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Cold War and Cuban Missile Crisis

 

            Some historians claim that Cold War ended after the Cuban Missile Crisis. Was the Cuban Missile Crisis really a turning point in the Cold War as it is often claimed to be? Did the superpowers really change their policies after this crisis or did it only provide a temporary break in the course of the Cold War? We can say, that superpowers' policies indeed changed after the Cuban Missile Crisis, but the change proved to be only temporary, as there was no significant change in the policies. Perhaps, we should look at the "turning point" as at change in policies of the superpowers as well as at a change in the course of the Cold War.
             Everybody will have to agree that never has the world been closer to a nuclear war than during the Cuban Missile Crisis. In fact, what prevented the war from breaking out was that the superpowers have realised how dangerous nuclear weapons can be and that the conflict must be stopped from escalating. The possibility of nuclear war frightened Khrushchev - the Soviet leader - so much, that he agreed to back down to withdraw the missiles with nuclear warheads from Cuba, he agreed to public humiliation, as such withdrawal meant that the USSR had lost. On the other hand, Kennedy was also frightened by the perspective: he secretly agreed to the Soviet demands to remove US nuclear missiles from Turkey.
             Indeed, the two superpowers decided to "warm up" the Cold War between them. Soon after the Crisis, the USA and the USSR concluded a treaty by which the USSR was to buy $20 mil worth of wheat from the USA. This can be regarded as a small first step towards ending the Cold War - the USSR was too proud to show her need in US products. Therefore, this move was indeed dictated by the USA's and the USSR's desire to stop the Cold War.
             Another significant change in the course of the Cold War was signing of Strategic Arms Limitation Treaties (SALT) by the US and the USSR. Those treaties were aimed at limitation of nuclear arms owned by each side and therefore, were aimed at slowing down the notorious Arms Race - doubtlessly, another attribute at the Cold War.


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