Earlier in 1962 on february 20, a topsecret administration document discussed a plan called operation mongoose. The documents are being published for the first time in english in the book by sergo mikoyan, edited by svetlana savranskaya, the soviet cuban missile crisis. The cuban missile crisis was the confrontation between the united states and the soviet union that started in october 1962 after the united. In addition to fidel castro himself, the participants included ray cline, robert mcnamara, arthur schlesinger jr. Welch distill the best current scholarship on the cuban missile crisis into a brief and accessible narrative history.
How fidel castro sees cubas plight and what he hopes to do about it emerge from this account of a unique conference held in havana in 1992, which brought together the soviet, cuban, and american participants in the cuban missile crisis to discuss its causes and course. They were forced to withdraw their missiles from cuba. The leader of russia, nikita khrushchev, combined forces with the leader of cuba, fidel castro, agreeing to put soviet missiles along the coast of cuba to prevent american forces from attacking1. Nikita khrushchev, the cuban missile crisis, and the aftermath abstract through the use of primary and secondary sources, this essay seeks to define the role of soviet premier nikita khrushchev during the cuban missile crisis of october 1962, which was essential to avoiding nuclear devastation between the soviet union and the united states. Tensions between russian and america had been high up to this point. Designed to help policymakers, students, and interested citizens draw lessons from these critical events half a century ago, this site not only provides background on the crisis that brought the world to the brink of nuclear disaster in october 1962 but also offers tools to understand how.
Most of what you know about the cuban missile crisis is. If you want a more tacticallevel perspective on the cuban missile crisis, check out blue moon over cuba. Garthoff, reflections on the cuban missile crisis, revised edition washington, dc. The inside story of the cuban missile crisis new york. This book provides a lucid and uptodate introduction to the crisis, including. In response to the bay of pigs invasion and other american actions against cuba as well as to president kennedys buildup in italy and turkey of u. Step by step, robert kennedy gets us through those perilous days when a misunderstanding, a misstep could certainly have cause the end of mankind. They will kill us tomorrow because the missiles will be ready in days. Nikita khrushchev, the cuban missile crisis, and the aftermath. A, so literally they are like a spring borad for any successful attack. The cuban missile crisis hardcover jonathan colman.
Most books on the cuban missile crisis tell the story through the perspective of memoirs of those who advised president kennedy, as he struggled to avoid world war iii. What agreement did the united states and the soviet. During this period the soviets made a number of contacts with. The book incorporates all the latest historiography on the topic. Will include dust jacket if it originally came with one. Though these questions cannot now be resolved definitively, we must at least arrive at some provisional answers that can be tested against soviet behavior in the coming months and years. While experts on the missile crisis, as well as the participants themselves, have been long aware of the catandmouse game between u. Cuban missile crisis, major confrontation at the height of the cold war that brought the united states and the soviet union to the brink of a shooting war in october 1962 over the presence of soviet nucleararmed missiles in cuba. On its surface, the cuban missile crisis involved a single discrete set of. Thirteen days is a look from within about the cuban missile crisis.
All they got in return was the us removing some obsolete missiles from turkey, which were useless militarily and posed little military threat to russia. Soviet deception in the cuban missile crisis central. The soviet union and the united states revelations from. Jan, 2010 the cuban missile crisis took place on october 16, 1962 and lasted for thirteen days. Khrushchevs secret dispatch of nuclear missiles to. Cuban relations, without whose understanding it would be foolish to claim any pointed analysis on the subject. A fascinating and extremely well annotated transcription of the discussions held in havana in january 1992 by a distinguished group of veterans and analysts of cubas role in the missile crisis of 1962. The cuban missile crisis, also known as the october crisis of 1962 spanish. Designed to help policymakers, students, and interested citizens draw lessons from these critical events half a century ago, this site not only provides background on the crisis that brought the world to the brink of nuclear disaster in october 1962 but also offers tools to understand. Popular cuban missile crisis books meet your next favorite book.
Its generally agreed that the cuban missile crisis brought the world closer to nuclear war than at any other point during the cold war. The first diplomatic relations between the soviet union and cuba developed during world war ii. Asw forces and soviet submarines during october and november 1962, only in recent months has the hidden history of soviet submarine operations during the crisis become more widely known. The cuban missile war was the most devastating war in world history. With the disintegration of the soviet union and international socialism, cuba now finds itself isolated as the united states continues to press for its economic and political collapse. Jul, 2006 leave it to the canadians to write the best short volume on the cuban missile crisis that probably exists. List of books and articles about cuban missile crisis. The authors draw on newly available documents to provide a comprehensive treatment of its causes, events, consequences, and significance. Castro, mikoyan, kennedy, khrushchev, and the missiles of november by sergo mikoyan, ed. During an infamous thirteenday stretch of october 1962, america faced the prospect of imminent nuclear war with the soviet union. This book rewrites the conventional history of the 1962 cuban missile crisis by drawing on secret transcripts of toplevel diplomacy undertaken by anastas mikoyan, the numbertwo soviet leader under nikita khrushchev. Double, perhaps even quadruple that number of soviet, eastern european, and chinese citizens perished, and no one had any reliable data on how many western europeans, africans, asians, australians, and others were killed by the. Soviet caribbean confrontation of october i962 to mere. The cuban missile crisis origins, course and aftermath.
The soviet unions main reason for its involvement in the cuban missile crisis is the fact that it was trying to compete with the united states by placing strategic nuclear arms within cuba, therefore doubling its number of warheads with the ability to strike the us mainland. A s the cuban missile crisis unfolded in october 1962, president john f kennedy found himself wondering why nikita khrushchev would gamble with putting nuclear missiles into cuba. Where i come from we have a proverb,it is the ants that are closest to one that bites, the ones far do not really bite. Castro, mikoyan, kennedy, khrushchev, and the missiles of november cold war international history project. President kennedy and secretary of defense mcnamara in an excomm meeting. Castro, mikoyan, kennedy, khrushchev, and missiles of november cold war international history project by sergo mikoyan hardcover. Oct 24, 2012 the second crisis was the cuban missile crisis. The cuban missile crisis was a sixday clash in october 1962 between the united. Soviet perspective on the cuban missile crisis from nikita.
It is anastas mikoyans cuban missile crisis, and it is a translation of a book written by mikoyans son, sergo mikoyan. This book tells the story of the cuban missile crisis in 1962, the struggle that president kennedy and his advisers including the author, who was head of intelligence at the state department went through to try to understand why the soviet union had put nuclear missiles in cuba, the alternative policies they debated to deal with the presence of the missiles, the aftermath of the. Cuban missile crisis, 1962 sources cia documents on the cuban missile crisis, 1962 declassified version, 1992, by united states central intelligence agency, ed. However, the soviet and the cuban leadership knew that the most dangerous weapons of the crisis tactical lunas and fkrswere still. Svetlana savranskaya mikoyan archive reveals cuba a nearnuclear power new book shows crisis unresolved until november 22, 1962. This book explains the critical events, along with the experiences of those who execute presidential commands in times of national crisis. The cuban missile crisis was not a triumph for the soviet union.
Where i come from we have a proverb,it is the ants that are closest to one that bites,the ones far do not really bite. So to anticipate and prevent such was the reason for the concern besides havana and washington have not been the beset of friends since fidel castros coup detat. The united states got turkey as an ally and location for nuclear missile to be hypnotically launched on the soviet union. May 06, 20 the soviet unions main reason for its involvement in the cuban missile crisis is the fact that it was trying to compete with the united states by placing strategic nuclear arms within cuba, therefore doubling its number of warheads with the ability to strike the us mainland. Double, perhaps even quadruple that number of soviet, eastern european, and chinese citizens perished, and no one had any reliable data on how many western europeans, africans, asians, australians, and others were killed by the radioactive fallout as it. It involved the soviet union and the united states. However, little precaution was taken to ensure missiles secrecy. In six concise chapters, alice george introduces the history of cold war america and contextualizes its political, social, and cultural legacy. The cuban missile crisis edinburgh university press. Cover of the soviet cuban missile crisis by sergo mikoyan edited by svetlana. Most of what you know about the cuban missile crisis is wrong. A concise history, second edition, don munton and david a. For decades the official story here in the united states, one that is inculcated into every student in every public school in the land, is that in the showdown between president kennedy and soviet premier nikita khrushchev during the cuban missile crisis in 1963, kennedy inflicted a humiliating defeat on khrushchev by forcing him to back down and remove his. The cuban missile crisis was a triumph for the soviet.
Fortunatly, kennedy and khrouchtchev kept cool heads and did not listen to war hawks on both sides. Untold story of the cuban missile crisis legiontown u. Aerial reconnaissance during the cuban missile crisis by capt. Learning from the missile crisis history smithsonian magazine. Sep 14, 2012 most books on the cuban missile crisis tell the story through the perspective of memoirs of those who advised president kennedy, as he struggled to avoid world war iii. Jfk and the aftermath of the cuban missile crisis norton, 2012. What are some of the best nonfiction books on the cuban. The author was a key figure at the national photographic interpretation center in. This book tells the story of the cuban missile crisis in 1962, the struggle that president kennedy and his advisers including the author, who was head of intelligence at the state department went through to try to understand why the soviet union had put nuclear missiles in cuba, the alternative policies they debated to deal with the presence of the missiles, the aftermath of the crisis, and. Reading lists cuban missile crisiscuban missile crisis. The communists won the cuban missile crisis the future. Washington, dc, october 10, 2012 in november 1962, cuba was preparing to become the first nuclear power in latin americaat the time when the kennedy administration thought that the cuban missile crisis was long resolved and the soviet missiles were out. Stern, worked as a historian at the kennedy library in boston from 1977 to.
Castro, mikoyan, kennedy, khrushchev, and the missiles of november at amazon. The cuban missile crisis chapter 4 the cambridge history of the. Both countries during that time were trying to get a nuclear advantage. Harvard kennedy schools belfer center has created this site as a resource for the cuban missile crisis. Mar 16, 2020 this book rewrites the conventional history of the 1962 cuban missile crisis by drawing on secret transcripts of toplevel diplomacy undertaken by anastas mikoyan, the numbertwo soviet leader under nikita khrushchev. The cuban missile crisis took place on october 16, 1962 and lasted for thirteen days. Based on secret transcripts of toplevel diplomacy undertaken by the numbertwo soviet leader, anastas mikoyan, to settle the cuban missile. Cuban missile crisis, we can hardly wait that long. Kennedy john swift examines the events that led the world to the brink of nuclear catastrophe.
The soviet perspective of the cuban missile crisis essay. New book shows cuban missile crisis unresolved until. See also whats at your library, or elsewhere broader terms. The united states armed forces were on defcon 2, the readiness step next to nuclear war. The estimated number of north american deaths was upwards of 200 million. Using government memoranda, personal letters, and newspaper articles the cuban missile crisis, details the actual events of the political history, while explaining widespread public response. Learning from the missile crisis history smithsonian. Examines one of the most dramatic and dangerous episodes in world history. Leave it to the canadians to write the best short volume on the cuban missile crisis that probably exists. Soviet perspective of the cuban missile crisis the cuban missile crisis that is also referred to as october crisis in cuba as well as the caribbean crisis within the soviet union was the clash between ussrcuba and the u. New books on the cuban missile crisis the fourteenth day.
The united states, referred to as military help from nations outside, would work with cuban dissidents, referred to as people from within to overthrow castro. Cia documents on the cuban missile crisis, 1962 declassified version, 1992, by united states central intelligence agency, ed. By focusing on the activities of the american, soviet and cuban militaries. Even now, fresh history continues to blow holes in what we thought we knew. Kennedy, and two u2 pilots, rudy anderson and charles maultsby. Based on secret transcripts of toplevel diplomacy undertaken by the numbertwo soviet leader, anastas mikoyan, to settle the cuban missile crisis in 1962, this book rewrites conventional history. For more than a quarter century, the cuban missile crisis has been studied, analyzed, and reflected upon by hundreds of people ranging from historians to journalists, from participants to observers, from experts to amateurs. The objectivity of sergo mikoyan is highly questionable, for the obvious reason that he is writing about his own father and is hardly going to present his father in an. The missiles of october and days were only half the story. This book rewrites the conventional history of the 1962 cuban missile crisis by drawing on secret transcripts of toplevel diplomacy undertaken by anastas. How fidel castro sees cubas plight and what he hopes to do about it emerge from this account of a unique conference held in havana in 1992, which brought together the soviet, cuban, and american. The new book is titled the cuban missile crisis in american memory.
The cambridge history of the cold war edited by melvyn p. Learning from the missile crisis what really happened on those thirteen fateful days in october during the cuban missile crisis, soviet warheads on cuban soil could have attacked many major u. Cuban missile crisis, 1962, major cold war confrontation between the united states and the soviet union. The cuban missile crisis is the defining moment of john kennedys presidency. Cuban missile crisis khrushchev agreed on a deployment plan in may 1962 primarily in response to castros fears over yet another american invasion, and by late july over sixty soviet ships were en route to cuba, some of them already carrying military material. Above and beyond tells the story of the cuban missile crisis through the eyes of three characters. Cuban missile crisis according to nikita khrushchevs memoirs, in may 1962 he conceived the idea of placing intermediaterange nuclear missiles in cuba as a means of countering an emerging lead of the united states in developing and deploying strategic missiles. The crisis was a defining moment in the presidency of john f. In october 1962, when the soviet union deployed nuclear missiles in cuba, the most dangerous confrontation of the cold war ensued, bringing the world close. Reducing missile gap would also have helped khrushchev reduce spending on conventional military force and enabled khrushchev to direct more resources into expansion and modernisation of soviet nuclear arsenal and still have resources to invest in civilian economy. Draws on the latest books, articles and documents, including soviet and cuban materials, newly declassified documents only released after the 50th anniversary of the crisis and primary sources that have rarely, if ever, been reproduced before. In a clandestine operation unprecedented in military history, the ussr moved a whole army around the globe and deployed the most sophisticated weapons of its time right under the nose. Learning from the missile crisis what really happened on those thirteen fateful days in october during the cuban missile crisis, soviet warheads on.
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