Kennedy orders the quarantine to go ahead. October 21st – General Maxwell Taylor advises that an air strike might not take out all of the missiles. Kennedy needed to make the story public himself so that the situation wasn’t inflamed by the press. Some of them had been approached by Soviet spies. The television appearance is booked because reporters were aware of the crisis. He needed to be able to focus on the Cuban Missile Crisis without alarming the public, so citing a minor health issue is used to prevent the public being concerned. A television appearance about the crisis is booked.Īmerica was undergoing mid term elections at this time so President Kennedy and other leading politicians would be expected to be on the campaign trail. He orders preparations for a defensive quarantine of Cuba to begin. October 20th – President Kennedy cancels appointments and visits, citing ill health. They discuss military options.Īgain, Kennedy is thinking through the various options available to him and making sure that things are in place to enact whichever option he decides is the correct course of action. October 19th – President Kennedy meets with the Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, and the members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It also alerts the Soviet Union to the fact that America are aware of the missiles and considering their options. Having this discussion allows Kennedy to open up diplomatic channels which has the potential to reach a settlement without provoling conflict. Gromyko was the Soviet Foreign Secretary. Under Secretary of State, George Ball, comments that such action would be: “without giving Khrushchev some way out.” President Kennedy meets with Gromyko, who assures him that there are only defensive weapons on Cuba. This hardens the line of those advocating an immediate military response. October 18th – CIA analysts report that there is evidence of medium range weapons on Cuba, not just short range missiles. Kennedy is covering all options here and giving himself and his team thinking time. Advisors consider the options and make intial plans for each of them. October 17th – Ongoing U2 flights over Cuba. Use Nuclear Weapons against Cuba or the Soviet Union.Place Cuba under Quarantine to stop missiles arriving.Negotiate a deal with the Soviet UnioDo nothing as the US had more than enough missiles to counter this new threat.Air Strikes to take out the missile sites.Continued surveillance ensures that information is up to date and accurate. Asking for a range of options gives him a choice. Knowing whether or not the missiles are operational informs Kennedy what timescale he has to work within. Kennedy asks his advisors to continue surveillance flights and to begin preparations for an air strike on Cuba and an invasion. October 16th – Kennedy asks whether the missiles are operational and what his advisors think the options, and their consequences would be. Kennedy needed to know what the exact situation was and what the options were. He calls a meeting of top officials (held the next day) to discuss the situation. They show that missile sires are in place in Cuba. October 15th – Photographs taken by a U2 spy plane are analysed by military experts. Timeline of the Cuban Missile Crisis American Response / Action This poses a few questions: What motives have the Soviet Union and Cuba got for placing offensive weapons on the Island? and What should be done about the development? Analysis of the photographic evidence suggested that these missiles were not just Surface To Air (SAM) missiles that are purely defensive in nature but medium range nuclear missiles: which were considered to be offensive weapons. Missiles on the island would be able to reach far inside mainland America. In 1961 the US had backed a failed attempt to overthrow the Cuban government. Why is America worried about missiles being placed on Cuba?Ĭuba was now an ally of the Soviet Union. Photographic evidence of a missile site on Cuba. The Soviet Union had missile sites on Cuba. Analysis of the photographs confirmed what CIA agents had feared for several weeks. On October 15th, 1962, an American spy plane flying over Cuba took a series of photographs. Why did Kennedy react as he did to the Soviet deployment of missiles on Cuba?
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |