President Kennedy in a crowded Cabinet Room during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation between the United States of America, the Soviet Union, and Cuba during the Cold War. In Russia, it is termed the "Caribbean Crisis," while in Cuba it is called the "October Crisis." The crisis ranks with the Berlin Blockade as one of the major confrontations of the Cold War, and is often regarded as the moment in which the Cold War came closest to escalating into a nuclear war. Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File linksMetadata No higher resolution available. ... Motto: (traditional) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York City Official language(s) None at the federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized... For other uses, see Cold War (disambiguation). ... Occupation zones after 1945. ... The Titan II ICBM carried a 9 Mt W53 warhead, making it one of the most powerful nuclear weapons fielded by the United States during the Cold War. ...

The climax period of the crisis began on October 15, 1962, when United States reconnaissance photographs taken by an American U-2 spy plane revealed missile bases being built in Cuba, and ended two weeks later on October 28, 1962, when President of the United States John F. Kennedy and United Nations Secretary-General U Thant reached an agreement with the Soviets to dismantle the missiles in Cuba in exchange for a no invasion agreement and a secret removal of the Jupiter and Thor missiles in Turkey. is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Mixed reconnaissance patrol of the Polish Home Army and the Soviet Red Army during Operation Tempest, 1944 Reconnaissance is the military term for the active gathering of information about an enemy, or other conditions, by physical observation. ... The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed Dragon Lady, is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency. ... For other uses, see Missile (disambiguation). ... is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Federal courts Supreme Court Circuit Courts of Appeal District Courts Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Local Government Other countries Atlas  US Government Portal      For other uses, see President of the United States (disambiguation). ... John Kennedy and JFK redirect here. ... The Secretary-General of the United Nations is the head of the Secretariat, one of the principal organs of the United Nations. ... U Thant (Burmese: ; 22 January 1909 – 25 November 1974) was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations, from 1961 to 1971. ...

Kennedy, in his first public speech on the crisis, given on October 22, 1962, gave the key warning, is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

It shall be the policy of this nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union. ^[1]

This speech included other key policy statements, beginning with:

To halt this offensive buildup, a strict quarantine on all offensive military equipment under shipment to Cuba is being initiated. All ships of any kind bound for Cuba from whatever nation and port will, if found to contain cargoes of offensive weapons, be turned back. This quarantine will be extended, if needed, to other types of cargo and carriers. We are not at this time, however, denying the necessities of life as the Soviets attempted to do in their Berlin blockade of 1948.

He ordered intensified surveillance, and cited cooperation from the foreign ministers of the Organization of American States (OAS). Kennedy "directed the Armed Forces to prepare for any eventualities; and I trust that in the interest of both the Cuban people and the Soviet technicians at the sites, the hazards to all concerned of continuing the threat will be recognized." He called for emergency meetings of the OAS and United Nations Security Council to deal with the matter. ^[1] Headquarters Washington, D.C. Official languages English, French, Portuguese, Spanish Membership 35 countries Leaders  -  Secretary General José Miguel Insulza Chile (since 26 May 2005) Establishment  -  Charter first signed 30 April 1948 in effect 1 December 1951  Website http://www. ... “Security Council” redirects here. ...

Cuban-American tensions

Soon after the Cuban Revolution, America became concerned about the political positions of Fidel Castro's government, and therefore Cuba was a major focus of the new Kennedy administration when it assumed power in January 1961.^[2] In Havana, there was fear of military intervention by the United States in Cuba.^[3] In April 1961, the threat of invasion became real when a force of CIA-trained Cuban exiles opposed to Castro landed at the Bay of Pigs. The invasion was quickly terminated by Cuba's military forces. Castro was convinced the United States would invade Cuba.^[4] Shortly after routing the Bay of Pigs Invasion, he declared Cuba a socialist republic, established formal ties with the Soviet Union, and began to modernise Cuba's military. Belligerents 26th of July Movement Cuba Commanders Fidel Castro Che Guevara Raul Castro Fulgencio Batista The Cuban Revolution refers to the revolution that led to the overthrow of General Fulgencio Batistas regime on January 1, 1959 by the 26th of July Movement and other revolutionary elements within the country. ... Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (born on August 13, 1926) is the current President of Cuba but on indefinite medical hiatus. ... This article is about the capital of Cuba. ... CIA redirects here. ... Belligerents Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces Cuban exiles trained by the United States Commanders Fidel Castro José Ramón Fernández Ernesto Che Guevara Francisco Ciutat de Miguel John F. Kennedy Grayston Lynch Pepe San Roman Erneido Oliva Strength 15,000 1,511 Cuban exiles 2 CIA agents Casualties and losses... Belligerents Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces Cuban exiles trained by the United States Commanders Fidel Castro José Ramón Fernández Ernesto Che Guevara Francisco Ciutat de Miguel John F. Kennedy Grayston Lynch Pepe San Roman Erneido Oliva Strength 15,000 1,511 Cuban exiles 2 CIA agents Casualties and losses... The term socialist state (or socialist republic, or workers state) can carry one of several different (but related) meanings: Strictly speaking, any real or hypothetical state organized along the principles of socialism may be called a socialist state. ...

The United States feared any country's adoption of communism or socialism, but for a Latin American country to openly ally with the USSR was regarded as unacceptable, given the Russo-American enmity dating from the end of the Second World War in 1945. This article is about the form of society and political movement. ... Religious socialism Key Issues People and organizations Related subjects Socialism refers to a broad array of ideologies and political movements with the goal of a socio-economic system in which property and the distribution of wealth are subject to control by the community. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

In late 1961, Kennedy engaged Operation Mongoose, a series of covert operations against Castro's government which were to prove unsuccessful ^[5]. More overtly, in February 1962, the United States launched an economic embargo against Cuba^[6]. [1] first page of a meeting report on Operation Mongoose, October 4th 1962. ... The United States embargo against Cuba (described in Cuba as el bloqueo, Spanish for the blockade) is an economic, commercial, and financial embargo imposed on Cuba on February 7, 1962. ...

The United States also considered direct military attack. Air Force Gen. Curtis Lemay presented to Kennedy a pre-invasion bombing plan in September, while spy flights and minor military harassment from the United States Guantánamo Naval Base were the subject of continual Cuban diplomatic complaints to the U.S. government. Curtis Emerson LeMay (November 15, 1906–October 3, 1990) was a general in the United States Air Force and the vice presidential running mate of independent candidate George C. Wallace in 1968. ... Gitmo redirects here. ...

By September 1962, Cuban observers fearing an imminent invasion would have seen increasing signs of American preparations for a possible confrontation, including a joint Congressional resolution authorising the use of military force in Cuba if American interests were threatened^[7], and the announcement of an American military exercise in the Caribbean planned for the following month (Operation Ortsac). Operation Ortsac was the project name of a possible invasion of Cuba planned by the United States military in 1962. ...

U.S. nuclear advantage

In 1962, the United States had more than eight times as many bombs and missile warheads than the USSR: 27,297 to 3,332 ^[8] Before being arrested on the Crisis's first day, KGB Colonel Oleg Penkovsky was a British-American spy. Historian Melman notes, "the proceedings of his trial in April 1963 revealed that he had delivered 5,000 frames of film of Soviet military-technical information, apart from many hours of talk with Western agents during several trips to western Europe"; the Soviets concluded "that the U.S. then possessed decisive advantage in arms and intelligence, and that the USSR no longer wielded a credible nuclear deterrent".^[9] This article is about the KGB of the Soviet Union. ... Oleg Vladimirovich Penkovsky codenamed Agent Hero (born April 23, 1919, Vladikavkaz, died May 16, 1963, Soviet Union) was a colonel with Soviet military intelligence (GRU) in the late 1950s and early 1960s who passed important secrets to the West. ... Mutual assured destruction (MAD) is a doctrine of military strategy in which a full-scale use of nuclear weapons by one of two opposing sides would effectively result in the destruction of both the attacker and the defender. ...

Not having matched the American bomber capability, the Russians had instead developed missiles.^[10] After the Sputnik satellite was launched, the U.S. shifted from manned bombers to missiles, previously a low-priority, to develop Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).^[10] Sputnik 1 The Sputnik program was a series of unmanned space missions launched by the Soviet Union in the late 1950s to demonstrate the viability of artificial satellites. ... ICBM redirects here. ...

John von Neumann’s computer modeling rendered U.S. missiles and nuclear warheads light and economical.^[10] The heavy (276-ton), bulky Soviet R-7 Semyorka ported a (3-ton), 3-megaton warhead 5,800 miles (9,330 km); the lighter, smaller (130-ton) U.S. Atlas ported a (1.5-ton) 3.8-megaton warhead 11,500 miles (18,510 km).^[10] In October 1960, Soviet rocket scientists were killed in the Nedelin catastrophe; it delayed the Soviet R-16 ICBM program for a year. During the Caribbean Crisis, the USSR had only four R-7s and few R-16s deployed in vulnerable surface launchers, while the U.S. had 142 Atlas and 62 Titan I ICBMs, mostly in hardened underground silos.^[10] For other persons named John Neumann, see John Neumann (disambiguation). ... A computer simulation or a computer model is a computer program which attempts to simulate an abstract model of a particular system. ... R-7 with Sputnik 2 The R-7 Semyorka was the worlds first intercontinental ballistic missile and was deployed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War from 1959 to 1968. ... Atlas missile launch from Cape Canaveral in 1957 Atlas was a missile built by the Convair Division of General Dynamics. ... The R-16 Missile that caused the catastrophe. ... An R-16 Missile The R-16 was the first successful ICBM deployed by the Soviet Union. ... An R-16 Missile The R-16 was the first successful ICBM deployed by the Soviet Union. ... The Titan I was the United States first true multistage ICBM. It was the first in a series of Titan rockets, but was unique among them in that it used LOX and RP-1 as its fuels, while the later versions all used storable fuels instead. ...

Moreover, in July 1960, the U.S. could launch 1,000-mile (1,600 km)-range Polaris SLBMs from submerged submarines^[10], while the Soviet submarine fleet had only some 100 short range V-1-type cruise missiles which could be launched only from submarines that surfaced and lost their hidden submerged status. Polaris A-3 on launch pad in Cape Canaveral The Polaris missile was a submarine-launched, two-stage solid-fuel nuclear-armed ballistic missile (SLBM) built during the Cold War by Lockheed for the United States Navy. ... French M45 SLBM and M51 SLBM Submarine-launched ballistic missiles or SLBMs are ballistic missiles delivering nuclear weapons that are launched from submarines. ... The V-1 (German: Vergeltungswaffe 1) was the first guided missile used in war and the forerunner of todays cruise missile. ... A Taurus KEPD 350 cruise missile of the German Luftwaffe A cruise missile is a guided missile which carries an explosive payload and uses a lifting wing and a propulsion system, usually a jet engine, to allow sustained flight; it is essentially a flying bomb. ...

The year before the crisis, the Premier of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev, had bluffed Kennedy with the 50-megaton Tsar Bomba program, the greatest nuclear explosion in history.^[10] Taking advantage of the new Cuba-USSR alliance, Khrushchev was in a position to install nuclear missiles ranging to most major American cities.^[10] During the 1960 presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson had been briefed by the Director of Central Intelligence, Allen Dulles, on the actual nuclear capabilities of the Soviet Union; the "gap" was less than he had been suggesting during the campaign.^[11] Premier of the Soviet Union is the commonly used English term for the offices of Chairman of the Council of Peoples Commissars of the USSR (Председатель Совета Народных Комиссаров СССР; Predsedatel Soveta Narodnykh Komissarov SSSR) (1923-1946) and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR (Председатель Совета Министров СССР; Predsedatel Soveta Ministrov SSSR) (1946-1991), who... Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (Russian: , Nikita Sergeevič Chruščiov; IPA: , in English, , or , occasionally ); surname more accurately romanized as Khrushchyov[1]; April 17 [O.S. April 5] 1894[2]–September 11, 1971) was the chief director of the Soviet Union after the death of Joseph Stalin. ... Tsar Bomba (, literally King Bomb) is the Western name for the RDS-220 hydrogen bomb (codenamed Иван (Ivan) by its developers) — the largest, most powerful nuclear weapon ever detonated. ... John Kennedy and JFK redirect here. ... LBJ redirects here. ... The Office of Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) was established on January 23rd 1946 with Adm. ... Allen Welsh Dulles (April 23, 1893 – January 29, 1969) was an influential director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1953 to 1961 and a member of the Warren Commission. ...

A silo-launched Jupiter IRBM of the USAF.

Few U.S. politico-military leaders thought several dozen nuclear missiles in Cuba could alter the strategic balance of military power: the USSR was outgunned. However, the proximity of a Cuban emplacement would reduce the warning of any launch to little or none. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

In 1961, the U.S. deployed 15 Jupiter IRBMs (intermediate-range ballistic missiles) at İzmir, Turkey, aimed at the western USSR's cities, including Moscow. Given its 1,500-mile (2,410 km) range, Moscow was only 16 minutes away. Yet, Kennedy gave them low strategic value, given that a SSBN submarine provided the same magnitude of threat, and from a distance. Jupiter IRBM mobile missile The PGM-19 Jupiter was an intermediate-range ballistic missile of the United States Air Force. ... Ä°zmir, historically Smyrna, is the third most populous city of Turkey and the countrys largest port after Ä°stanbul. ... For other uses, see Moscow (disambiguation). ... The Redoutable, a French SNLE (now a museum) A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles (SLBMs), such as the Russian R-29 or the American/British Trident. ...

Khrushchev publicly expressed anger and personal offense from the Turkish missile emplacement. The Cuban missile deployment — the first time Soviet missiles were outside the USSR — was his response to U.S. nuclear missiles in Turkey. Previously, Khrushchev had expressed doubt to the poet Robert Frost about the readiness of the "liberal" U.S. to fight over tough issues.^[12] Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. ...

Secret deployment of Soviet missiles on Cuba

That politico-military atmosphere, combined with the fear that the Americans might invade Cuba, led Khrushchev to agree to supply surface-to-air missiles and surface-to-surface cruise missiles (for coastal defense) to Cuba in April, 1962. He followed this with a decision, in May, 1962, to install nuclear missiles (under Soviet control) in Cuba. By late July, more than sixty Soviet ships had arrived in Cuba, some carrying military material.

Il-28 attack aircraft were secretly deployed in Cuba

Operation Anadyr was the code name used by the Soviet Union for their strictly secret operation of deploying ballistic missiles, medium-range bombers, and a regiment of mechanized infantry in Cuba to create the Soviet force intended to prevent the invasion of the US military forces.^[13] Anadyr included a military deception campaign intended to mislead Western intelligence forces: personnel were issued Arctic equipment and trained for cold weather, and the operation itself was named for the Anadyr river in the northern part of the Russian Far East. The ballistic missiles were shipped to Cuba on merchant ships. Download high resolution version (1264x504, 302 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1264x504, 302 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Operation Anadyr was the code name used by the Soviet Union for their Cold War (1962) plan to deploy ballistic missiles, medium-range bombers, and a regiment of mechanized infantry in Cuba. ... Diagram of V-2, the first ballistic missile. ... United States may refer to: Places: United States of America SS United States, the fastest ocean liner ever built. ... Military deception is an attempt to amplify, or create an artificial, fog of war or to mislead the enemy using psychological operations, information warfare and other methods. ... Anadyr, Russia Anadyr River Anadyr Gulf Operation Anadyr This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Far Eastern Federal District (highlighted in red) Russian Far East (Russian: ; IPA: ) is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i. ...

In all were planned to deploy 60,000 troops, three R-12 missile regiments and two R-14 missile regiments. Troops were transferred by 86 ships, that conducted 180 voyages from ports Baltiysk, Liepāja, Sevastopol, Feodosia, Nikolaev, Poti, Murmansk. Between June 17 and October 22 there were transferred 24 launching pads, 42 R-12 rockets, including six training ones, some 45 nuclear warheads, 42 Il-28 bombers, a fighter aircraft regiment (40 Mig-21 aircraft), two Anti-Air Defense divisions, three mechanized infantry regiments, and other military units - some 47,000 troops in total. The R-14 Usovaya was a theatre ballistic missile developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. ... Baltiysk (Балтийск) – known prior to 1945 by its German name, Pillau (Polish PiÅ‚awa, Lithuanian Piliava)– is a Russian sea port in the strait between Vistula Bay and Gdansk Bay, called Strait of Baltiysk on the territory of Kaliningrad Oblast with about 20,000 inhabitants. ... Liepāja (IPA: ,  ) is a city in western Latvia on the Baltic sea and the administrative center of Liepāja district. ... Location Map of Ukraine with Sevastopol highlighted. ... Feodosiya ( Russian: Феодосия; Ukrainian: Феодосія) is a port and resort city in southern Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of Crimea at coordinates 45. ... Nikolayev may refer to one of the following: A town and an important ship building and naval center of Ukraine and, formerly, of the Soviet Union and Imperial Russia. ... Poti (Georgian: ფოთი, Poti) is a city in the Samegrelo province in the west of Republic of Georgia. ... Murmansk coin Murmansk (Russian: ; Finnish: (archaic); Northern Sami: ; Skolt Sami: ) is a city in the extreme northwest part of Russia with a seaport on the Kola Bay, 12 km from the Barents Sea on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula, not far from Russias borders with Norway and... is the 168th day of the year (169th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945 lifted nuclear fallout some 18 km (60,000 feet) above the epicenter. ... The Ilyushin Il-28 is a jet bomber aircraft that was originally manufactured for the Soviet Air Force and was the USSRs first such aircraft to enter large-scale production. ... An A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-86 Sabre, P-38 Lightning and P-51 Mustang fly in formation during an air show at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. ... Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (NATO reporting name Fishbed) is a fighter aircraft, originally built by the Mikoyan and Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. ... Voyska PVO (Russian: Войска ПВО, or PVO Strany until 1981) was the air defense branch of the Soviet military. ...

American early reports

In Paris while on honeymoon, CIA director John McCone was told by French intelligence that the Soviets were installing missiles in Cuba. He warned Kennedy that some ships were missile-laden; however, the President — in consultation with his brother Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara — concluded that the Soviets would not do so. Kennedy's government had received repeated Soviet diplomatic disclaimers that there were neither Soviet missiles in Cuba, nor plans to install any, and that the USSR was uninterested in provoking an international confrontation that would affect the United States House of Representatives elections in November^[14]. This article is about the capital of France. ... John Alexander McCone (January 4, 1902 - February 14, 1991) was an American businessman and politician who served as Director of Central Intelligence during the height of the Cold War. ... The Service de Documentation Extérieure et de Contre-Espionnage (External Documentation and Counter-Espionage Service, SDECE) was Frances external intelligence agency from November 6, 1944 to April 2, 1982 when it was replaced by the Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure (DGSE). ... Seal of the United States Department of Justice The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice (see 28 U.S.C. Â§ 503) concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. ... Robert Francis Bobby Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also called RFK, was one of two younger brothers of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and served as United States Attorney General from 1961 to 1964. ... Seal of the United States Department of State. ... David Dean Rusk (February 9, 1909 – December 20, 1994) was the United States Secretary of State from 1961 to 1969 under presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. ... The United States Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) is the head of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), concerned with the armed services and military matters. ... For the figure skater, see Robert McNamara (figure skater). ... The U.S. House election, 1962 was an election for the United States House of Representatives in 1962 which occurred in the middle of President John F. Kennedys term. ...

In late August, a reconnaissance flight photographed a new series of SAM sites being built, but on September 4, 1962, Kennedy told Congress that there were no offensive missiles in Cuba. The same day, Robert Kennedy met Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin. In that meeting he stated American concern about nuclear missiles in Cuba. The ambassador assured him that they were defensive and that the military build-up was insignificant. Days later, another reconnaissance flight photographed the building of a submarine pen disguised as a fishing village. On September 11, the Soviets publicly stated that they had no need to install nuclear weapons outside the USSR, including in Cuba. That day, Khrushchev personally communicated to Kennedy that there would be no offensive weapons emplaced in Cuba. ^[15] Akash Missile Firing French Air Force Crotale battery Bendix Rim-8 Talos surface to air missile of the US Navy A surface-to-air missile (SAM) is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft. ... is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Type Bicameral Houses Senate House of Representatives President of the Senate President pro tempore Dick Cheney, (R) since January 20, 2001 Robert C. Byrd, (D) since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, (D) since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political... Anatoly Dobrynin was Soviet Ambassador to the United States, serving from 1962 to 1986 and most notably during the Cuban Missile Crisis; he was appointed by Nikita Khrushchev. ... Old Executive Office Building, Washington D.C. Bank of China Tower, Hong Kong, China In architecture, construction, engineering and real estate development the word building may refer to one of the following: Any man-made structure used or intended for supporting or sheltering any use or continuous occupancy, or An... The submarine (former U-boat) pen Keroman in Lorient, France. ... is the 254th day of the year (255th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

U-2 flights and discovery

U-2 reconnaissance photograph of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. Shown are the transports and tents for fueling and maintenance.

The first consignment of SS-4 MRBMs arrived on the night of September 8, followed by a second on September 16. The Soviets were building nine sites — six for SS-4s and three for SS-5s with a 4,000 kilometre-range (2,400 statute miles). The planned arsenal was forty launchers, a 70% increase in first strike capacity. The Cuban populace readily noticed it, with over one thousand reports reaching Miami, which U.S. intelligence considered spurious.^[16] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The R-12 Dvina was a theatre ballistic missile developed and deployed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. ... is the 251st day of the year (252nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The R-14 Usovaya was a theatre ballistic missile developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. ... In nuclear strategy, first strike capability is a countrys ability to defeat another nuclear power by destroying its arsenal to the point where the attacking country can survive the weakened retaliation. ... Miami redirects here. ...

While Brugioni concentrates deeply on the IMINT in his book, Eyeball to Eyeball,^[17] Hilsman may give a slightly broader view in his book, To Move a Nation.^[18] IMINT, short for IMagery INTelligence, is an intelligence gathering discipline which collects information via satellite and aerial photography. ...

On October 8, Cuban President Osvaldo Dorticós (1919-1983) spoke at the U.N. General Assembly: "If . . . we are attacked, we will defend ourselves. I repeat, we have sufficient means with which to defend ourselves; we have indeed our inevitable weapons, the weapons, which we would have preferred not to acquire, and which we do not wish to employ". Several unrelated problems meant the missiles were not discovered by the U.S. until an October 14 U-2 flight showed the construction of an SS-4 site at San Cristóbal, Pinar del Río Province, in western Cuba. is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Osvaldo Dorticós Torrado (1919 - 1983) was a Cuban politician who served as President of Cuba from 17 July 1959 until 2 December 1976. ... United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. ... is the 287th day of the year (288th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... San Cristóbal, Cuba San Cristóbal is a town in the province of Pinar del Río. ... Pinar del Río is one of the provinces of Cuba. ...

Planning a response

Kennedy saw the photographs on October 16^[19]; he assembled the Executive Committee of the National Security Council (ExComm), fourteen key officials and his brother Robert, at 9.00 a.m. The U.S. had no plan for dealing with such a threat, because U.S. intelligence was convinced the Soviets would not install nuclear missiles in Cuba. The EXCOM quickly discussed three courses of military action: is the 289th day of the year (290th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The Executive Committee of the National Security Council (commonly referred to as simply the Executive Committee or ExComm) was a body of U.S. officials that convened to advise President John F. Kennedy during the fateful days of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. ...

1. an air attack on the missiles
2. a full military invasion
3. the naval blockade of Cuba, which was redefined as a more restrictive quarantine.

Unanimously, the Joint Chiefs of Staff agreed that a full-scale attack and invasion was the only solution. They agreed that the Soviets would not act to stop the U.S. from conquering Cuba; Kennedy was skeptical, saying: Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States of America symbol The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is a group comprising the Chiefs of service of each major branch of the armed services in the United States armed forces. ...

They, no more than we, can let these things go by without doing something. They can't, after all their statements, permit us to take out their missiles, kill a lot of Russians, and then do nothing. If they don't take action in Cuba, they certainly will in Berlin.^[20] This article is about the capital of Germany. ...

Kennedy concluded that attacking by air would signal the Soviets to presume "a clear line" to conquer Berlin. Adding that in taking such an action, the United States' allies would think of the U.S. as "trigger-happy Americans" who lost Berlin because they could not peacefully resolve the Cuban situation.

President Kennedy and Secretary of Defense McNamara in an ExComm meeting.

Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara supported the naval blockade as a strong but limited military action that left the U.S. in control. Per international law a blockade is an act of war, but the Kennedy administration did not feel themselves limited, thinking the USSR would not be provoked to attack by a mere blockade.^{[citation needed]} Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A blockade is any effort to prevent supplies, troops, information or aid from reaching an opposing force. ... A PR100. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

On October 18 Kennedy met Andrei Gromyko, who emphasized that there were no offensive weapons in Cuba and that the USSR's involvement was in land reform and defense. Kennedy, however, had significant information on Soviet capabilities from the US-UK defector-in-place, Oleg Penkovsky. ^[21]. Specifically, Kennedy knew that Soviet ICBMs were developing slowly, and that the Soviets would benefit by placing shorter-ranged SS-4 Sandal (NATO reporting name; actual Soviet designation R-12 Dvina) and SS-5 Skean (NATO reporting name; actual Soviet designation R-15 Chusovaya) intermediate-range missiles in Cuba, much as the US had PGM-19 Jupiter in Italy and Turkey and PGM-17 Thor IRBMs in the United Kingdom. US ICBM deployment was proceeding well enough that the US IRBMs were obsolete, and Kennedy could use them as bargaining chips. is the 291st day of the year (292nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Andrei Gromyko Andrei Andreyevich Gromyko (Андре́й Андре́евич Громы́ко) (July 18 (July 5, Old Style), 1909 – July 2, 1989) was Minister for Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. ... State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ... Counter Intelligence A uk label started and owned by John Machielsen. ... Oleg Vladimirovich Penkovsky codenamed Agent Hero (born April 23, 1919, Vladikavkaz, died May 16, 1963, Soviet Union) was a colonel with Soviet military intelligence (GRU) in the late 1950s and early 1960s who passed important secrets to the West. ... A Minuteman III missile soars after a test launch. ... The R-12 Dvina was a theatre ballistic missile developed and deployed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. ... The R-14 Usovaya was a theatre ballistic missile developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. ... Jupiter IRBM mobile missile The PGM-19 Jupiter was an intermediate-range ballistic missile of the United States Air Force. ... Thor-Ablestar Thor was the United Statess first operational ballistic missile. ...

By October 19, frequent U-2 spy flights showed four operational sites. The 1st Armored Division was sent to Georgia, and five army divisions were alerted for maximal action. The Strategic Air Command (SAC) distributed its shorter-ranged B-47 Stratojet medium bombers to civilian airports and sent aloft its B-52 Stratofortress heavy bombers. While both types were on alert to be ready to attack, the key point of the B-52 airborne alert is that a bomber in the air is invulnerable to an attack on its base. Dispersing the B-47s presented the presumed enemy with a much harder mission of attacking every airfield containing bombers. is the 292nd day of the year (293rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... The 1st Armored Division —nicknamed “Old Ironsides”— is the standing armored division of the United States Army with base of operations in Wiesbaden, Germany. ... Symbol of the Polish 1st Legions Infantry Division in NATO code A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of around ten to twenty thousand soldiers. ... For the film of the same name, see Strategic Air Command (film) The Strategic Air Command (SAC) was the operational establishment of the United States Air Force in charge of Americas bomber-based and ballistic missile-based strategic nuclear arsenal from 1946 to 1992. ... The Boeing B-47 Stratojet jet bomber was a medium range and size bomber capable of flying at high subsonic speeds and primarily designed for penetrating the Soviet Union. ... A medium bomber is a bomber aircraft designed to operate with medium bombloads over medium distances; primarily to distinguish them from the much larger heavy bombers and smaller light bombers. ... “B-52” redirects here. ... The B-52 Stratofortress, a heavy bomber. ...

Another ExComm war meeting showed that air attacks would kill 10,000 to 20,000 people. Another spy flight discovered bombers and cruise missiles on Cuba's north shore, and Kennedy authorized the blockade of Cuba.^[22] When the press questioned him about Cuban offensive weapons, Kennedy told them to suppress their reports until after he addressed the nation; that evening he told Britain and other allies.

Quarantine

In customary international practice, a blockade stops all shipments into the blockaded area, and is considerd an act of war. Quarantines are more selective, as, in this case, being limited to offensive weapons. While the original U.S. Navy paper did use the term "blockade", The United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for naval operations. ...

This initially was to involve a naval blockade against offensive weapons within the framework of the Organization of American States and the Rio Treaty. Such a blockade might be expanded to cover all types of goods and air transport. The action was to be backed up by surveillance of Cuba. CNO's scenario was followed closely in later implementing the quarantine. ^[23] Headquarters Washington, D.C. Official languages English, French, Portuguese, Spanish Membership 35 countries Leaders  -  Secretary General José Miguel Insulza Chile (since 26 May 2005) Establishment  -  Charter first signed 30 April 1948 in effect 1 December 1951  Website http://www. ... The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (commonly, Rio Treaty or the Spanish language acronym TIAR) was an agreement made in 1947 in Rio de Janiero among many American countries that states among its articles that an attack against one would be considered an attack against all, known as the...

Admiral Anderson's paper, by differentiating between the quarantine of offensive weapons versus all materials, indicated that a classic blockade was not the original intention. Since it would take place in international waters, President John F. Kennedy obtained the approval of the OAS for military action under the hemispheric defense provisions of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (i.e., the Rio Treaty). Latin American participation in the quarantine. For other uses, see Admiral (disambiguation). ... George Whelan Anderson, Jr. ... President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, companies, trade unions, universities, and countries. ... John Kennedy and JFK redirect here. ... The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (commonly known as the Rio Treaty or by the Spanish-language acronym TIAR) was an agreement made in 1947 in Rio de Janeiro among many American countries that states among its articles that an attack against one would be considered an attack against...

Latin American participation in the quarantine now involved two Argentine destroyers which were to report to the U.S. Commander South Atlantic [COMSOLANT] at Trinidad on November 9. An Argentine submarine and a Marine battalion with lift were available if required. In addition, two Venezuelan destroyers and one submarine had reported to COMSOLANT, ready for sea by 2 November. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago offered the use of Chaguaramas Naval Base to warships of any OAS nation for the duration of the quarantine. The Dominican Republic had made available one escort ship. Colombia was reported ready to furnish units and had sent military officers to the U.S. to discuss this assistance. The Argentine Air Force informally offered three SA-16 aircraft in addition to forces already committed to the quarantine operation. ^[23]

President Kennedy signs the Proclamation for Interdiction of the Delivery of Offensive Weapons to Cuba at the Oval Office on October 23, 1962.

At 7 p.m. October 22, President Kennedy delivered a televised radio address announcing the discovery of the missiles. On November 10 a Latin-American task force of Venezuelan, Argentina and Dominican naval vessels joined this effort, sailing from Las Chaguaramas naval base in Trinidad and Tobago.^[24][25] The list of the ships involved was: Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 393 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (760 × 1158 pixel, file size: 439 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) // President Kennedy signs Cuba quarantine proclamation, 23 October 1962 White House, Oval Office October 23, 1962 Photograph by Cecil Stoughton, White House, in the John F... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 393 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (760 × 1158 pixel, file size: 439 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) // President Kennedy signs Cuba quarantine proclamation, 23 October 1962 White House, Oval Office October 23, 1962 Photograph by Cecil Stoughton, White House, in the John F... The Oval Office from above in 2003, during the administration of George W. Bush. ... is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

• Destroyers:

• ARA Espora
• ARA Rosales
• ARV Nueva Espana
• ARV Rubia
• USS Mullinix

• Frigates:

• Sontano
• Luperón

• Submarines:

• ARV Caribe

Crisis deepens

Only an hour later, at 11:24 a.m. a cable drafted by George Ball to the U.S. Ambassador in Turkey and the U.S. Ambassador to NATO notified them that they were considering making an offer to withdraw missiles from Turkey in exchange for a withdrawal from Cuba. Later, on the morning of October 25, journalist Walter Lippman proposed the same thing in his syndicated column. For many years this has been interpreted as a trial balloon floated by the Kennedy administration, although the historical record suggests this is not the case.^{[citation needed]} George Wildman Ball (1909 - 1994) was born in Des Moines, Iowa. ... NATO 2002 Summit The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), sometimes called North Atlantic Alliance, Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for defence collaboration established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on April 4, 1949. ... is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Walter Lippmann (September 23, 1889 - December 14, 1974), was an influential United States writer, journalist, and political commentator. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

At the time the crisis continued unabated, and that evening TASS^{[citation needed]} reported on an exchange of telegrams between Khrushchev and Bertrand Russell, where Khrushchev warned that the United States' "pirate action" would lead to war. However this was followed at 9:24 p.m. by a telegram from Khrushchev to Kennedy which was received at 10:52 p.m., in which Khrushchev stated that "if you coolly weigh the situation which has developed, not giving way to passions, you will understand that the Soviet Union cannot fail to reject the arbitrary demands of the United States", and that the Soviet Union views the blockade as "an act of aggression" and their ships will be instructed to ignore it. TASS can refer to one of the following: The transliteration of the Russian abbreviation for the Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union. ... Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970), was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, advocate for social reform, and pacifist. ...

On the night of October 23, the Joint Chiefs of Staff instructed Strategic Air Command to go to DEFCON 2, for the only time in history. The message, and the response, were deliberately transmitted uncoded,^[clarify] in order to allow Soviet intelligence to capture them.^[5] Operation Falling Leaves quickly set up three radar bases to watch for missile launches from Cuba.^[clarify] The radars were experimental models ahead of their time. Each base was connected with a hotline to NORAD control. is the 296th day of the year (297th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States of America symbol The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is a group comprising the Chiefs of service of each major branch of the armed services in the United States armed forces. ... For the film of the same name, see Strategic Air Command (film) The Strategic Air Command (SAC) was the operational establishment of the United States Air Force in charge of Americas bomber-based and ballistic missile-based strategic nuclear arsenal from 1946 to 1992. ... The defense readiness condition (DEFCON) is a measure of the activation and readiness level of the United States armed forces. ... NORAD Headquarters Building. ...

At 1:45 a.m. on October 25, Kennedy responded to Khrushchev's telegram, stating that the U.S. was forced into action after receiving repeated assurances that no offensive missiles were being placed in Cuba, and that when these assurances proved to be false, the deployment "required the responses I have announced... I hope that your government will take necessary action to permit a restoration of the earlier situation." is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

The image is a recently declassified map used by the U.S. Navy's Atlantic Fleet showing the position of American and Soviet ships at the height of the crisis.

At 7:15 a.m., the USS Essex and USS Gearing attempted to intercept the Bucharest but failed to do so. Fairly certain the tanker did not contain any military material, it was allowed through the blockade. Later that day, at 5:43 p.m., the commander of the blockade effort ordered the USS Kennedy to intercept and board the Lebanese freighter Marcula. This took place the next day, and the Marcula was cleared through the blockade after its cargo was checked. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 667 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (740 × 665 pixel, file size: 74 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Description: Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962-One of the greatest showdowns between West and East during the long struggle known as the Cold War was the Cuban... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 667 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (740 × 665 pixel, file size: 74 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Description: Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962-One of the greatest showdowns between West and East during the long struggle known as the Cold War was the Cuban... The fourth USS Essex (CV-9) (also CVA-9 and CVS-9) was a United States Navy aircraft carrier, the lead ship of her class. ... USS Gearing (DD-710) was the lead ship of her class of destroyers in the United States Navy. ... The USS (DD-850) is a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy. ... Look up this in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

At 5:00 p.m. Dean Rusk announced that the missiles in Cuba were still actively being worked on. This report was later verified by a CIA report that suggested there had been no slow-down at all. In response, Kennedy issued Security Action Memorandum 199, authorizing the loading of nuclear weapons onto aircraft under the command of SACEUR (which had the duty of carrying out the first air strikes on the Soviet Union). NATO military is divided into two commands, Atlantic and Europe. ...

The next morning, Kennedy informed the executive committee that he believed only an invasion would remove the missiles from Cuba. However, he was persuaded to give the matter time and continue with both military and diplomatic pressure. He agreed and ordered the low-level flights over the island to be increased from two per day to once every two hours. He also ordered a crash program to institute a new civil government in Cuba if an invasion went ahead.

At this point the crisis was ostensibly at a stalemate. The USSR had shown no indication that they would back down and had made several comments to the contrary. The U.S. had no reason to believe otherwise and was in the early stages of preparing for an invasion, along with a nuclear strike on the Soviet Union in the case they responded militarily, which was assumed.^[26]

Secret negotiations

At 1:00 p.m., John Scali of ABC News had lunch with Aleksandr Fomin at Fomin's request. Fomin noted that "war seems about to break out" and asked Scali to use his contacts to talk to his "high-level friends" at the State Department to see if the U.S. would be interested in a diplomatic solution. He suggested that the language of the deal would contain an assurance from the Soviet Union to remove the weapons under UN supervision and that Castro would publicly announce not to accept such weapons in the future, in exchange for a public statement by the U.S. that they would never invade Cuba. The U.S. responded by asking the Brazilian government to pass a message to Castro that the U.S. would be "unlikely to invade" if the missiles are removed. John Alfred Scali (1918 - October 19, 1995) was the United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 1973 to 1975. ... ABC News logo ABC News Special Report ident, circa 2006 ABC News is a division of American television and radio network ABC, owned by The Walt Disney Company. ... Alexandre Feklisov Aleksandr Semyonovich Feklisov (born 1914) was the KGB Case Officer who recruited Julius Rosenberg and Klaus Fuchs, among others. ...

At 6:00 p.m. the State Department started receiving a message that appeared to be written personally by Khrushchev. Robert Kennedy described the letter as "very long and emotional". Khrushchev re-iterated the basic outline that had been stated to Scali earlier in the day, "I propose: we, for our part, will declare that our ships bound for Cuba are not carrying any armaments. You will declare that the United States will not invade Cuba with its troops and will not support any other forces which might intend to invade Cuba. Then the necessity of the presence of our military specialists in Cuba will disappear." At 6:45, news of Fomin's offer to Scali was finally heard and was interpreted as a "set up" for the arrival of Khrushchev's letter. The letter was then considered official and accurate, although it was later learned that Fomin was almost certainly operating of his own accord without official backing. Additional study of the letter was ordered and continued into the night.

Crisis continues

S-75 Dvina with V-750V 1D missile on a launcher. An installation similar to this one shot down Major Anderson's U-2 over Cuba.

Castro, on the other hand, was convinced an invasion was soon at hand, and he dictated a letter to Khrushchev that appeared to call for a preemptive strike on the U.S. He also ordered all anti-aircraft weapons in Cuba to fire on any U.S. aircraft, whereas in the past they were ordered only to fire on groups of two or more. At 6:00 a.m. on October 27, the CIA delivered a memo reporting that three of the four missile sites at San Cristobal and the two sites at Sagua la Grande appeared to be fully operational. They also note that the Cuban military continued to organize for action, although they were under order not to initiate action unless attacked. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1181x849, 460 KB) S-75 Dźwina photo by Radomil, 6 June 2005, Poznań File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): S-75 Dvina Metadata This file contains... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1181x849, 460 KB) S-75 Dźwina photo by Radomil, 6 June 2005, Poznań File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): S-75 Dvina Metadata This file contains... V-750 missile on camouflaged launcher. ... is the 300th day of the year (301st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

At 9 a.m. Radio Moscow began broadcasting a message from Khrushchev. Contrary to the letter of the night before, the message offered a new trade, that the missiles on Cuba would be removed in exchange for the removal of the Jupiters from Turkey. Throughout the crisis, Turkey had repeatedly stated they would be upset if the Jupiter missiles were removed. At 10 a.m. the executive committee met again to discuss the situation. McNamara noted that another tanker, the Grozny, was about 600 miles (970 km) out and should be intercepted. He also noted that they had not made the USSR aware of the quarantine line and suggested relaying this information to them via U Thant at the UN. A 1969 Radio Moscow QSL card Voice of Russia is the Russian governments international radio broadcasting service. ... U Thant (Burmese: ; 22 January 1909 – 25 November 1974) was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations, from 1961 to 1971. ...

An Air Force U-2 "Dragon Lady" similar to this one was shot down over Cuba.

While the meeting progressed, at 11:03 a.m. a new message began to arrive from Khrushchev. The message stated, in part, "You are disturbed over Cuba. You say that this disturbs you because it is ninety miles by sea from the coast of the United States of America. But... you have placed destructive missile weapons, which you call offensive, in Turkey, literally next to us... I therefore make this proposal: We are willing to remove from Cuba the means which you regard as offensive... Your representatives will make a declaration to the effect that the United States ... will remove its analogous means from Turkey ... and after that, persons entrusted by the United Nations Security Council could inspect on the spot the fulfillment of the pledges made." The executive committee continued to meet through the day. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 522 pixelsFull resolution (1472 × 960 pixel, file size: 247 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A U.S. Air Force U-2 Dragon Lady reconnaissance aircraft flies a training mission. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 522 pixelsFull resolution (1472 × 960 pixel, file size: 247 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A U.S. Air Force U-2 Dragon Lady reconnaissance aircraft flies a training mission. ...

The engine of the Lockheed U-2 shot down over Cuba on display at Museum of the Revolution in Havana

Around noon that day a Lockheed U-2 piloted by Rudolph Anderson was shot down by a S-75 Dvina SAM emplacement in Cuba, increasing the stress in negotiations between the USSR and the U.S. It was later learned that the decision to fire was made locally by an undetermined Soviet commander on his own authority. Later that day, at about 3:41 p.m., several RF8U Crusader aircraft on low-level photoreconnaissance missions were fired upon, and one was hit by a 37 mm shell but managed to return to base. The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed Dragon Lady, is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency. ... Museo de la Revolución The Museum of the Revolution (Spanish: Museo de la Revolución) is a museum about the Cuban Revolution of the 1950s, located in Havana, Cuba. ... This article is about the capital of Cuba. ... The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed Dragon Lady, is a single-engine, high-altitude aircraft flown by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency. ... Major Rudolf Anderson, Jr. ... V-750 missile on camouflaged launcher. ... F-8C digital fly-by-wire testbed (NASA) Two F-8 Crusaders Prepare to Launch from the USS Midway (CV-41). ...

At 4 p.m. Kennedy recalled the executive committee to the White House and ordered that a message immediately be sent to U Thant asking if the Soviets would "suspend" work on the missiles while negotiations are carried out. During this meeting, Maxwell Taylor delivered the news that the U-2 had been shot down. Kennedy had earlier claimed he would order an attack on such sites if fired upon, but he decided to leave the matter unless another attack was made. In an interview 40 years later, McNamara remembers: For other uses, see White House (disambiguation). ...

We had to send a U-2 over to gain reconnaissance information on whether the Soviet missiles were becoming operational. We believed that if the U-2 was shot down that—the Cubans didn't have capabilities to shoot it down, the Soviets did—we believed if it was shot down, it would be shot down by a Soviet surface-to-air-missile unit, and that it would represent a decision by the Soviets to escalate the conflict. And therefore, before we sent the U-2 out, we agreed that if it was shot down we wouldn't meet, we'd simply attack. It was shot down on Friday [...]. Fortunately, we changed our mind, we thought "Well, it might have been an accident, we won't attack." Later we learned Khrushchev reasoned just as we did: we send over the U-2, if it was shot down, he reasoned we would believe it was an intentional escalation. And therefore, he issued orders to Pliyev, the Soviet commander in Cuba, to instruct all of his batteries not to shoot down the U-2.

Note that Robert McNamara dates, from memory, the shooting down of the U-2 to Friday, October 26th.^[27]

Drafting the response

Throughout the meeting, Kennedy suggested they take up Khrushchev's offer to trade away the missiles. Unknown to most members of the EXCOMM, Robert Kennedy had been meeting with the USSR Ambassador in Washington to discover whether these intentions were genuine. The EXCOMM was generally against the proposal because it would undermine NATO, and the Turkish government had repeatedly stated they were against any such trade.

As the meeting progressed, a new plan emerged and Kennedy was slowly won over. The new plan called for the President to ignore the latest message and return to Khrushchev's earlier one. Kennedy was initially hesitant, feeling that Khrushchev would no longer accept the deal because a new one had been offered, but Llewellyn Thompson argued that he might accept it anyway. Theodore Sorensen and Robert Kennedy left the meeting and returned 45 minutes later with a draft letter to this effect. The President made several changes, had it typed, and sent it. Llewellyn E. Thompson Jr. ...

After the EXCOMM meeting, a smaller meeting continued in the Oval Office. The group argued that the letter should be underscored with an oral message to Ambassador Dobrynin stating that if the missiles were not withdrawn, military action would be used to remove them. Dean Rusk added one proviso, that no part of the language of the deal would mention Turkey, but there would be an understanding that the missiles would be removed "voluntarily" in the immediate aftermath. The President agreed, and the message was sent. The Oval Office from above in 2003, during the administration of George W. Bush. ...

An EXCOMM meeting during the Cuban Missile Crisis. President Kennedy, Secretary of State Rusk, and Secretary of Defense McNamara, in the White House Cabinet Room.

At Juan Brito's request, Fomin and Scali met again. Scali asked why the two letters from Khrushchev were so different, and Fomin claimed it was because of "poor communications". Scali replied that the claim was not credible and shouted that he thought it was a "stinking double cross". He went on to claim that an invasion was only hours away, at which point Fomin stated that a response to the U.S. message was expected from Khrushchev shortly, and he urged Scali to tell the State Department no treachery was intended. Scali said that he did not think anyone would believe him, but he agreed to deliver the message. The two went their separate ways, and Scali immediately typed out a memo for the EXCOMM. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Within the U.S. establishment it was well understood that ignoring the second offer and returning to the first put Khrushchev in a terrible position. Military preparations continued, and all active duty Air Force personnel were recalled to base for possible action. Robert Kennedy later recalled the mood, "We had not abandoned all hope, but what hope there was now rested with Khrushchev's revising his cours