlin.
This mass exodus weakened the GDR's economy and legitimacy, and threatened the stability of the Soviet Bloc. Khrushchev was concerned that the Western powers would use Berlin as a base to undermine the communist system in Eastern Europe. He also feared that a war could break out if the West tried to interfere with his plans to integrate Berlin into East Germany. Therefore, he decided to take drastic measures to seal off West Berlin from East Berlin and East Germany. In 1958, he issued an ultimatum to the Western allies, demanding that they withdraw their troops from West Berlin and recognize it as a free city under Soviet protection. He also threatened to sign a separate peace treaty with East Germany that would give them control over all access routes to West Berlin. The Western allies rejected his ultimatum and reaffirmed their commitment to defend West Berlin.
The situation reached a climax in 1961, when Khrushchev met with US President John F. Kennedy in Vienna to discuss the Berlin issue. The meeting ended without any agreement, and Khrushchev realized that Kennedy would not back down on his support for West Berlin. He also learned that Kennedy had increased his military spending and prepared for a possible confrontation with the Soviet Union. Khrushchev decided that he had to act quickly before the situation got out of hand. He ordered the construction of a wall along the border between East and West Berlin, which he claimed was necessary to protect his people from "fascist elements" in the West. On 13 August 1961, East German troops began to erect a barbed wire fence around West Berlin, which was soon replaced by a concrete wall with guard towers, mines, and barbed wire. The Wall effectively cut off West Berlin from East Berlin and East Germany, and prevented any further escape attempts by East Germans. The Wall also became a symbol of the Cold War division between communism and democracy, and a source of resentment and protest for many Germans on both sides..