oct 16, 1962 - Cuban Missile Crisis

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The US and the USSR stood off against one another as the Russians installed nuclear missiles in Cuba, 90 miles from the US. During this 13 day stand off, President Kennedy initiated a quarantine zone around the Cuban isle to prevent any ships from entering or exiting. JFK warned Fidel Castro and the USSR that they were prepared to use military force to de-escalate this threat if needed. For these two weeks tensions were extremely high and many US citizens feared nuclear warfare was upon them. JFK and Nikita Khrushchev, USSR leader, finally ended this crisis by removing their missiles from Cuba in exchange for the US to leave Cuba alone. This crisis was the closest the US has ever been to nuclear warfare and could have ended a lot worse if it weren't for the negotiations between the two super powers.

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