Amid infinitely rising tensions between two world superpowers held apart only by mutually assured destruction, it stands to reason that independent countries would have political and military influence in the outcome of this struggle. In the year 1962, Soviet and American tensions are at an all-time high as the Soviet Union assembles nuclear warheads on Cuban soil, just miles off the coast of Florida. Nikita Khrushchev, the leader of the Soviet Union and John F Kennedy, President of the United States engaged in dozens of heated debates and conversations involving Fidel Castro, the Prime Minister of Cuba. These debates and negotiations laid the foundations for the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, the closest the world ever came to a full-scale
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First, a naval blockade was built to isolate the island of Cuba. An address is made to the world when, “President Kennedy directs that attention be focused on implementing the blockade option, calling it the only course of action compatible with American principles” (The Cuban Missile Crisis Timeline). When Kennedy decides to implement a blockade on Cuba, he is well aware that he will be confronting Soviet supply ships in the process. Second, Soviet officials began to build naval units specialized in the art of nuclear war, all of which were engaged in surrounding the island of Cuba with supplies and attempting to break through the American blockade. A year before the Cuban Missile Crisis, “A Sverdlov-class heavy cruiser, the Admiral Senyavin was extensively modified to become a command ship in the event of nuclear war, and the rear guns were removed to install a helicopter deck and hangar” (Ross 342). As the Cuban Missile Crisis was still warming up, Soviet forces were actively preparing for the events that would unfold within the seas surrounding Cuba. Finally, the Soviet Union explains to Cuba the nature of the blockade, revealing the unwillingness of either commander to strike first. Mikoyan states, “The United States was screaming about the blockade, but there was no real blockade. Then it …show more content…
The influence of Cuba was highlighted primarily in Soviet military donations and construction of nuclear warheads on Cuban land, in addition to the classification of offensive and defensive structures built by the Soviet Union. Further, the creation of a naval blockade, physical confrontation of Soviet and American naval forces and Cuba’s decision to remain neutral bolstered the influence Cuba held in the events of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Finally, in the resolution terms and removal of Soviet nuclear arms from Cuba, the influence Cuba played in defusing and resolving widespread national tensions was illustrated. Throughout the events that unfolded in October of 1962, the small island nation of Cuba held large diplomatic influence that eventually resolved the
First, a naval blockade was built to isolate the island of Cuba. An address is made to the world when, “President Kennedy directs that attention be focused on implementing the blockade option, calling it the only course of action compatible with American principles” (The Cuban Missile Crisis Timeline). When Kennedy decides to implement a blockade on Cuba, he is well aware that he will be confronting Soviet supply ships in the process. Second, Soviet officials began to build naval units specialized in the art of nuclear war, all of which were engaged in surrounding the island of Cuba with supplies and attempting to break through the American blockade. A year before the Cuban Missile Crisis, “A Sverdlov-class heavy cruiser, the Admiral Senyavin was extensively modified to become a command ship in the event of nuclear war, and the rear guns were removed to install a helicopter deck and hangar” (Ross 342). As the Cuban Missile Crisis was still warming up, Soviet forces were actively preparing for the events that would unfold within the seas surrounding Cuba. Finally, the Soviet Union explains to Cuba the nature of the blockade, revealing the unwillingness of either commander to strike first. Mikoyan states, “The United States was screaming about the blockade, but there was no real blockade. Then it …show more content…
The influence of Cuba was highlighted primarily in Soviet military donations and construction of nuclear warheads on Cuban land, in addition to the classification of offensive and defensive structures built by the Soviet Union. Further, the creation of a naval blockade, physical confrontation of Soviet and American naval forces and Cuba’s decision to remain neutral bolstered the influence Cuba held in the events of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Finally, in the resolution terms and removal of Soviet nuclear arms from Cuba, the influence Cuba played in defusing and resolving widespread national tensions was illustrated. Throughout the events that unfolded in October of 1962, the small island nation of Cuba held large diplomatic influence that eventually resolved the