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| Fig. 1: One of the first images of missile bases under construction shown to President Kennedy on the morning of October 16, 1962. (Courtesy of the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration through the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
The Cold War was a power struggle between the two superpowers of the time, United States and the Soviet Union. Although it is called a War, it was mostly made up of covert operations and spies. [1] There was little to none physical fight. However, the Cold War is emblematic for the many laws and bills passed during this period. The War had several moments which have become emblematic and clear examples of this period. The Cuban Missile Crisis was one of such moments. Just 90 miles from Southern Florida there was a threat of Russian Nuclear Missiles. In an attempt to scare and show power Russia made deals with Cuba, a nation that had just undergone a coup d'tat and had then become communist. Fidel Castro, Cuba's communist dictator, would come to an agreement with the Soviet Union in order to build a Russian Missile base in Cuba in exchange for money and military armament. [2,3]
In 1959, Cuba stood unstable and with no clear direction of the future. After Fidel Castro had overthrown Fulgencio Batista, Cubas president, he changed the nations ideals into communist ones. After failed attempts by the United States to stabilize the nation, such as; Bay of Pigs, a failed attempt to infiltrate Cuba with exiled citizens and American air support. [2] Castro started to solidify his regime and built a communist nation with the support of other communist nations such as the Soviet Union. Arms deals were being made between these two nations, one of these deals led to the Cuban Missile Crisis. [2]
In a regular flyover on October 14,1962, a U-2 spy plane captured images of several missile sites and missiles such as the SS-4 and the SS-5 in Cuba. One of the several images taken by the U-2 spy plane is the one shown in Fig.1, this picture shows a detailed view of the missile camp and outlines its components. Strategically located these sites were on the western side of Cuba, the nearest location in the United States is the intended target. During the crisis the Soviet Union had 36 ICBMs and hundreds of nuclear warheads, long-range bombers and dozens of submarine launched ballistic missile warheads. President John F. Kennedy, the United States leader, immediately addressed the issues and started seeking solutions. [1] After understanding the military options, he decided that a more pacific and political way would be more beneficial for all parties involved. An exchange of letters and negotiations between both countries led to a final agreement between the two. The United States was to remove its missiles from their bases in Turkey and never to invade Cuba. [4] In the other hand, the Soviet Union had to empty the missile sites and remove any nuclear threat from Cuba. [3]
© Alberto Abel Mestre Vivas. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] L. J. Smith and D. S. Patterson, eds., Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961- 1963, Volume X Cuba, January 1961 - September 1962 (U.S. Government Printing Office, 1977).
[2] J. G. Blight and P. Kornbluth, eds., Politics of Illusion: The Bay of Pigs Invasion Reexamined (Lynne Rienner, 1997).
[3] G. Allison, "At 50, the Cuban Missile Crisis as Guide," New York Times, 15 Jun 12.
[4] M. Genender, "The Cuban Missile Crisis: The Brink of Nuclear War," Physics 241, Stanford University, Winter 2017.
