The Cuban Missile Crisis And The Cuban Missile Crisis

By 1962, the United States of America and the Soviet Union have been direct competition and rival for longer than 15 years. The Cold War period reflects the intense military and political tension between the two world superpowers, significant conflicts such as the Berlin Blockade in 1948, the “fall” of China to communism due to the Chinese Civil War, the Korean War in the 1950s, and also Berlin Crisis in 1961, increased the tension between the anti-communist America and the communist Soviet Union. Unlike some other conflicts during the Cold War, the Cuban missile Crisis in 1962 was not only the direct, intense conflict between America and the Soviet Union, but was also one of the closest moments to a start of a worldwide nuclear war, and it …show more content…
With the fear of the spread of communism, the American government decided to take on actions against the communist Cuba, which eventually led to the Bay of Pigs invasion. The invasion was seeking to overthrow Castro from power with a full-scale invasion of Cuba with the help from America-trained Cubans; However, the invasion was not only a failure, but also an embarrassment on America’s foreign policy; the failed invasion tied Cuba and the Soviet Union even closer together, and eventually led to the Cuban Missile …show more content…
Throughout the Cold War, the intense arm race between the United States and the Soviet Union had increased strength of the two significantly, especially nuclear power. By 1960, only four countries, which are the United States, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and France, has tested their nuclear weapons. However, the United States and the Soviet Union are the most advanced in the field of nuclear power. The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, reached the peak of the Cold War and also the nuclear power arm race. Humans had never came so close to such a dangerous situation. Luckily, the Cuban Missile Crisis was settled peacefully. When Kennedy was addressing the issue, he expressed that, “It is insane that two men, sitting on opposite sides of the world, should be able to decide to bring an end to civilization." Realizing the dangers of nuclear power, the two superpowers sought to reduce the tensions between each other, and work together to prevent the world from a nuclear world war. In 1963, accompanied with Britain, the three countries signed the Limited Test Ban Treaty, which prohibited all nuclear testing in the environment, except