The Cuban Missile Crisis

Tues., April 27 Homework

In your Cold War file folder in your Google Docs account, read pages 350 to 351 of Cuban Missile Crisis.


Answer the following questions and post them to your blog.
Title: The Cuban Missile Crisis Labels: Cuban_Missile_Crisis, Bay_of_Pigs, Khrushchev, JFK, McNamara, Cold_War


The answers are due on Wednesday prior to class.


1. Kennedy described Wednesday, Oct. 24 and Saturday, Oct. 27 as the darkest days of the crisis. Use the information on page 350 to explain why.
On October 24, and October 27

ON october 24 missile carrying ships and a soviet submarine approached the US blockade. On the 27 Kennedy recieves a letter from Krushchev saying that he will on remove the missiels from Cuba if Kennedy removes the missiles from Turkey. kennedy cannot accept these conditions.

2. Do you think that nuclear war was ever a possibility in this crisis?
I think it was a small possibility becasue if any of the each countries actions were percived as threatening to the other country, it could have begun conventional war that escalated into nuclear war. However I think both countries wanted to avoid nuclear war, decreasing the chance.

3. Is Source 26 a Soviet or an American cartoon? Explain your answer by referring to the details in the cartoon.

It is an American cartoon. Kennedy is arm wrestling Krushchev. Kennedy looks serious while Krushev seems to be struggling and is sweating heavily.

4. Using Source 27 list any evidence you can find for and against each of the explanations.
I think that it is possible that they wanted to bargain with the US becaue Krushchev does say in his second letter to Kennedy that he would remove the missile from CUba if the US removed their missiles fromTurkey.
I think that it is also possible that they wanted to test the US because both countries were not really sure of where the other xcountry stood in the arms race and testing the US would show if they really had the power to back themselves up.
I think it is also possible that they wanted to get the upper hands in the arms race becasue the US had missiles in Turkey and that would make it easy for them to attack the USSR. However if the USSR has missiles in CUba, this is less likely.
I do not think it is likely that they wanted to trap the Us becasue a nuclear war would cause unreparable damages to both sides.

Why did the Soviet Union place nuclear missiles on Cuba?
To bargain with the USA


To test the USA


To trap the USA


To get the upper hand in the arms race


To defend Cuba


5. Choose the explanation(s) that you think best fit what you have found out about the crisis. Explain your choice.
I think the best explanations are that teh USSR wanted to bargain with the US and defend Cuba. In his fisrt lette rto Kennedy, Krushchev says that he would not need the missiles if he did not feel Cuba was threatened. This is a legitimate threat because with the US's policy of containment it would seems possible they would attack Cuba to get rid of the Communists there. I think it is also likely that the USSr was trying to bargain in the US becaus in Krushchev's second letter to the US he says he will remove the missiles in Cuba if the US removes their missiles in Turkey. Wothout missiles in Turkey there would be a lesser likelyhood of the US attacking the USSR.