Cuban Missile Crisis

The closest the world has come to nuclear war was the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962. This was the tense cold war opposition between the United States and the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union had installed nuclear missiles in Cuba, just 90 miles off the coast of the United States

The Cold War was the result of a clash between communism and capitalism, two opposing world-views. Another cause of the build up to the Cold War was the intransigent attitude of both sides. The Soviet Union was extremely concerned about its security after having been invaded twice in the twentieth century. In 1945 America created and used the atomic bomb against Japan and the USSR was determined to create one of its own. Both the USSR and the USA built up huge arsenals of Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). The United States tested a hydrogen bomb in 1952 and in November 1955, the USSR developed one too. After that the USA moved its bombers into Europe. In 1955 West Germany was allowed to re-arm and join NATO. Russia responded by forming the Warsaw Mutual Defense Pact with its buffer zone neighbors.

In 1957 the Soviets used a missile to launch Sputnik 1 into orbit around the earth. The arms race evolved into a space race as the United States rushed to launch its own satellites. The space race was an opportunity for the two nations to show their technological superiority. The Soviet Union launched Sputnik I, the first orbiting satellite, on October 4, 1957. On November 3, they launched Sputnik II with the first living creature, a dog, named Laika.

On January 31, 1958 the United States launched Explorer I, its first satellite. The U.S. began its Mercury program with an 18-minute flight on January 31, 1961 that carried a chimpanzee. The Soviet Union, meanwhile, had its Vostok program and on April 12, Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space and completed one orbit aboard Vostok 1. In June 1963 Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space. The United States started to catch up on February 20, 1962 when John Glenn orbited the earth three times. The US Apollo 11 mission launched on July 16, 1969 and Neil Armstrong became the first person to step on the moon.

The Berlin Wall was built in 1961 and brought more tension to the Cold War. The open border between East and West Berlin had permitted thousands of East Europeans to escape from Soviet rule. This had a negative economic impact on Eastern Europe and was as a political embarrassment for the Soviet Union. On Sunday, August 13, 1969 East Germany blocked off East Berlin from West Berlin with barbed wire. A few days later the Berlin Wall was built to replace the barbed wire. From 1961 to 1981, there were 37,800 successful escapes across the Berlin wall from the East to the West. The reunification of Germany took place on October 3, 1990.

In 1962, Cuba was convinced that the USA was planning to attack them and asked the Soviet Union for military assistance. The USSR sent Cuba materials to build missile bases and launch sites. When President Kennedy realized that Cuba could launch missiles into America, he demanded that the USSR remove its weapons and troops. The Americans formed a naval blockade as the world stood nervously on the edge of a nuclear war. The USSR removed its weapons despite protests from Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

The United States believed that the Soviet Union's expansion threatened the developing nations of the world. So, in 1949 President Truman and Congress approved nearly $400 million for technical development programs in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. The goals of this Point Four Program were to modernize and strengthen developing nations and discourage the growth of communism.

Gorbachev's policy of Glasnost eliminated the strict censorship practiced for hundreds of years. Glasnost stands for openness, and Soviet citizens were now allowed to speak openly about their country's problems. Perestroika, or "restructuring," was Gorbachev's attempt to end the inefficiency and corruption in government.

The United States and other Western nations decided to form alliances against possible Soviet attempts to extend their sphere of influence. In April 1949 the United States signed the North Atlantic Treaty. Members agreed that an attack on one of them would be considered an attack on all of them. The Soviets later formed an opposing alliance known as The Warsaw Pact. Because of the arms race many countries in the world now own nuclear weapons.

The effects of the Cold War spread throughout the globe like the radiation clouds from the atmospheric nuclear tests in the 1940's, 1950's and 1960's. The ideologies on both sides included a vision of world dominance. In addition, the US military/industrial complex's "Domino Theory"- the fear that if one country turned Communist it would lead to their neighbors to following suit and to increased regional instability- led to many military conflicts, including the Vietnam War, funded and aided by both Superpowers.

In the early morning of October 14, 1962, A U-2 spy aircraft flies over western Cuba, revealing missile

sites in Cuba. Two days later, on October 16th Kennedy learns about the data collected on the missile deployments. President Kennedy was shown photographs of Soviet SS-4 launching installations under construction in Cuba, taken two days earlier by an airplane. Looking over the photos Kennedy remarked, "They look like footballs on a football field." The missiles he held in his sight had a range of 1,100 miles and threatened major population centers in the U.S. Thee missiles were not operational as of yet but Deputy Director of the CIA said "They soon would be". The president is briefed that should the United States aggressively attack Cuba, it would likely lead to World War III.

Kennedy immediately organized a group of his most important advisors to handle the crisis also know as the Executive Committee or EX-COMM. First, they considered an air strike. This was impossible, however, because the government did not see this as a guaranteed success. They also considered doing nothing, but were afraid this could shorten U.S. credibility. Seven days later Kennedy decided to impose a naval quarantine around Cuba, hoping to prevent the Soviets from bringing more weapons to the island, preventing anything or anyone coming to and from Cuba. As of yet, the Soviets didn't know the Americans knew of the missiles in Cuba. The American public didn't know yet either. If the Soviets found out, they might hide the missiles or launch them if they were ready. If the public found out, the nation would panic.

On October 22, Kennedy broadcast a speech informing the public about the missiles, and his plan to quarantine the island. He also announced publicly

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