Cuban Missile Crisis

Though Nikita Khrushchev’s decisions to establish nuclear weapon launch sites in Cuba may have been influenced by fellow advisors, it was a dreadful mistake on his behalf and his reputation was severely damaged as a result. His scheme to keep up with the USA in the arms race by attempting such a risky operation seemed out of character and proved to be a catastrophic blow to his career. With all his previous successes for the nation of Russia, Khrushchev tested his luck too far in that he under estimated the enemy and did not consider the possible consequences of his actions.
Cuba, situated a mere 200km off the coast of Florida in the United States, was an ideal location for the Russians to establish missile launch sites in their efforts to keep up with their American rivals. In 1959 when Fidel Castro led 800 men into defeating the Cuban governments 30,000-man army, he became premier of Cuba, which led to a decline in relations with the US. President Kennedy would not accept any expansion of communism so close to the US (http://library.thinkquest.org) and therefore, though unsuccessful, attempted to defeat Castro in what was known as the Bay of Pigs invasion. In his early stages of power, Castro searched for an ally and found Russi



	Cuban Missile Crisis .... what John F. Kennedy speech writer Theodore Sorensen called "the gun barrel of nuclear war ", the death of history as we know it (The Cuban Missile Crisis). .... (1361 5 )

	Cuban Missile Crisis .... He also expressed his trust that the United States will not invade Cuba. The Cuban Missile Crisis was one of President Kennedy 's greatest accomplishments. .... (614 2 )

	Cuban Missile Crisis .... to prevent war. The Cuban Missile Crisis showed the world that compromising and discussion can in-fact prevent war. The world had .... (1669 7 )

	The Cuban missile crisis The Cuban missile crisis was just another hardship in JFK's reign of presidency. The whole crisis began with just a regulatory check .... (1021 4 )

	Cuban Missile Crisis During the Cuban Missile Crisis, President John F. Kennedy had many choices presented to him of what to do, and by several different people. .... (546 2 )

	Cuban missile crisis .... With top US, Cuban, and Soviet officials present .... begin to ease the nuclear crisis and diplomatically .... a effective point against Soviet missile installments due .... (1261 5 )

There are many reasons why Khrushchev would have been tempted to undertake this operation of secretly transporting Russian missiles to Cuba in an attempt to threaten the US. Firstly, the US currently had several missiles stationed in Turkey that were less than 150km from Russia, whereas the Soviets did not have any within range of America. There was a yearning to match the US in their number of nuclear missiles capable of reaching major cities. Secondly, military advisors informed Khrushchev that they were capable of keeping the entire operation a secret from the rest of the world (www.hpol.org/jfk/cuban/). Allowing this information to leak into the hands of Kennedy was Khrushchev’s main concern, however advice from his advisors helped to put his mind at ease over the matter. Thirdly, his views on the current American President Kennedy may have led Khrushchev to believe that Kennedy was an easy target as he was young and perceived ignorant. And finally, though he would be taking a risk, it was a great chance for Khrushchev to seize the day and provide Russia with a valuable means of attack and also a tool that could be used for peace negotiations in the future.

Russia, who by 1962 began secretly sending nuclear missiles to Cuba. (See Appendix 1) With missiles in such close proximity to major cities in America, Russia believed it would be able to pose a threat to the Americans and also display their power and might to the world.

Some topics in this essay:
Fidel Castro, Cold War, Cuban Missile Crisis, Cuba, Nikita Khrushchev, John F Kennedy, Nuclear Weapon, Soviet Union, Russia, Action,

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