Prologue to the Cuban Missile Crisis

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Prologue to the Cuban Missile Crisis
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General Batista

• In 1933 Fulgencio Batista y Zaldivar came to
  power and ruled for 25 years.
• By the 1950s, his corrupt and dictatorial regime
  was losing support among many Cubans.
• U.S-backed

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Revolutionaries
Fidel Castro
Ernesto "Che" Guevara
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Fidel Castro

• On July 26th 1953 Fidel Castro, a young lawyer,
  first raised the standard of the revolution
  against Batista.
• Castro was arrested and imprisoned
• Castro was later released and went into exile in
  Mexico, from where he returned to Cuba to lead a
  2 year guerrilla struggle.
• On the 8th January 1959, Castro formed a new
  Government after Batista fled Cuba.

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Reforms

• Nationalised oil companies
• Nationalised Sugar producers
• Seized American companies

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American Response

• Castro had nationalised a billion dollars worth
  of American investments in Cuba.
• Economic blockade of Cuba
• Stopped buying Cuban Sugar, the countrys
  principal export
• US refusal to sell petroleum to Cuba

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• America assumed Castro was deeply unpopular
• His policies had driven many middle-class Cubans
  into exile.
• The US encouraged and financially supported a
  growing band of Cuban exiles determined to
  overthrow Castro.

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Bay of Pigs

• Having a revolutionary left-leaning Cuba, 90
  miles off the US coast, was unacceptable for any
  US administration.
• In March 1960 Eisenhower approved a CIA programme
  of covert action a Cuban paramilitary force
  trained by the US.
• In December 1960, Eisenhower endorsed a plan for
  an amphibious landing by US-trained Cuban
  guerrillas. Hoped to spark an uprising against
  Castro

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• JFK replaced Eisenhower as President in January
  1961
• Eisenhower briefed JFK on a number of issues
  including Cuba
• Kennedy refused to let the US military intervene
  directly but allowed the CIA to organise Cuban
  exiles for invasion.
• The minute I land one marine, were in this up
  to our necks.Im not going to risk an American
  Hungary

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Likely Success?

• Despite CIA confidence, the Joint Chiefs of Staff
  rated the operations chance of success as
  fair- less than 50
• Why?
• Morale of the Cubans was low
• Small numbers
• No US military support

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Fiasco

• 1,500 Cuban exiles invaded Cuba
• The invasion provoked no popular uprising against
  Castro
• Castro sent Soviet made tanks against the Exiles
  and crushed the uprising.

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Outcomes of the invasion

• Helped unify the people behind Castros regime
• Embarrassment to Kennedy and his administration
• Khrushchev now had the upper hand over Kennedy
• Joint Chiefs of Staff were embarrassed and sought
  revenge
• Cuban-soviet relations strengthened