The Cuban Missile Crisis occurred in 1962 when the U.S. discovered that the Soviet Union had placed nuclear missiles in Cuba, just 90 miles from Florida. This brought the two countries closest to nuclear war. President Kennedy imposed a naval blockade around Cuba to prevent further Soviet weapons and supplies from reaching the island. After several tense weeks, Soviet Premier Khrushchev agreed to remove the missiles from Cuba in exchange for a promise from the U.S. not to invade Cuba. Both sides began removing weapons, ending the crisis and avoiding nuclear conflict.

1. The Cuban Missile Crisis
1962

2. Introduction
• The Cuban Missile Crisis, of October, 1962, was a conflict between the
United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, which could
have led to the 1st nuclear war.
• The Soviet Union tailed the United States in the Arms Race and their
missiles were not powerful enough to be launched against the United
States.

3. Continued
• President John F. Kennedy claimed that the United States had fewer
missiles than the Soviet Union.
• But Nikita Khrushchev still felt wary because in 1959, The USA
Stationed Jupiter missiles in Turkey. It threatened the security of the
USSR so it was looking for an opportunity to encircle the USA from a
close range.

4. USA & CUBA
• USA broke diplomatic ties with Cuba after Fidel Castro seized power
from the USA backed dictator Batista in 1959.
• The US-backed Cuban counter-revolutionaries attempted to
overthrow Fidel Castro’s regime in the country and establish a non-
communist government friendly to the US

5. Continued
• As Premier of Cuba, Fidel Castro, searched for a way to keep his
nation and his position safe from a U.S. attack.
• As a result, Castro approved Khrushchev’s idea to station missile sites
(Soviet medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles) in Cuba.
The Soviet Union secretly built these sites during the summer of
1962.

6. Crisis for USA
• On October 15, 1962, photographs of the Soviet’s missile sites were
revealed to the United States. President Kennedy was briefed on the
missile installations the next day. He quickly called a meeting of his
twelve most important advisors to deal with the crisis.
• The installation of weapons put the US, for the first time, within the
range of USSR’s missiles and nearly doubled the number of cities in
the American mainland, which could be threatened by the USSR.
• Khrushchev also wanted to place nuclear weapons in Cuba to counter
the urgent threat of US missiles close to its own borders.

7. Subsequent actions
• As a result of this Kennedy announced that U.S. forces would seize
“offensive weapons and associated matériel” that Soviet vessels
might attempt to deliver to Cuba.
• Kennedy ordered a naval “quarantine” of Cuba.
• In this, US destroyers and submarines were placed around Cuba in
order to prevent military supplies being brought to the island

8. Continued
• The two superpowers hovered close to the brink of nuclear war.
• On October 28 Khrushchev capitulated, informing Kennedy that
• Work on the missile sites would be halted and
• The missiles already in Cuba would be returned to the Soviet Union.
• In return, Kennedy committed the United States to never invading Cuba.
• Both superpowers began to fulfil their promises over the coming weeks,
and the crisis was over by late November