Background

Cuba is a small island state in the Caribbean. It was always part of the American sphere of influence articulated by the Monroe Doctrine. This doctrine laid down that  entire Latin America and Central America were vital to American interests and no other power could interfere there without the express permission of America. The Caribbeans and Cuba were thus covered by the Monroe Doctrine.

The effect of the Monroe Doctrine was negative as the entire industry and trade was a monopoly of American business.  In Cuba also 90% of the economy , in particular the sugar plantations( which were the main sources of income) were all owned by American business. In fifties a man named Fulgencio Batista seized power and was a virtual dictator. He was a stooge of the Americans and  had also let loose a reign of terror.

Dr. Fidel Castro in 1959 launched what is known as the Cuban revolution. It was a romantic era and a small band of revolutionaries landed in Cuba. Many love affairs immediately blossomed between the revolutionaries and local village girls. As the revolutionaries swept forward, people from villages joined then and by the time they reached Havana, it was a mammoth crowd. Batista fled the island and Fidel Castro became the ruler.

Initially Castro was treated  with kid gloves by the USA, who thought he would be another puppet. But Castro introduced  Marxism and nationalised industry. The American big business houses were sent packing and Castro ushered in a communist regime in Cuba. The then Soviet Union under Nikita Khrushchev, who was first secretary of the Communist party shored up the Castro regime  with money, arms and planes. 

The Americans were furious and the American President General Eisenhower authorised an invasion of Cuba. "Ike" as Eisenhower was popularly called left office in 1960 and the new president John Kennedy continued with this policy. In 1961, the US aided by Cuban rebels and the CIA launched what is known as the " Bay of Pigs" invasion. The invasion was defeated on the beaches and both Moscow Radio and  Cuba played victory music. The battle lines were  now drawn and the USA vowed to not only  to  overthrow the communist regime, but also along with the CIA and Cuban rebels assassinate  Dr. Castro.

Something drastic was needed to deter the USA and Khruschev planned to install IRBM missiles in Cuba. The fat was now in the fire.

Beginning of the Missile Crisis

In hindsight in case the threat to topple Castro was not there, the missiles would not have been installed. But with a cold war at its height, the Russians continued installations of the IRBM missiles which could carry nuclear warheads and could target any American city. 

The CIA by means of U-2 aircraft flights had detailed information of the installation of the missiles. These were examined by Kennedy and he took an important decision.  He decided to blockade the Cuban island. The American fleet moved in full force, but allowed non military  ships to go ahead. A Russian tanker was allowed. The aim was to leave a door open for the Russians.

The world was tense as the Soviet fleet sailed to Cuba, replete with nuclear powered submarines armed with missiles. A confrontation appeared imminent. Castro was the biggest hawk and advocated dropping of nuclear missiles on at least 5 American cities. Khruschev played his cards close to his chest and did not heed the request of Fidel Castro.

Kennedy also was getting goose bumps and he was eager to get out of the crisis as a war at that stage would have meant devastation of American cities. He was keen for a compromise, though officially he continued to make belligerent statements. Kennedy was prepared to give  any guarantee to avoid a war.He however wanted the missiles to be dismantled. 

Secret negotiations continued between the Russian and American leaders and Khruschev made his demands. These were initially not acceptable to the Americans, but the minutes were ticking away as the Russian fleet headed for the Caribbean Sea. The Chiefs of Staff of the US Armed Forces advised  Kennedy of success, but extreme collateral damage to American cities. At the same time the demands of Khruschev would have meant the end of the Monroe Doctrine and the Cuban communist regime would have survived.

Khruschev  demanded   two main assurances from the USA. They were

a) A solemn undertaking never to destabilize the Communist regime of Dr. Castro 

b) Dismantling of American missiles in Turkey.

Both these demands could not be accepted by Kennedy publicly as it would have meant loss of face. Kennedy wanted a way out as the minutes were ticking away and the Soviet and American fleets were nearing each other.

The Solution

Feverish negotiations continued  on the hotline and face to face meetings with diplomats in Vienna. The Russians were adamant that the Americans accept the demands. Finally Kennedy acceded to the Russian demand, but made one request. He requested that the removal of  American missiles from Turkey be kept secret. He however gave a solemn promise never to destabilize the communist government of Fidel Castro.

Once America gave this public  commitment, orders were given by Khruschev  to dismantle the missiles. This was not liked by Castro and the hard liners in the Communist party in Russia and was one of the factors   that led to his ouster in 1964. Kennedy heaved a sigh of relief. The dismantling of American missiles from Turkey was not made public and these facts emerged only later.

In hindsight, Kennedy acted bravely, but I feel Nikita Khruschev played his cards better. He was able to get a solemn promise from the USA to never make any attempt to overthrow the Castro government. This is a feather in his cap. One can now realize that it was because of this promise the Castro regime survived for 6 decades and now  Fidel Castro is recognised as the longest serving head of state. It would not have happened in case Khruschev had not boxed the Americans in a bind. America had to live with Castro and all his attempts to export revolution   to Latin America and Africa. He remained a thorn in the American back yard.

Times change and now the world is also changing. Obama has charted a new course and diplomatic relations are established between Cuba  and USA. Obama will also visit Cuba and that would a first visit to Cuba by an American President  in 80 years. The Soviet Union has also gone and Khruschev not remembered. But those were heady days when the world almost had a nuclear exchange. I think Castro and his brother Raul( now President of Cuba)  must thank Khrushchev that they lived to rule for 60+ years.