Caribbean crisis. Caribbean crisis: how to avoid nuclear war

On both sides of the Atlantic these days, perhaps the most intense episode of the Cold War is being remembered - Caribbean crisis. 50 years ago Soviet Union in search of a "symmetrical response" to the deployment of American missiles in Turkey, he sent submarines to the coast of Cuba. The US reaction followed quickly, and the world was on the verge of nuclear war.

50 years ago this man opened America's eyes. But at first Dino Brugioni did not believe his people. Photographs taken by a U-2 spy plane over Cuba, just 130 kilometers from Washington, show the outlines of Soviet launchers and medium-range ballistic missiles R-12 (NATO reporting name SS-4).

“At that time, we already had a secret aerial photograph of the May 9 parade in Moscow with the passage of equipment. I took out these photographs, compared them with those that we received in the sky over Cuba. My colleague said; “My God, these are they, these are SS missiles -4!" recalls retired CIA officer Dino Brugioni.

It was the most symmetrical response to the deployment of American medium-range missiles in Turkey, which reached Moscow.

“Khrushchev and Malinovsky went to the Crimea for some tasks. Malinovsky says: “Here, there are American Jupiters, and Italy is also American Jupiters nearby. Khrushchev says: "What is their flying time?" Malinovsky: "Three to eight minutes." Khrushchev: "What if we give the Americans a hedgehog?" - says Marshal of the Soviet Union Dmitry Yazov (in 1962 - commander of the 108th motorized rifle regiment).

Another goal is to protect Cuba from an imminent US invasion. Even American historians admit that it was planned for October. So, in the summer of 1962, the top-secret Soviet operation Anadyr began. The military announced that they would be redeployed to Chukotka.

“It was one of the elements of enemy intelligence misinformation. For example, when we set off, loaded skis, loaded sheepskin coats,” says retired Colonel General Viktor Yesin (in 1962 - Lieutenant of the 79th Missile Regiment).

The newspapers gave a note that the first tourist flight had departed for Cuba. At that time, in the cramped space between the hold and the deck, hundreds of rocket specialists were hiding on wooden deck chairs in 50-degree heat. From July to October 1962, more than 150 ships with military cargo passed along this route.

The discovery shocked the John F. Kennedy administration. The first reaction of the generals is to strike at Cuba. The President is against. The island is blocked from the air and from the sea to prevent the delivery of nuclear warheads. US intelligence did not know then that they were already in Cuba. Including tactical ones.

"US ships started dropping depth charges. Inside the submarine, it feels like you're in an iron box when they hit it with a hammer. The heat is below 50. And the commander of the Soviet submarine ordered a nuclear torpedo to be loaded. He shouted: there must have been a war there, be I'm damned if I don't destroy at least one of these American ships before I die. Fortunately, the first mate reassured him, "says Philip Brener, professor at the American University.

Fidel Castro demanded that Khrushchev strike first. The Pentagon wanted the same from Kennedy.

Khrushchev and Kennedy stopped when they realized that the button could be pressed without their orders. On the night of October 29, 1962, the President's brother Robert secretly met with the USSR Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin. He conveyed that the United States is ready to give guarantees not to invade Cuba and remove missiles from Turkey. The latter was a secret clause of the agreement, which gave the United States a reason to talk about the humiliating diplomatic defeat of the USSR in the general public.

“Thus, on the basis of distorted information, the elites in the United States made a false conclusion: you always need to show strength, not to seek a compromise, but simply to put pressure, and the enemy will definitely retreat. The United States now treats Iran the same way – from a position of strength,” Professor Brener believes.

Therefore, this page of history has not yet been turned.

For half a century, the chronology of the crisis has been restored minute by minute, most of the documents have been declassified. But the most paradoxical thing is that the obvious conclusion that it was not Washington or Moscow that won the conflict, but, first of all, common sense, still requires proof for many.

In the early 1960s Cuba has become an arena of rivalry between the great powers. The American government was quite alarmed at the prospect of having a communist state at its side. The revolutionary center that arose in Cuba represented a certain threat to American influence in Latin America. At the same time, the USSR was interested in turning Cuba into its ally in the fight against the United States.

USSR support

All the actions of the United States directed against Cuba were skillfully used by the Soviet government in their own interests. Thus, the economic blockade organized by the USA led to the fact that the Soviet Union began to supply oil to Cuba. The USSR and the countries of the socialist camp bought Cuban sugar, supplied the population of the island with everything necessary. This allowed the revolutionary regime to survive. In April 1961, the US attempt by Cuban emigrants to intervene on the island ended in the defeat of the landing force. It was after these events that F. Castro began to call the Cuban revolution socialist.

Deployment of nuclear missiles in Cuba

The economic, political and military pressure of the United States on the rebellious island led to a further tightening of the revolutionary regime. Under these conditions, the Cuban authorities decided to strengthen the country's defense capability with the help of the USSR. The Soviet government, under a secret agreement with the Cuban leadership in the summer and autumn of 1962, deployed medium-range nuclear missiles in Cuba. Under the gunpoint of Soviet missiles were the vital centers of the United States.

The transfer of missiles was carried out in the strictest secrecy, but already in September 1962, the US leadership suspected something was wrong. On September 4, President Kennedy declared that the United States would under no circumstances tolerate Soviet nuclear missiles within 150 kilometers of its borders. In response, Khrushchev assured Kennedy that there were no Soviet missiles or nuclear weapons in Cuba and never would be. He called the installations discovered by the Americans Soviet research equipment. material from the site

October Crisis

The dramatic events in October 1962 developed in the following way. On October 14, pictures of an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft showed the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba. October 22 was followed by an official statement by US President John F. Kennedy on the blockade of the island. American missile units were put on alert. Nuclear warheads were activated on 100 missiles. On October 24, Soviet ships loaded with missiles reached the quarantine line and stopped. Never before has the danger of nuclear war been so real. On October 25, Kennedy sent a telegram to Khrushchev demanding that Soviet missiles be withdrawn from the island. The Soviet leader sent two responses, in the first he demanded US guarantees of non-aggression against Cuba, and in the second he demanded the withdrawal of American Mars missiles from Turkey. Kennedy accepted the first, while the second condition was met a few months later. On October 28, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles.

The Cuban crisis was followed by some improvement in international relations, which led to the signing on August 5, 1963 of an agreement between the USSR, the USA, Great Britain on the prohibition of testing nuclear weapons in three areas - in the atmosphere, outer space and underwater. This improvement, however, began already in the absence of the main actors of the Caribbean crisis: on November 22-November 1963, John F. Kennedy was assassinated, and on October 14, 1964, N. S. Khrushchev was removed from all his party and state posts.

On November 20, 1962, John F. Kennedy ordered an end to the blockade of Cuba. This was the final end of the Caribbean crisis, which brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.

In the early 1960s, a story happened that almost led the world to the Third World War. It began in Washington, continued in Turkish Izmir, reached highest point tension in Cuba, and then involved a good half of the planet, frozen in anxious expectation. The Cubans call those events the Crisis de Octubre, but we are more familiar with the Caribbean Crisis.

The end of the 1950s and the beginning of the 1960s was a period of considerable growth in the tension of the international situation. Only fifteen years have passed since the happy year of 1945, but history seemed to teach nothing to the main interests of big politics. The generals clanged their armor with a deafening roar: the arms race was gaining momentum. The fact that these weapons were, among other things, nuclear, gave the situation "special languor."

It seemed that realpolitikists were so busy sparking all over the world that any of these sparks could ignite a monstrous global fire. Judge for yourself:
1950 The United States unleashes a war in Korea, and only the help of the USSR and China saves the young republic in the north of the peninsula.

1953 The CIA and Mi-6 are conducting Operation Ajax to overthrow the legitimate government of Mohammed Masaddegh in Iran.

1954 The President of Guatemala, Jacobo Arbenz, had the imprudence to carry out a number of important land reforms in his own country, infringing on the interests of the international giant United Fruit Company. The US staged a coup supported by direct military intervention. Operation PBSUCCESS brought the fascist regime of Castillo Armas to power, dooming a sovereign country to forty years of ongoing civil war.

1956 President Dwight Eisenhower authorizes the US invasion of Lebanon and sends warships US to Taiwan, threatening the PRC with military force.

1961 The United States is trying to stifle the revolution in Cuba with the help of mercenaries. The operation in the Bay of Pigs ends in complete failure, and Cuba is literally pushed into the arms of the only country that at that moment was in a position to provide effective support - the USSR.

This is how both previous World Wars began - with a series of local conflicts and "light, non-committal" interventions.
The main goal, of course, was not Cuba or Guatemala or even China, but the USSR. For maximum credibility, under the liberal Kennedy, the United States deployed Jupiter medium-range nuclear missiles in Turkey - in Izmir. Flight time to targets in the Union was about 10 minutes.

The Soviet government could not but react. After all, it was ridiculous even to compare the nuclear potentials of both countries. The United States had 6,000 warheads, and the USSR only 300. The United States could launch an armada of 1,300 into the sky strategic bombers, and at sea - nine nuclear-powered cruisers with Polaris missiles on board. The USSR needed an urgent asymmetric response when the US literally gave it away, forcing Fidel Castro to move closer to Moscow.

On June 20, 1962, Operation Anadyr began to relocate to Cuba a group of missile forces with technical support and cover units. General Issa Aleksandrovich Pliev directly supervised the operation. By the way, he belonged to the cohort that various half-educated people used to call "stupid Budenov cavalrymen." The stupid cavalryman carried out the most complex set of events brilliantly.

24 R-14 missiles and 36 R-12 missiles with launchers and personnel, two regiments of cruise missiles with Luna tactical missiles, four motorized rifle regiments, two air defense divisions, a fighter aviation regiment and a separate fighter squadron (more than 50 aircraft in total), a helicopter regiment, a coastal defense regiment with 8 Sopka missile launchers, 11 submarines, 2 cruisers, destroyers and mine-torpedo ships - all this was delivered to Cuba quickly, accurately and on time. And most importantly - in secret. Until mid-October, Washington did not suspect that 70 Soviet megatons of TNT were located in a quarter of an hour's flight. Here is such a "stupid cavalryman" was Issa Pliev.

Nevertheless, it was unrealistic to hide the sharp intensification of Soviet cargo transportation. Regular overflights of U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, which were considered invulnerable to air defense systems, were able to reveal the deployment of strategic missiles. On October 15, another portion of the photographic films was deciphered, and Kennedy, who had already declared in Congress on September 4 that there were no Soviet missiles in Cuba, was forced to admit that he got a little excited with such conclusions. The US Army and Navy have been placed on DEFCON-3 combat readiness. On October 20, a naval blockade of Cuba began.

Blockade, as you know, is an act of war. Thus, the United States unilaterally acted with aggression against a sovereign state. After all, the deployment of missiles could not violate any international rules and agreements, but the blockade - could and violated. In fact, since the opening of the “quarantine” of Cuba, the world has been on the verge of nuclear disaster. From now on, any accident could start an uncontrollable chain reaction - it was worth it for someone to pass the nerves.

So, the B-59 submarine of the USSR Navy, which broke through to the coast of Cuba, was blocked by US destroyers and fired from an aircraft. Since the destroyers were jamming communications, the ship's commander decided that a war had begun and was ready to fire a volley in nuclear equipment. And only the composure of the first mate, captain of the 2nd rank, Vasily Arkhipov, saved the situation. The code phrase "Stop provocations" was a response to the shelling. But everything could easily turn out differently, the situation was so tense when everything depended on the performers on the ground. The reputable gentlemen in Washington sowed such a wind that the world almost reaped a whirlwind. In the corridors of big diplomacy, naturally and expectedly, there were cries of “what are we for ?!”

On October 23, Kennedy demanded that Soviet Ambassador Dobrynin guarantee that Soviet ships will comply with the conditions of maritime quarantine. To which Dobrynin pointed out the illegality of the blockade and the obvious absurdity of the demands of the American side.
The US military received the DEFCON-2 combat readiness level. For understanding: DEFCON-1 is actually the beginning of full-scale military operations.
At that time, the Soviet representative Valerian Aleksandrovich Zorin fought like a lion in the UN Security Council, and Curtis Lemay, the US Air Force Chief of Staff, demanded the opening of hostilities, up to a nuclear strike on the USSR. The "Tokyo Inquisitor", who burned more than 80,000 people alive in the capital of Japan on March 10, 1945, was generally a prominent specialist in "blowing into the Stone Age."

On October 27, a missile from the S-75 Dvina air defense system shot down an "invulnerable" U-2 over Cuba. The pilot is dead. Kennedy's military advisers demanded an order for an immediate forceful response, but the president, fortunately for everyone, turned out to be either weak or prudent enough to completely block such initiatives. "Black Saturday" - the day when the world was teetering on a razor's edge.

In the early morning of October 28, Kennedy "handed back."
He summoned Soviet Ambassador Dobrynin, declaring that the United States was ready for a diplomatic settlement. A telegram went to Moscow:
“1) You (USSR) agree to withdraw your weapons systems from Cuba under the appropriate supervision of UN representatives, and also to take steps, subject to appropriate security measures, to stop the supply of such weapons systems to Cuba.
2) We, for our part, will agree - provided that a system of adequate measures is created with the help of the UN to ensure the fulfillment of these obligations - a) to quickly lift the blockade measures that have been introduced at the moment and b) to give guarantees of non-aggression against Cuba.

Negotiations began. The result was a discharge. America removed the Jupiter and Thor missiles from Turkey and Europe and guaranteed Cuba against military aggression. The USSR, in response, had to withdraw strategic forces from the Island of Freedom. Native advertising

Thus, historical practice once again confirmed the old truth: si vis pacem - para bellum, if you want peace, prepare for war. This is a serious lesson to contemporaries. Imperialist circles understand only one language, and that is the language of force. Fortunately, there are still missiles on duty, originally from the USSR, equipped with a thermonuclear filling, originally from the same place. As long as this is the case, and as long as there is a strong will to use them in the event of aggression, another world massacre is unlikely. And the heroes of the Anadyr operation played an important role in this, proving that there is no action that does not give rise to opposition.

Cuban Missile Crisis- a well-known historical term that defines the acute relations between superstates in October 1962.

Answering the question, what is the Cuban Missile Crisis, it is impossible not to mention that it affected several spheres of confrontation between the two geopolitical blocs at once. Thus, he touched upon the military, political and diplomatic spheres of confrontation within the framework of the Cold War.

cold war– global economic, political, ideological, military, scientific and technical confrontation between the USA and the USSR in the second half of the twentieth century.

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Causes of the crisis

Causes of the Caribbean Crisis consist in the deployment by US military personnel of nuclear ballistic missiles in Turkey in 1961. The new Jupiter launch vehicles were capable of delivering a nuclear charge to Moscow and other major cities of the Union in a matter of minutes, because of which the USSR would not have a chance to respond to the threat.

Khrushchev had to react to such a gesture and, having agreed with the government of Cuba, stationed Soviet missiles in Cuba. Thus, located in close proximity to the US East Coast, missiles in Cuba were able to destroy key US cities faster than nuclear warheads launched from Turkey.

Interesting! The deployment of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba caused panic among the US population, and the government regarded such actions as a direct act of aggression.

Considering Causes of the Caribbean Crisis, one cannot but mention the attempts of the USA and the USSR to establish control over Cuba. The parties tried to expand their influence in the third world countries, this process was called the cold war.

Caribbean Crisis - Deployment of Nuclear Ballistic Missiles

In response to the threatening deployment of weapons in Turkey Khrushchev convenes a conference in May 1962. He talks possible options problem solving. Fidel Castro, after the revolution in Cuba, repeatedly asked the USSR for help, so that he strengthened his military presence. Khrushchev decided to take advantage of the offer and decided to send not only people, but also nuclear warheads. Having received consent from Castro, the Soviet side began to plan a secret transfer of nuclear weapons.

Operation Anadyr

Attention! The term "Anadyr" means a secret operation Soviet troops, which consisted in the covert delivery of nuclear weapons to the island of Cuba.

In September 1962, the first nuclear missiles were delivered to Cuba on civilian ships. Courts were covered diesel submarines. On September 25, the operation was completed. In addition to nuclear weapons, the USSR transferred about 50,000 soldiers and military equipment to Cuba. US intelligence could not fail to notice such a move, but it did not yet suspect the transfer of secret weapons.

Washington's reaction

In September, American reconnaissance aircraft spotted Soviet fighters in Cuba. This could not go unnoticed, and during another flight on October 14, the U-2 aircraft takes pictures of the location of Soviet ballistic missiles. With the assistance of a defector, US intelligence was able to determine that the image contained launch vehicles for nuclear warheads.

October 16 about photos, which confirm the deployment of Soviet missiles on the island of Cuba, report personally to President Kennedy. Having convened an emergency council, the president considered three ways to solve the problem:

• naval blockade of the island;
• pinpoint missile attack on Cuba;
• full-scale military operation.

The President's military advisers, having learned about the deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba, said that it was necessary to start full-scale military operations. The president himself did not want to start a war, and therefore on October 20 he decided on a naval blockade.

Attention! A naval blockade is regarded in international relations as an act of war. Thus, the United States acts as an aggressor, and the USSR is only an injured party.

Because the United States presented its act not as military naval blockade but like quarantine. On October 22, Kennedy addressed the people of the United States. In the appeal, he said that the USSR secretly deployed nuclear missiles. Also he said, that the peaceful settlement of conflicts in Cuba is his main goal. And yet he mentioned that launching missiles from the island towards the US would be perceived as the start of a war.

The Cold War on the island of Cuba could very soon turn into a nuclear war, as the situation between the parties was extremely tense. The military blockade began on 24 October.

The Peak of the Caribbean Crisis

On October 24, the parties exchanged messages. Kennedy urged that Khrushchev not exacerbate the Cuban Missile Crisis or try to bypass the blockade. The USSR, however, stated that they perceive such demands as aggression on the part of the States.

On October 25, at the UN Security Council, the ambassadors of the conflicting parties presented their demands to each other. The American representative demanded recognition from the USSR about the deployment of missiles in Cuba. Interesting, but the representative of the Union did not know about the missiles, since Khrushchev initiated very few people into the Anadyr operation. And so the representative of the Union evaded the answer.

Interesting! The results of the day - the United States announced increased military readiness - the only time in the history of the country's existence.

After Khrushchev writes another letter - now he does not consult with the ruling elite of the USSR. In it, the general secretary compromises. He gives his word to withdraw the missiles from Cuba, returning them to the Union, but in return, Khrushchev demands that the United States not undertake acts of military aggression against Cuba.

balance of power

Speaking of the Caribbean Crisis, one cannot deny the fact that October 1962 is the time when a nuclear war could really start, and therefore it is reasonable to briefly consider the balance of forces of the parties before its hypothetical start.

The United States had much more impressive weapons and air defense systems. The Americans also had more advanced aircraft, as well as launch vehicles for nuclear warheads. Soviet nuclear missiles were less reliable and would have taken longer to prepare for launch.

The US had about 310 nuclear ballistic missiles around the world, while the USSR could only launch 75 long-range ballistic missiles. Another 700 had an average range and could not reach strategic important US cities.

Aviation of the USSR was seriously inferior to the American- their fighters and bombers, although they were more numerous, lost in quality. Most of them could not reach the shores of the United States.

The main trump card of the USSR was the advantageous strategic location of missiles in Cuba, from where they would reach the shores of America and hit important cities in a matter of minutes.

"Black Saturday" and conflict resolution

On October 27, Castro writes a letter to Khrushchev, in which he claims that the Americans will begin fighting in Cuba within 1-3 days. At the same time, Soviet intelligence reports on the activation of the US Air Force in the area caribbean, which confirms the words of the commandant of Cuba.

In the evening of the same day, another US reconnaissance aircraft flew over the territory of Cuba, which was shot down by Soviet air defense systems installed in Cuba, as a result of which an American pilot died.

On this day, two more US Air Force aircraft were damaged. Kennedy no longer denied the vast possibility of a declaration of war. Castro demanded a nuclear strike on the United States and was ready to sacrifice for this all of Cuba and your life.

denouement

The settlement of the situation during the Caribbean crisis began on the night of October 27th. Kennedy was willing to lift the blockade and guarantee Cuban independence in exchange for the removal of missiles from Cuba.

On October 28, Khrushchev receives Kennedy's letter. After some thought, he writes a response message in which he goes to reconcile and resolve the situation.

Effects

The outcome of the situation, called the Cuban Missile Crisis, was of worldwide significance - nuclear war was cancelled.

Many were not satisfied with the outcome of the talks between Kennedy and Khrushchev. The ruling circles of the USA and the USSR accused their leaders of in softness towards the enemy They shouldn't have to make concessions.

After the settlement of the conflict, the leaders of the states found mutual language, which caused a thaw in relations between the parties. The Cuban Missile Crisis also showed the world that it is wise to stop using nuclear weapons.

The Caribbean Crisis is one of the key events XX century, about which the following interesting facts can be cited:

• Khrushchev learned about American nuclear missiles in Turkey quite by accident during a peaceful visit to Bulgaria;
• the Americans were so afraid of a nuclear war that they launched the construction of fortified bunkers, and after the Caribbean crisis, the scale of construction increased significantly;
• the opposing sides had so many nuclear weapons in their arsenal that their launch would cause a nuclear apocalypse;
• On October 27, on Black Saturday, a wave of suicides swept across the United States;
• at the time of the Caribbean crisis, the United States in the history of its country declared the highest degree of combat readiness;
• The Cuban nuclear crisis was a turning point in cold war, after which detente began between the parties.

Conclusion

Answering the question: when did the Caribbean crisis occur, we can say - October 16-28, 1962. These days have become for the whole world one of the darkest in the twentieth century. The planet watched the confrontation unfold around the island of Cuba.

A few weeks after October 28, the missiles were returned to the USSR. The United States still keeps the promise given by Kennedy not to interfere in the affairs of Cuba and does not introduce its military contingent into Turkish territory.

In fairness, it should be noted that the United States itself was partly "to blame" for the deployment of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. Earlier, the NATO military alliance decided to deploy missiles in Turkey, near the city of Izmir, aimed at the USSR. During a visit to Bulgaria, Nikita Khrushchev was pointed to the water surface of the Black Sea and was told that American missiles were deployed on the other side, capable of wiping out industrial centers in the western territories of the union. According to a number of researchers, it was at that moment that Khrushchev had the idea to respond to Washington and place Soviet missiles almost under his nose - in Cuba.

Liberty Island

The revolution in Cuba won on January 1, 1959. Inspired by the fiery speeches of Fidel Castro, the Cubans overthrew the Batista regime, and Cuba for the first time called itself a socialist state. Initially, Castro tried to establish relations with a powerful neighbor, but they did not want to talk to him.

Fidel Castro understood that he needed to enlist a powerful ally if he wanted to stay in power for a long time // Photo: ria.ru

This was followed by a series of “steps”: all property in Cuba, including American property, was nationalized, Washington imposed an embargo on sugar imports and oil exports, and so on. in parallel with economic measures America was preparing to attack. Although the first attempt at a military invasion in the Gulf of Pigs failed, the confrontation promised to be serious.

Incredible operation

Fidel Castro understood that he needed to enlist a powerful ally if he wanted to stay in power for a long time. Castro chose Moscow as such an ally. In May 1962, at a meeting of the USSR Defense Council, a decision was made to provide Cuba with a "nuclear umbrella" capable of protecting it from the American invasion.

The Soviet military brilliantly carried out Operation Anadyr, transferring people and equipment to Cuba right under the noses of the Americans. The CIA considered this option, but could not believe it was plausible. It did not seem possible to management analysts to transport people in the holds of bulk carriers, since the conditions of such a journey were inhuman. But still, the Soviet military managed to get to the Island of Freedom, and create a military base here.

The Soviet military brilliantly carried out the Anadyr operation, transferring people and equipment to Cuba right under the noses of the Americans // Photo: donmooreswartales.com

When US intelligence discovered Soviet soldiers in Cuba, Khrushchev began to deny everything and say that the citizens of the USSR arrived on the island with a research mission. And only after the scouts took photos of nuclear missiles, the Soviet leader revealed the cards.

Black Saturday

The whole world learned about Soviet missiles at the side of the United States, and President John F. Kennedy began to demand from Secretary General Nikita Khrushchev the immediate withdrawal of troops and equipment, and Washington began to prepare for a likely invasion. The crisis reached its climax on October 27, 1962. An American pilot named Andersen, who was flying over Cuba, was shot down. After that, Washington gave Moscow forty-eight hours to make a decision.

According to a number of researchers, Nikita Khrushchev actually had no intention of attacking the United States with nuclear missiles. He wanted to show his superiority and understood that the missiles would need to be removed almost from the very beginning. Perhaps it was for this that he paid with power. The militant generals could not forgive the General Secretary for his defeat in the Cuban Missile Crisis. Khrushchev gave the order to remove the missiles despite the fact that Washington flatly refused to give up West Berlin, and also only verbally promised to remove its own missiles from Turkey.

The leaders managed to reach an agreement, and the world breathed a sigh of relief // Photo: chugunka10.net

It took Soviet specialists almost three weeks to dismantle the installations. Only at the end of November 1962 did Washington lift the blockade of Cuba, making sure that there were no more deadly missiles on the island. But still, tens of thousands of soldiers from the USSR remained in Cuba under the guise of scientists.

Lessons from the Caribbean Crisis

In 1962, politicians around the world for the first time seriously thought that after the third world war no one could survive. The crisis was followed by negotiations, the result of which was the signing of treaties banning nuclear weapons tests in water, air, space and on earth. But the rivals left themselves underground tests. In addition, a direct connection was established between Moscow and Washington, the so-called "red phone" for emergency cases.

Fidel Castro also learned several lessons from the crisis. He realized that, if necessary, Moscow would neglect the interests of Havana. Before the withdrawal of troops and missiles, no one consulted with him, but practically did not inform him. From that moment on, Castro began to openly flirt with Beijing, but at the same time he did not refuse Moscow's help.

The crisis has shown that the nuclear superpowers are not capable of sorting things out in a local conflict without endangering the entire world.