Cuban Missile Crisis (oct 16, 1962 – oct 28, 1962)

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The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis in Cuba or the Caribbean Crisis, was a 13-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1962. The US had deployed Jupiter nuclear missiles in Italy and Turkey in 1961, training a paramilitary force of expatriate Cubans to attempt to invade Cuba and overthrow its government. The US government engaged in a violent campaign of terrorism and sabotage in Cuba, known as the Cuban Project, which continued throughout the first half of the 1960s.

The Soviet administration was concerned about a Cuban drift towards China, with which the Soviets had an increasingly fractious relationship. In response, the Soviet and Cuban governments agreed to place nuclear missiles on Cuba to deter a future US invasion. Construction of launch facilities began shortly thereafter.

A U-2 spy plane captured photographic evidence of medium- and long-range launch facilities in October. US President John F. Kennedy convened a meeting of the National Security Council and other key advisers, forming the Executive Committee of the National Security Council (EXCOMM). He was advised to carry out an air strike on Cuban soil to compromise Soviet missile supplies, followed by an invasion of the Cuban mainland. On 22 October, Kennedy ordered a naval blockade to prevent further missiles from reaching Cuba.

An agreement was reached between Kennedy and Khrushchev, allowing the Soviets to dismantle their offensive weapons in Cuba, subject to United Nations verification, in exchange for a US public declaration and agreement not to invade Cuba again. The blockade was formally ended on 20 November after all offensive missiles and bombers had been withdrawn from Cuba.

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