This was one of the bigger fiascos our government has taken part in. In April of 1961 Kennedy and his government armed Cuban rebels with guns and tried to aid them in an invasion of Cuba to overthrow Castro. At some point, it was decided not to send air support. Without the air support, the attack as a whole was a complete failure that only resulted in a loss of life and allowed Castro shift any blame from his regime to the U.S.
Relations with Cuba did not improve at all with the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962. The U.S.S.R. had provided Cuba with nuclear missiles with hopes of supporting a rise in communism. It is important to remember that at this point, the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. were currently in the middle of the Cold War. The U.S. was not pleased with missiles so close to home. For this reason, they wanted the missiles removed immediately. As a part of attempts to have the missiles removed, the U.S enacted an embargo that still remains in place today. This embargo outlawed (and still outlaws) any and all trade with Cuba. The missiles the U.S.S.R. placed in Cuba challenged the superiority of the U.S. in the its own hemisphere, hence challenging the policy in place since the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. At the same point in time, national security was threatened by the proximity of the missiles. Ultimately, the crisis ended with the U.S. threat to invade Cuba if the missiles were not removed. After many negotiations, the missiles were removed, and the threat of nuclear war subsided.
Current day relations between the U.S. and Cuba remain somewhat controversial. There are some people in Cuba who hate Castro and can not wait for his rule to end, while there are others who are in staunch support of him and hate the U.S. The embargo on Cuba that is still in effect, provides for some tension between the two countries. Also, U.S. residents are not allowed to visit Cuba without special permission that is quite difficult to obtain.
