Introduction to the Cuban Missile Crisis
President John F. Kennedy (knowledgerush.com)
The Cuban Missile Crisis, known as the October Crisis to the Russians and Cubans, was the closest the world has ever come to nuclear war. The crisis was also the highest point of tension during the Cold War. Pressured by the United States development of missiles in Turkey, the Soviet Union responded by building missile sites on the island of Cuba. Kennedy and his advisers were forced to come up with a solution to the crisis without causing too much violence but avoiding a nuclear war as well, all in a very short time span. These tense 13 days are now known as the tipping point of the nuclear race and the most danger we have ever faced as a country. If it weren't for the fast decision making and diplomacy used by the Kennedy administration during the Cuban Missile Crisis, we might be looking at a completely different world today.
