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Fidel Castro assumes power after the Cuban Revolution
In 1959, Fidel Castro led the overthrow of the military leadership of Fulgencio Batista. After taking control, Castro established the first communist state in the western hemisphere. This had a huge impact on the Cuban-U.S. relations, because before Castro took over Cuba was a democratic state and Batista, the previous leader, worked to maintain U.S. relations. However, Castro turned Cuba into a communist state and began to slowly push the U.S. away. -
Cuba aligns with Soviet Union
In December of 1960, Castro officially announced that Cuba was openly aligning with the Soviet Union. The relationship between Cuba and the Soviet Union was mostly an economic one. The Soviet Union provided military, economic, and political assistance to Cuba. This event was very significant to the U.S. because it clearly demonstrated that Cuba didn't want anything to do with the U.S. anymore. This way, Cuba was subtly ending all their relations with the U.S. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
With the help of the U.S., a group of Cuban exiles invaded Cuba in an attempt to trigger an anti-Castro rebellion. The U.S. was trying to prevent communism from coming to America. However, this event was a complete failure, making the U.S. look bad. This failed attempt sent a message to the U.S. that Castro was a solid leader supported by the people, and that it would be very hard to take him out of power. It showed Kennedy that it would take a lot more if he wanted to take Castro out. -
Khrushchev and Kennedy hold summit in Vienna
The leader of two superpowers of the Cold War era, Khrushchev and Kennedy, met in Vienna to discuss numerous issues in the relationship between their countries. In their discussion over Germany, Khrushchev threatened war, by saying, "If the US wants to start a war over Germany let it be so". This confrontation made it very clear to both leaders that the danger of nuclear war was very real. In a way, this helped avert war because it made both leaders realize they needed to confront the issue. -
John McCone sends a memo to Kennedy expressing his belief that Soviet missiles will be deployed in Cuba
In April, Khrushchev decided to develop Cuba into a nuclear base. The Soviets began sending huge shipments of weaponry to Cuba, and the U.S. caught wind of this. Most people saw this as defensive. However, McCone believed that Khrushchev was trying to overcome US strategic superiority and extort diplomatic concessions by establishing a nuclear outpost near the United States and that they would be deployed in Cuba. This showed Kennedy that the threat of war was near, and action had to be taken. -
Attack on Cuba could lead to war with Soviet Union
October 22nd, 1962, President Kennedy appeared on television to inform the people of the recently discovered Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. Two days later, the President conferred with Soviet Minister, Andrei Gromyko, who claimed the weapons were for defensive purposes and that any action taken on Cuba would be action taken against the Soviet Union. This event showed Kennedy that the Soviet Union stood strongly behind Cuba and that the U.S. needed to be prepared for war with the Soviet Union. -
U2 Discovery in Cuba
The U.S had some concerns that the Soviet Union was storing weapons in Cuba, however, they weren't 100% sure. In October 1962, a U-2 spy plane flying over Cuba provided photographic evidence that the Soviet Union was storing missiles in Cuba. This event had a huge impact because it made the U.S. feel as if the Soviet Union had future plans to use these missiles on the U.S. It was a direct threat to national security. This event pushed the U.S. to enact a naval blockade around Cuba. -
Military forces go to DEFCON 2
The Soviet Union was not making any progress in taking the missiles out of Cuba, the U.S. began to gradually become more and more afraid. This had a major impact on the U.S. public because this was the farthest the U.S. military had ever gone in defense. This demonstrated to the public that the Soviet missiles in Cuba were a very serious situation and that the U.S. was very close to the brink of war. -
Major Rudolf Anderson shot down and killed
Major Rudolf Anderson, was flying over Cuba on October 27th, 1962, taking pictures photographing secret locations of tactical nuclear weapons. Without getting Khrushchev's authorization, the Soviets shot down the U-2 spy plane killing Anderson. For Kennedy and Khrushchev, Anderson's death crystalized their realization that the crisis was spiraling rapidly out of their control. This event directly contributed to the removal of the missiles from Cuba. -
Khrushchev removes the missiles from Cuba
On October 28th, Khrushchev announced that he would remove the missiles from Cuba. The Cuban missile crisis was resolved when the Soviet Union agreed to remove the missiles from Cuba if the U.S. promised not to invade Cuba. The Cuban Missile Crisis was a very significant event for Kennedy because it strengthened his image both domestically and internationally. It also helped mitigate negative world opinions regarding the failed Bay of Pigs invasion.
