Transcript CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS - Father Michael McGivney Catholic

CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
1961
POLITICAL LEADERS
• Cuban
President: Fidel
Castro
Communist Party
of Cuba
• Soviet Leader:
Nikita
Khrushchev
Communist Party
of the Soviet
Union
• US President:
Dwight D.
Eisenhower
(1953 – Jan
1961)
John F.
Kennedy (Jan
1961 - 1963
Republican Party
Democratic Party
IDEOLOGIES
Castro
• Socialist
• Improve social
welfare
• Get rid of neoimperial dominance
of the US in Cuba
Eisenhower/Kennedy
• Capitalism
• Expansion of
influence in Cuba
POLITICAL SITUATION
• Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest the superpowers
came towards a nuclear war
• Downfall in Cuban economy accepted oil from
the Soviet at below-the-market prices
• US refused to refine the oil  Cuba nationalized
American industries
• anti-Castro exiles to overthrow the Cuban
government were developed
 Bay of Pigs invasion of 1961
BAY OF PIGS (APRIL 1961)
• 1500 exiles landed on the beach in attempts to dig
• Cubans supported Cuban revolutionaries
• US was not prepared for this takeover
It was clear to Cuba and the USSR that the US wanted
to overthrow the Cuban government
• US behalf: failure
• Cuban response: install nuclear weaponry
SOVIET INVOLVEMENT
• Under potential nuclear attacks by the US due to
weaponry that they placed in Britain, Italy and the
Jupiter missile in Turkey
• Wanted to help revolutionize Cuba  Latin
American and Caribbean revolution
NUCLEAR WEAPONRY (1962)
• Medium range ballistic missiles
(MRBM)  range between 1000km –
3000km
• Washington ignored reports by US
intelligence operatives of increased
Soviet activity
• October 16, 1962: US U2 plane
identified the missile sites
• October 17, 1962: CIA reports that
the missiles could kill 80 million
Americans; US planes detected 20
Russian ships travelling to Cuba
• October 27, 1962: U2 was shot down
by a Russian missile and killed the
pilot  major threat to the US
October 24, 1962 – Cuban Missile
Launch Site
IS IT ANOTHER WAR?
“Why shouldn’t the Soviet Union have the right to do
the same as America?” – Nikita Khrushchev
US
• Wanted weapons
dismantled
USSR
• Protect Cuba from
invasions
• US to remove weaponry
in Europe
• Soviet ship sent to Cuba, worrying the US of provoking war
• Kennedy’s televised address to the country warned them of the
situation
• Result: communication between Khrushchev and Kennedy led to the
ship turning back
STYLE OF CONFLICT
• Brinksmanship
• Prevention of war due to Mutual assured destruction
• Nuclear deterrence overpowered an actual nuclear war
• Consequence: arms race, stock piling, increased security
measures, economic support
• Benefit: averts outbreak of war and death tolls of combatants
• Historian David G. Coleman analyzes the aftermath of the
Cuban Missile Crisis:
• “Significantly, the Soviets had lied directly to the Americans
before, and this led to a major trust issue in the wake of the crisis.
This is one of the things that really dominated the initial
discussions.”
WHAT WERE THE TYPES OF SETTLEMENTS
WHICH CONCLUDED THE WAR,
CONFLICT, DISPUTE?
RESULT
• Negotiations were made between Khrushchev and
Kennedy through the mediation of the United
Nations.
• Ended with the removal of missiles in Cuba and
later in Turkey with the ultimate decision to limit
nuclear testing.
• "hotline" was established between the Kremlin and
the White House for direct communication in order
to avoid the risk of staring another nuclear war over
poor communications.
ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS
• October 24, 1962, Secretary General of the United
Nations, U.Thant
• Focused on temporarily halting military movement
and missile activity in order to prolong negotiations.
• Made appeals to Khrushchev and Kennedy:
1. Appealed to allow time to resolve the crisis
peacefully, this eased the pressures of the crisis and
allowed for leaders to calmly and critically assess the
situation.
2. Requested moderation, this removed tensions
as there were less military stress and Khrushchev kept
his ships away from Cuba.
TWO MAIN ISSUES OF THE CONFLICT
1. The Missiles in Cuba.
2. Cuba’s security concerns.
• October 28, Khrushchev agreed to dismantle the
missiles as long as Kennedy left Cuba alone.
• Dismantling the missiles was a slow process
• November 20, 1962, Kennedy ended the U.S. Navy
quarantine with his announcement that all known
missiles in Cuba has been shut down.
• January 1963, at the United Nations, the U.S. and
Soviet governments formally declared an end to the
Cuban Missile Crisis.
LIMITED NUCLEAR TEST BAN TREATY
ON AUGUST 5, 1963
SIGNED BY THE UNITED STATES, THE UNITED KINGDOM,
AND THE SOVIET UNION
BRITISH CARTOON FROM OCTOBER 29, 1962
“OK MR. PRESIDENT, LET’S TALK”
KENNEDY AND KRUSHCHEV
BY HERBERT BLOCK
SUMMARY
WORKS CITED
• n.a. "The Crisis Ends." Oracle Think Quest. N.p.. Web. 20 Feb 2013.
<http://library.thinkquest.org/11046/days/conclusion.html>.
• n.a. "Cuban Missile Crisis." Something About Everything Military. N.p..
Web. 20 Feb 2013. <http://www.jcsgroup.com/military/warsmaller/1962cuban1.html>.
• n.a. "The Cuban Missile Crisis." History Today. N.p.. Web. 20 Feb 2013.
<http://www.historytoday.com/john-swift/cuban-missile-crisis>.
• n.a. "UN Played Critical Role in Diffusing Cuban Missile
Crisis." CeaseFire.ca. N.p.. Web. 20 Feb 2013.
<http://www.ceasefire.ca/?p=13206>.
• DORN, A. WALTER, and ROBERT PAUK. "THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
RESOLVED: Untold Story of an Unsung Hero." . N.p.. Web. 20 Feb 2013.
<http://www.walterdorn.org/pub/8>.