Confrontation Between The Superpowers - Cuban Missile Crisis Flashcards
1
Q
How was the Caribbean regarded by the USA?
A
- as their ‘back yard’
- made the US determined in protecting its own national interests
- Cuban constitution gave the USA rights of intervention and required Cuba to provide land for naval bases
2
Q
A
3
Q
When did Castro return to Cuba after exile?
A
- December 1956 - Cuban nationalist
4
Q
When did Batista’s regime collapse?
A
- January 1959 - Castro rode triumphantly into Havana
5
Q
How much of Cuba’s sugar industry was owned by the US by 1926?
A
- 60%
6
Q
What was the nature of Batista’s regime?
A
- deeply repressive
- pro American
- complete domination of Cuba’s economy during his rule
- caused resentment amongst Cubans
7
Q
When did Castro begin his guerrilla struggle?
A
- December 1956
8
Q
Did the US initially accept the Cuban revolution?
A
- yes ; Castro was presented as a nationalist - but he had planned to reduce US economic +political influence - in orderto legitimise the revolutionary state and cement his own role as leader
9
Q
What was castro’s programme of agrarian reform?
A
- nationalisation (seizure of US owned companies
- moderate economic reforms,not revolutionary + did not instantly generate a hostile response from the US
10
Q
Who visited Cuba from the USSR in February 1960?
A
- soviet first deputy premier - Anastas Mikoyan
- arranged $100 million dollars in credits with Castro
-fears of Cuba being turned into a Soviet satellite states were now heightened - tied Cuba in an economic relationship with the USSR + also a political one
11
Q
When did the first shipment of crude oil arrive in Cuba from the USSR?
A
- April 1960 - when US owned oil companies refused to refine it, Castro nationalised them
12
Q
A
13
Q
What was the US’ response to crude oil shipments from the USSR to Cuba?
A
- reduced their imports of Cuban sugar by 95%
- relations began to further crumble when Castro seized $1 billion worth of US assets on Cuba in October 1960
14
Q
When did the US decide to start removing Castro?
A
- by 1961
15
Q
When was the Bay of pigs invasion initially planned?
A
-under Eisenhower , but it was JFK who inherited it
16
Q
What was the bay of pigs plan? And when did it take place?
A
- April 1961
-enable about 1500 anti-Castro exiles to land on Cuba and carry out a military coup to remove this - Kennedy chose to support the CIA- inspired attack to land these exiles at the bay of pigs
- humiliated Kennedy, did not work
- only worked to strengthen Castro’s regime
17
Q
What did Kennedy authorise in November 1961?
A
- operation mongoose
18
Q
What were the aim of operation mongoose?
A
- overthrow Castro and his regime through covert operations within cuba to destabilise the regime and facilitate an anti Castro revolt from within
- General Edward Lansdale headed the operation
19
Q
What happened during operation mongoose?
A
- military advisers developed an air strike plan known as OPLAN 312 and a land based invasion known as OPLAN 314
20
Q
What did the US start in march 1962?
A
-operation quick kick - started in the Caribbean - was a symbolic show of US military power
21
Q
What did the USSR do in response to quick kick and mongoose?
A
- in face of a determined US attack - Khrushchev adopted a new stance + decided to deploy Soviet nuclear missiles on Cuba in 1962 - as well as bombers and troops (14,000 ground troops)
22
Q
Where did the US deploy missiles in may 1962?
A
- turkey - US Jupiter missiles
23
Q
What type of nuclear weapons did the USA deploy in Cuba?
A
- both short and medium range - meaning they could reach between 1100 and 2800 kilometres from their launch sites
24
Q
Why was Cuba important to Khrushchev?
A
- geo strategic importance - he acknowledged that it could take at least a decade for the Soviet Union to establish parity with the USA’s long ranking missile capability - Soviet missiles on Cuba would redress this imbalance
- reducing the missile gap would have also been a supplement to Khrushchev’s wider aims for military planning (reducing sending on conventional forces)
- Khrushchev may have hoped to develop a linkage strategy between Cuba and Berlin - where he had failed to eremove western powers despite considerable efforts from 1958-61
25
When did the USA discover the soviet deployment of missiles in Cuba?
- 14th October 1962 - the USSR’s deployment had depended on a major nuclear build up taking place without the USA realising it had happened
- U-2 spy plane produced unmistakable evidence of am R-12 missile site at San Cristobal
26
What were the Soviet motivations in deploying missiles in Cuba?
-Khrushchev was still embarrassed diplomatically from the Berlin Wall + ultimatum failing to kick out the west from berlin
- pressure from Mao ; Mao had criticised peaceful coexistence + began to believe China was the dominant communist force - Khrushchev wanted to prove otherwise
- spread communist revolution through Latin America
27
What happened on October 16th?
- Kennedy’s national security adviser,McGeorge Bundy, informed him of the presence of nuclear missiles on Cuba
28
What happened on October 17th?
- excomm meets and debates, the joint chiefs of staff strongly advise kennedy to make an air strike
29
What happebed on October 18th?
- Gromyko assures Kennedy that the missiles are only for defence purposes
30
What happened on October 22nd?
- US military forces go to DEFCON
-Kennedy announced a quarantine zone around Cuba - if any soviet ships entered this zone, military action would be taken
- on the same day ; soviet ships were stopped and turned away from Cuba
- Kennedy now began plans for an immediate invasion on Cuba ; 180,000 troops were moved to Florida as if for military preparation
- nuclear submarines were sent to patrol the waters around Cuba
- bomber squadrons equipped with nuclear weapons were ordered to fly sorties around Cuba
31
What happened on October 23rd?
-Kennedy receives a letter from Khrushchev in which he states there is a serious threat to people’s peace and security + offers to remove the missiles if the USA acknowledges Cuba’s sovereignty
- robert Kennedy speaks with ambassador Antonin dobrinin
32
What happened on October 24th?
-soviet ships on route to Cuba reverse their course except for one - US military forces go to defcon 2
33
What happens on October 25th?
- JFK sends a letter to Khrushchev, placing the responsibility on the Soviet’s hands
34
What happened on October 26th?
-Khrushchev sends another letter to Kennedy and says he will remove the missiles if JFK publicly states he will never invade Cuba
35
What happened on October 27th?
- an American u-2 is shot down over Cuba, killing the pilot
- a u-2 strays int soviet airspace, near Alaska and is nearly intercepted by soviet fighters
-Kennedy sends Khrushchev a letter saying he will publicly state he will not invade Cuba if he removes the missiles
36
What happened on October 28th?
- Khrushchev announces over radio Moscow that he has agreed to remove the missiles from Cuba
- in return - US agrees to remove missiles from turkey, ending the 13 day crisis
37
What was castro’s reaction to Khrushchev ending the crisis?
- felt as though he was betrayed
38
What were the outcomes of the crisis ?
- Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons Tests In The Atmosphere,in Outer Space and In Outer Water (October 1963)
- also made it clear that a way of direct communication was needed between the US and the USSR- it took the US nearly 12 hours to receive Khrushchev’s first settlement proposal - hot line established in June 1963
- demonstrated the strategy of brinkmanship ship - paved the way for detente in 1970s
39
What was the USSR’s stance on the end of the crisis?
- felt as though they needed to work on their international prestige - US had used a superior military tactic
40
41
What did the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons In The Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Water in October 1963 state?
- contained no provisions for underground tests for periodi review and inspection
- encouraged nuclear proliferation among the major nuclear powers
- after 3 months - they could start retesting if they thought that their national interests were at stake
- no obligation for other countries to sign up - china and France did not
- contributory factor to detente
42
What happened to Cuba after the crisis?
- remained communist
