Neither side was prepared to give in, and the world seemed headed for a nuclear war as Soviet ships steamed toward Cuba. Some Soviet ships were stopped by the US Navy but were allowed to go on because they did not have parts for nuclear weapons.
US IMPOSES ARMS BLOCKADE ON CUBA ON FINDING MISSILE SITES
KENNEDY READY FOR SOVIET SHOWDOWN, SHIPS MUST STOP
Khrushchev (Soviet leader) and Kennedy (US President) arm- wrestle over the Cuban Missile Crisis. What is the message of this cartoon?
JFK’S ORDERS:
US newspapers reporting on the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
How was an agreement reached? ● Khrushchev offered to dismantle and remove all missiles from Cuba if America promised not to invade Cuba.
‘Search, and If Necessary, Sink Any Arms Ship’
● Kennedy accepted the offer; the Soviet ships were ordered to turn back and the crisis was over.
Why was the Cuban Missile Crisis important? ● The crisis brought the world very close to a nuclear war. As a result, both America and the Soviet Union agreed that the superpowers must never again risk a direct nuclear war.
CANADA Range of Boston UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Salt Lake City Denver Chicago Washington Atlantic Ocean
Range of short-range missiles (1,600 km)
New Orleans MEXICO Miami USA
US naval blockade of Cuba Approaching Soviet ships Cuban missile sites
362 Havana CUBA Bay of Pigs Bahamas
Cape Canaveral (space research)
New York
long-range missiles (3,200 km)
Cuba and North America, showing cities that would come within the range of missiles fired from Cuba