Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis

1. Bay of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis

2. Fidel Castro • 1959, Fidel Castro overthrew Fulgencio Batista and became leader of Cuba • Castro quickly formed an alliance with the Soviet Union, and declared Cuba communist

3. Bay of Pigs • US disliked Castro and felt threatened due to his communist ties • April 1961, 1,400 CIA-trained Cuban exiles landed at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba • Plan was to assassinate Castro

4. Bay of Pigs • Castro had learned of the planned invasion and his troops were waiting when the exiles landed • Castro’s troops quickly destroyed the Cuban exiles and the assassination attempt was a complete disaster • Embarrassment to the US and President Kennedy, in particular

5. Cuban Missile Crisis • October 1962, A US spy plane flying over Cuba spotted Soviet missile pads • This posed an immediate threat to the US due to Cuba’s close proximity to the US (90 miles south of Florida)

6. Cuban Missile Crisis • Kennedy formed a team of advisors to formulate a plan • Bobby Kennedy-Attorney General • Robert McNamara-Secretary of Defense • Dean Rusk- Secretary of State

7. Cuban Missile Crisis • Decided to initiate a naval quarantine (blockade) of Cuba to prevent more missiles from entering • Also decided to make a deal with Khrushchev (leader of USSR) to dismantle missiles already in Cuba

8. Cuban Missile Crisis • Kennedy agreed to: • Never invade Cuba • Dismantle US missiles in Turkey • Khrushchev agreed to: • Dismantle missiles in Cuba • Allow UN inspection in Cuba

9. Crisis Averted • Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest the US has come to a nuclear attack • John F. Kennedy’s greatest foreign policy success