The Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest attempt to nuclear war
that the world has ever come to. The United States armed forces
were at their highest state of being prepared for a nuclear war and
Soviet field commanders in Cuba were ready to use battlefield
nuclear weapons to defend the island of Cuba if it was invaded.
Luckily, war was averted thanks to two men, President John F.
Kennedy and Premier Nikita Khrushchev.
Slide 3
"Nuclear catastrophe was hanging by a thread... and we weren't
counting days or hours, but minutes. -Soviet General and Army Chief
of Operations, Anatoly Gribkov We will not prematurely or
unnecessarily risk the costs of a worldwide nuclear war in which
even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth but neither
shall we shrink from that risk any time it must be faced.
-President Kennedy
Slide 4
In 1962, the Soviet Union was desperately behind the United
States in the arms race. Soviet missiles were only powerful enough
to be launched against Europe but U.S. missiles were capable of
striking the entire Soviet Union. In late April 1962, Soviet
Premier Nikita Khrushchev conceived the idea of placing
intermediate- range missiles in Cuba. A deployment in Cuba would
double the Soviet strategic arsenal and provide a real deterrent to
a potential U.S. attack against the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, Fidel
Castro was looking for a way to defend his island nation from an
attack by the U.S. Ever since the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in
1961, Castro felt a second attack was inevitable. Consequently, he
approved of Khrushchev's plan to place missiles on the island. In
the summer of 1962 the Soviet Union worked quickly and secretly to
build its missile installations in Cuba. As stated directly from,
http://library.thinkquest.org/11046/days/index.html
Slide 5
This is the first day of the Thirteen days of The Cuban Missile
crisis. This day included a U.S. aircraft locating missiles in
Cuba. Such caused panic to President Kennedy, who at this time was
trying to find a way to resolve the situation
Slide 6
President Kennedy meets to discuss U.S. actions. The meeting
included military and diplomatic course of action Establishes
Executive Committee of the National security Council (EXCOMM)
Slide 7
U-2 flights find the first of three Soviet SS-5 Missile sites
in Cuba, that have ranges up to 2200 nautical miles Kennedy is told
of EX-COMM's decision which includes, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and
the Air Force strongly arguing for an air strike.
Slide 8
President Kennedy and the Soviet Foreign Minister, Gromyko meet
for two hours, within the meeting Gromyko assures Kennedy that
Soviet aid to Cuba has been only for the "defensive capabilities of
Cuba." Quote Only last Thursday, as evidence of this rapid
offensive buildup was already in my hand, Soviet Foreign Minister
Gromyko told me in my office that he was instructed to make it
clear once again, as he said his government had already done, that
Soviet assistance to Cuba, and I quote, "pursued solely for the
purpose of contributing to the defense capabilities of Cuba," that,
and I quote him, "training by Soviet specialists of Cuban nationals
in handling defensive armaments was by no means offensive, and if
it were otherwise," Mr. Gromyko went on, "the Soviet Government
would never become involved in rendering such assistance." That
statement also was false. John F. Kennedy
Slide 9
Military options are discussed.
Slide 10
President Kennedy meets with his advisors and then orders a
defensive quarantine that will be instituted as soon as possible
The full operation is reviewed and approved the President schedules
a television address for the next evening.
Slide 11
Kennedy makes a decision to implement a naval blockade on Cuba
for the time being and the exchange of all offensive weapons is
prohibited Kennedy warns against soviet attack as, "I don't know
what the Soviets will do." Another U-2 flight that day reveals
bombers and Migs that are being rapidly assembled New cruise
missile sites are also found being built on Cuba's northern
shore.
Slide 12
President Kennedy meets with congressional leaders at the White
House. Kennedy is shown the photographic evidence of new Soviet
missile installations in Cuba. At 7:00 Kennedy addresses the
American public, announcing the presence of offensive missile sites
in Cuba and his plans to implement a naval blockade. U.S. military
forces go to DEFCON 3. Quote It shall be the policy of this nation
to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation
in the Western Hemisphere as an attack on the United States,
requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union. John
F. Kennedy
Slide 13
QUOTE Kennedy orders six Crusader jets to fly a low level
reconnaissance mission. Organization of American States (OAS)
unanimously supports the U.S.' decision of the quarantine against
Cuba. More reconnaissance photos reveal that the Soviet missiles in
Cuba are ready to be launched. The OAS then votes on diplomatic
options. By the end of the day U.S. ships had taken up position
along the quarantine line, 800 miles from Cuba. Kennedy receives a
letter from Khrushchev in which Khrushchev comments that there is
a, "serious threat to peace and security of peoples." President
Kennedy then decides to give Khrushchev more time and pulls the
quarantine line back to 500 miles. I must say frankly, that the
measures indicated in your statement constitute a serious threat to
peace and to the security of nations. The United States has openly
taken the path of grossly violating the United Nations Charter, the
path of violating international norms of freedom of navigation on
the high seas, the path of aggressive actions both against Cuba and
against the Soviet Union. Nikita Khruschev
Slide 14
Soviet ships en route to Cuba with questionable cargo either
slow down or reverse their course except for one. Military forces
go to DEFCON 2 the highest ever in U.S. history. Soviet ships reach
the quarantine line. U.S. vessels come extremely close to firing at
the vessels, but they turned away. Kennedy believes that if an air
attack is executed, the Soviets will at least be able to launch a
few missiles.
Slide 15
Kennedy sends a letter to Khrushchev placing accountability on
him for the crisis on the Soviet Union. EX-COMM then discusses a
proposal to withdraw U.S. missiles from Turkey in exchange for the
withdrawal of Soviet missiles in Cuba. In presenting us with these
conditions, you, Mr. President, have flung a challenge at us. Who
asked you to do this? By what right did you do this? Our ties with
the Republic of Cuba, like our relations with other states,
regardless of what kind of states they may be, concern only the two
countries between which these relations exist. And if we now speak
of the quarantine to which your letter refers, a quarantine may be
established, according to accepted international practice, only by
agreement of states between themselves, and not by, some third
party. Quarantines exist, for example, on agricultural goods and
products. But in this case the question in no way one of
quarantine, but rather of far more serious things, and you yourself
understand this. Nikita Khrushchev
Slide 16
QUOTE During an EX-COMM meeting, Kennedy states that he
believes the quarantine alone will not force the Soviet government
to remove its offensive weapons from Cuba. A CIA report from that
morning states that the Soviets did not stop their development of
the missile sites in Cuba More reconnaissance flight reveals the
Soviets were also attempting to camouflage the missiles. Khrushchev
sends another letter to President Kennedy with a proposal to remove
his missiles if Kennedy publicly announced never to invade Cuba. I
would like to briefly express my own personal opinion. If [an
invasion of Cuba] takes place and the imperialists invade Cuba with
the aim of occupying it, the dangers of their aggressive policy are
so great that after such an invasion the Soviet Union must never
allow circumstances in which the imperialists could carry out a
nuclear first strike against it. Fidel Castro
Slide 17
A message from Khrushchev is received saying that they will
remove their missiles from Cuba if the U.S. guarantees that they
will not attack Cuba. The production of the missiles continues. RFK
discovers that the Soviets are willing to remove the missiles if
the U.S. removes their missiles from Turkey. During this day Castro
also presses Khrushchev to launch a nuclear missile if the U.S.
decides to invade Cuba. An American U-2 is shot down over Cuba
killing the pilot, Major Rudolf Anderson. U-2 accidentally strays
into Soviet airspace near Alaska nearly being intercepted by Soviet
fighters. President Kennedy finally writes a letter to Khrushchev
stating that he will make a statement that the U.S. will not invade
Cuba only if Khrushchev removes the missiles from Cuba. On October
27, Major Anderson took off in a U-2 from a forward operating
location at McCoy Air Force Base, Orlando, Florida, and was shot
down by a Soviet-supplied S-75 Dvina (NATO designation SA-2
Guideline) surface-to-air missile near Banes, Cuba. "The loss of
the U-2 over Banes was probably caused by intercept by an SA-2 from
the Banes site, or pilot hypoxia, with the former appearing more
likely on the basis of present information," stated a CIA document
dated 0200 hrs, 28 October 1962. Anderson was killed when shrapnel
from the exploding proximity warhead punctured his pressure suit,
causing it to decompress at high altitude. On October 31, Acting
United Nations Secretary U Thant, returning from a visit with
Premier Fidel Castro, announced that Major Anderson was dead.
Slide 18
October 28, 1962 The crisis is over and Khrushchev announces
over Radio Moscow, that he agrees to remove the missiles from Cuba
and the missiles will be dismantled. Kennedy still continues to
enforce the quarantine for one more month prior to the end of the
crisis.