Download Cuban Missile Crisis: Humanity`s Darkest Hour

CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS:
HUMANITY’S DARKEST HOUR
“Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind”
-President John F. Kennedy (speech to UN General Assembly, September 25, 1961)
Introduction
World peace is a mere dream for the leaders of the globe. It is a perilous time, one that is
filled with political tension, turmoil, and the fact that nuclear holocaust is on the horizon. The
year is 1962 and the nations of earth are innocent bystanders during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The United States and the Soviet Union, the two most powerful nations on the planet, are nearly
at war with one another. EXCOMM, the private council of the American government, has been
called into an emergency session to decide the next crucial move in the plan to prevent nuclear
war. The council consists of President John F. Kennedy and his most trusted advisors,
administrative officials, and military officers. If the committee is to fail, then the consequences
will be severe and Armageddon will surely be the tragic result. It is the duty of EXCOMM to
determine a feasible solution to this crisis.
Background
The fall of Nazi Germany and the defeat of Japan by the Allies in 1945 not only
culminated in the end of World War II, but also in the elevation of the Soviet Union and the
United States to superpower status. A key aspect of the Axis failure must be taken into
consideration when analyzing the causes of the world’s current situation. The utilization of
nuclear weapons by the American government against the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki caused the beginning of the nuclear arms race. Over the past decade and a half the
United States, the Soviet Union, and their respective allies have been stockpiling atomic
weapons. This has resulted in further severing of political ties between the U.S. and USSR.
In 1947, escalation of tensions between capitalist and communists nations escalated with
the initiation of the Truman Doctrine by American President Harry Truman. Greece had been
physically and economically devastated by the effects of World War II. The Nazi forces,
attempting to slow the Allied armiesas they retreated, destroyed the majority of the nation’s
infrastructure during the journey to Germany. As a result, Greece desperately needed aid from
the United States when communist forces invaded the nation. In addition, the nation of Turkey
requested aid from America due to the desperate need to maintain control of the Middle East in
case communist forces continued their expansion. These requests and the United States’
agreement to said requests allowed for the creation of alliances with Turkey and Greece against
communism. The United States began to allocate military personnel to eastern Europe and
started the stockpiling of nuclear weapons in these nations.
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In addition to the stockpiling of nuclear weapons, military action between capitalist and
communist nations has characterized the Cold War. The first, being the Korean War, lasted from
1950-1953. Korea had been separated along the geographical location known as the 38th parallel,
creating the independent nations of North Korea and South Korea. North Korea was supported
by the communist Republic of China and decided to invade South Korea. In response to this
action, the United States entered the war on South Korea’s behalf in order to continue its war on
international communism. The conflict ended with the Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953
and encouraged peace talks with the nations involved in the war. North Korea and South Korea
remain divided. The Vietnam War, having started in 1955, has only begun recently and continues
to this day. Similar to the Korean War, it is the battle between the United States and communist
forces. Only time will tell the outcome of this war between the capitalist and communist nations.
Germany has become another example of the struggle for control between the United
States and the USSR. During World War II, the Allied forces slowly began their invasion of
Europe in order to defeat Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime. The Soviets, moving in from the east,
reached Berlin first and eradicated the German forces. Taking control of eastern Germany, they
continued their expansion throughout the devastated nation. Meanwhile, the United States,
France, and the British Commonwealth of Nations managed to seize control of western Germany
and create a dividing line between capitalist and communist forces. Last year (1961) the Berlin
Wall was constructed and officially cut off movement of civilians and military personnel across
Germany.
The factors listed are only a few that has contributed to the ongoing political tension
between the United States and the Soviet Union. Currently the two powerhouse countries are at
the climax of their ongoing struggle for global control. The site of the potential battlefield: Cuba.
Fulgencio Batista
Fulgencio Batista, born in Banes, Cuba in 1901, has ruled the country of Cuba twice
during his political career. In 1933, Batista took over Cuba from Carlos Manuel de Céspedes and
was officially elected president in 1940. Until the end of his term in 1944, Batista sponsored a
variety of public programs and supported the Cuban educational system. When he overthrew
President Carlos PríoSocarrás in 1952, Batista was welcomed by the Cuban population due to the
rise of corruption in the nation. However, Batista became a ruthless dictator during his second
reign. He took control of all sources of knowledge (such as the press and the universities) and
stole money from the Cuban economy. In addition to this, Batista was supported by the
American government due to him guaranteeing a place in Cuba for American companies in
exchange for support. As a result, private corporations of the United States dominated the
majority of the Cuban economy through control of the cattle ranches, sugar lands, oil industry,
and Cuban imports. The United States continued to provide military support in the form of
weapons and tanks. This regime created the atmosphere for the perfect storm.
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Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution
With Batista’s reign terrorizing the Cuban population, there appeared to be a desperate
need for revolt in order to establish equality amongst the people. Fidel Castro, a passionate social
reformer who had already engaged in revolutions in nations such as the Dominican Republic,
began the battle against Batista. In 1953, Castro attempted to attack the Moncada army barracks
in Cuba in an attempt to overthrow the government. The plan failed miserably and Castro was
jailed for two years. Castro fled for Mexico after prison in order to regroup his small amount of
troops and begin another onslaught.
Castro returned to Cuba in 1956 and set up a base in the Sierra Maestra mountains.
Though initially at a huge disadvantage to Batista and his overwhelming government force,
Castro slowly began to raid military barracks. His movement was called the July 26 movement,
after the date of the Moncada raid. When his force grew large enough to obtain land from
Batista’s government, Castro redistributed it to the peasants who were suffering under the
dictatorship and gained further support. Batista retaliated through brutal executions, but this only
encouraged the people to revolt. In 1958, members of the middle class openly encouraged Castro
and the other revolutionaries to continue their fight against Batista’s government. Castro’s forces
became popular due to their good treatment of their prisoners, resulting in surrender to Castro
when Batista’s army was losing in battle. Castro began to recruit entire aspects of Batista’s
military into his own. The Cuban Revolution concluded when the American government
suggested that Batista leave the country. Castro was beginning to march on the primary cities
within the nation and defeat of the dictatorship appeared inevitable. He finally managed to secure
control of the nation in 1959.
Invasion of the Bay of Pigs
In 1959, the United States placed Jupiter missiles pointed at the Soviet Union in Turkey.
In May of 1960, Nikita Khrushchev (the premier of the USSR) and the Soviets officially
declared their support of the communist government in Cuba. Tension between the United States
and Soviet Union escalated when American pilot Gary Powers was shot down over the USSR
and captured by the Soviets. The United States was forced to admit that they were spying on the
Soviet Union. Cuba openly aligned itself with the USSR later in 1960. America began to steadily
sever ties with Cuba, such as closing its embassy in Havana and stopping exports into the rival
nation. In 1961, John F. Kennedy was elected President of the United States.
Kennedy almost immediately approved the Invasion of the Bay of Pigs. The objective
was to overthrow Castro and establish a government that would be an ally to the United States.
The American government hoped to hide U.S. military support, as the invasion force would
consist of Cuban exiles that fled Castro’s government. Training camps had been established in
Guatemala, which Castro had learned of through his spies. The Bay of Pigs was a swampy area
that would have been difficult to move through, causing the Americans to think that the Cubans
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would be caught by surprise. In addition to the ground forces, two air strikes were ordered by
Kennedy. The first group of planes had been disguised as the Cuban air force, but failed to
destroy Castro’s military barracks. The Cuban population did not aid the U.S. military forces as
Kennedy had hoped, another failure in the plan. Due to the loss of the first air strike, Kennedy
did not send in his second group of fighter planes. Castro continued to control the skies and the
invading force was crushed.
Cuban Missile Crisis: Current Situation
In May of 1962, Castro decided to enlist the help of the Soviet Union in placing nuclear
missiles inside Cuba. The Soviet Union agreed and established a similar relationship to that of
the United States with Turkey. On October 14, 1962 an American U2 plane flew over Cuba and
took snapshots of nuclear weapons barracks and sent them back to the United States. It was then
known that the Soviet Union had placed missiles in Cuba. On October 16 Kennedy officially
chose the members of the EXCOMM committee. On October 22 Kennedy announced to the
world that he is aware of Soviet missiles in Cuba and that he will order a military blockade
around Castro and his nation. The blockade is now in place and the world is on the brink of
destruction.
Questions to Consider:
1. What actions will you take (military or political) against Cuba?
2. How will your American blockade influence the current situation in Cuba?
3. How will you maintain non-violent political ties with the Soviet Union?
4. What will you decide to be the fate of the American missiles placed in Turkey?
5. How will you take into account the failure of the Invasion of the Bay of Pigs in any and all
military strategies?
6. How will the past conflict in Korea and the current conflicts in Vietnam and Germany play in
your course of action?
The world is in your hands. You cannot fail.
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References
About the Crisis: History of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Harvard Kennedy School, Belfer
Center for Science and International Affairs.Web. February 5, 2013.
http://www.cubanmissilecrisis.org/
Cuban Missile Crisis.Harvard Kennedy School, Belfer Center for Science and
International Affairs.Web. February 5, 2013.
http://www.cubanmissilecrisis.org/background/timeline/
Cuban Missile Crisis.History.A & E Television Networks, LLC.Web. February 5, 2013.
http://www.history.com/topics/cuban-missile-crisis
Fulgencio Batista. Encyclopedia Britannica.Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc. 2013.Web.
February 5, 2013. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/56027/Fulgencio-Batista
Fulgencio Batista. Spartacus Eduational. Spartacus Educational Publishers Limited.Web.
February 5, 2013. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/COLDbatista.htm
Korean War.Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. February 5, 2013.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_War
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Presidential Library and Museum. Web. February 5, 2013. http://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/JFKin-History/The-Bay-of-Pigs.aspx
The Cold War.AtomCentral.com: the atomic bomb website. Web. February 5, 2013.
http://www.atomcentral.com/the-cold-war.aspx
Truman Doctrine. Yale Law School, Lillian Goldman Law Library.Lillian Goldman Law
Library. 2008. Web. February 5, 2013.http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/trudoc.asp
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