1) How does John Lewis Gaddis describe the Cuban Missile Crisis?

The only episode after World War II in which each of the major areas of Soviet-American competition intersected... The crisis was a kind of funnel... into which everything suddenly tumbled and got

mixed together.

2) Who was appointed leader of Cuba in 1959?

Fidel Castro

3) What was the Monroe Doctrine?

Belief that European powers should not intervene on the US continent

4) Name 2 reasons why the Bay of Pigs incident failed.

Castro locked up opponents before US could strike

Castro more popular in Cuba than US gave him credit

5) Why did the Soviets place missiles on Cuba?

• Gain a base from which the USA could be threatened

• Defend the Cuban revolution

6) What was the name of the US National Security Council set up to debate how to deal with the missiles on Cuba?

EXCOMM

7) Why was Kennedy prepared to risk nuclear war over Cuba?

Kennedy’s international reputation had been severely weakened in initial

meetings with Khrushchev, and in the aftermath of the Berlin Crisis and Bay of

Pigs incident.

8) Why was Khrushchev prepared to risk nuclear war over Cuba?

His own reputation was on the line within the USSR.

9) What were Kennedy’s options? (2)

• Surgical Air strike• Blockade of Soviet ships & intense

negotiation

10) What did Dean Rusk famously say when the Soviet ships stopped and turned away?

“We’re eyeball to eyeball and I think the other fellow just blinked”.

11) How did the US & USSR reach an agreement?

Kennedy publicly agreed to Khrushchev’s first letter (removing missiles from Cuba), whilst secretly agreeing to Khrushchev’s second letter (removing missiles from Turkey) six months later.

12) What were the results of the Cuba Missile Crisis? (4)

• Kennedy provided with much needed foreign policy ‘success’

• Khrushchev was left humiliated• The ‘Hot Line’ telephone link was

established• The Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was signed

in 1963.