After multiple failures of United States President John F.
Kennedy’s attempt to overthrow Cuban Dictator Fidel Castro, an initiation of war established a new relationship between the opponent countries. In 1962, as suspicion towards the Soviet Union arises, a thirteen day confrontation involving the direct encounter of nuclear conflict with the two dominant powers, United States and Soviet Union, resulting the Cuban Missile Crisis thus impacting Cold War.The U.S. declared great support for Batista, the President of Cuba serving from 1921 to 1940, due to him being an ally of U.S. companies. After the overthrow of Batista in 1959, the U.
S. raised caution towards Fidel Castro, the Prime Minister of Cuba, not long after the Cuban Revolution. The hostility gradually developed when suspicion of a Cuban invasion was observed in view of Castro’s ideology and anti-Americanism. As Castro’s dictatorship inveterate, he began increasingly provoke and denounce the United States essentially to seek support from the communist bloc nations. As Cuba moved towards an alliance with the Soviet Union, the U.
S. marked an official opposition towards Cuba and was urged to condemn their actions in regards to the new revolutionary government during the following years. While with Soviet Union, although the two nations were temporarily allies during World War II, the influence of the existing two opposing economic and political ideologies begin a hostile relationship.The Soviet Union’s alliance with Cuba is mostly related in economic terms. On July 9, 1960, Nikita Khrushchev declares that “speaking figuratively, in case of necessity, Soviet artilleryman can support the Cuban people with rocket fire.
” The Soviet Union provides military devices, political, and financial assistant to Cuba. Prior to the timeline of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Soviet Union began installing missiles in Cuba, locations where they are capable of reaching their target of the U.S. While this primarily serves as a threat towards the U.S., it can also gain Soviet Union an authority with the U.S..
President Kennedy is wary of the relationship between Fidel Castro and Soviet statesman, Nikita Khrushchev. At the same time, suspicions upon movements of Soviet Union equipment and personnel to Cuba has aroused in the Central Intelligence Agency(CIA). As a response, U-2 planes were sent to photograph and monitor Soviet bases that were present in Cuba. Although a first attempt had previously present on October 7, an irrelevant meteorological condition prevented the flight to successfully proceed. By October 14, 1962, sightings of installed Soviet missiles in Cuba had substantiated truth in the U.S.’s suspicion.
However, the U.S. administration was unsure how to respond. In order to achieve resolution, Kennedy and his advisors had attended many secret meetings throughout the thirteen days as new awarenesses of the discovery were being revealed. Due to its secrecy, a large division of the U.S.
government was kept unacknowledged. Discussions continue to take place among Kennedy and other Executive Committees while ongoing research on Soviet bases in Cuba were present. By October 17, the American U-2 flights provided additional photographs that demonstrated the existence of another 16 to 32 missiles.
While the U.S. planned for an airstrike on Cuban missile sites and demolish existing missiles, it was not fully established that this action would guarantee completely wiping out all missiles.
On day 7, October 22, President Kennedy publicly announced the discovery of and revealed evidence of Soviet missiles in Cuba as he called for their removal. Furthermore, Kennedy declared zero tolerance for Cuba if missiles were not removed. He imposed a naval blockade around Cuba, threatening to invade the island.In response, Khrushchev privately sent a letter to Kennedy to speak of actions that the U.S. had performed, in which he described an intimidation instead of a fair deal, “You, Mr. President, are not declaring a quarantine, but rather issuing an ultimatum, and you are threatening that if we do not obey your orders, you will then use force. Think about what you are saying! .
..You are not appealing to reason; you want to intimidate us.
(Khrushchev, Nikita. “Khrushchev Letter to President Kennedy.” Received by President Kennedy, 24 Oct. 1962,https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/x2jfk.html)” Furthermore, Khrushchev explained that he will remove missile sites in Cuba in exchange for the U.
S. to cancel their invasion. The two officially come to a deal; on October 28, the Soviets agreed to remove the missiles if the U.S., concurred to removing their missiles in Turkey that is installed during the Bay of Pigs and Operation Mongoose, the preceding plans of the U.S. to overthrow Fidel Castro.
Negotiation continued to settle for the next several days when the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis was indicated as Kennedy proclaimed the end on November 20.Although the Cuban Missile Crisis was not executed in a physically violent action, however, it presented more of a hazard than a straightforward warfare as any wrong step will commence the occurrence of a nuclear war. The announcement from President Kennedy on October 22 is rather bold; which was seen as a direct threat in the eyes of their opponent countries. The militaries have been on high alert for the war that could start anytime if misunderstandings were to take place between the three countries. “That saturday, 27 October, was, and remains, the closest the world has come to a nuclear holocaust – the blackest day of a horrendous week.(Home, Alistair.
“Remember Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore, www.brainyquote.com/topics/remember_8.)” As the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis is announced, Americans terminated endurance as they experienced the break of a massive nuclear war that involved the two superpowers.
Fortunately, the established compromise at the end of October indicated the increasing distance of warfare.After the U.S. agreed to discontinued invasions toward Cuba, Kennedy guaranteed to no further invasions of Cuba. Fidel Castro claimed that Cuba benefitted most out of the countries that are involved, as the U.S. discontinued plans to remove him from power. Strained relations between the Soviet Union and the United States improved after they have negotiated agreements.
After the Cuban Missile Crisis, Soviets and Americans established the Moscow Washington Hotline, a direct communication link with the purpose of prohibiting misunderstandings that could possibly take in place. In addition, the two countries agreed to ban aboveground testing of nuclear weapons as well as continuing contributions to nuclear technology.The resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis brought termination of multiple incidents that could have evolved into further war, such as the opposing relationship between the U.S. and Cuba.
In conclusion, the Cuban Missile Crisis began as an arising conflict while ending with an unexpected compromise.
