Cuban Missile Crisis: John F. Kennedy's "Finest Hour"

The handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis was not John F. Kennedy's "finest house", but instead the crisis was resolved by luck. The Crisis itself could not be blamed on JFK's Cold War policies concerning Cuba that would precipitate the event. It is thought to be Kennedy's finest hour because of his ability to avoid thermal nuclear war and come to a compromise, whereas it seems Khrushchev and Kennedy's supporting cast had more to do with safeguarding the world against the annihilation.

Cuban dictator Fidel Castro first appeared to be democratic, but soon his anti-American policies, including nationalizing Cuban businesses at the expense of American profit, led to his label as a communist. Not long after JKF took office the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba to institute a coup d'état against Castro was attempted and failed. The CIA continued attempts on Castro's life throughout three presidencies: Eisenhower, JFK, and Johnson, including poisonous cigars, needles, and pills. It could be argued that, as a communist state, the bond between Cuba and the Soviet Union would have grown, but historian Thomas Patterson argues that it was because of these attacks on Castro and his country that Cuba extended its diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union.

Seventeen Jupiter Missiles pointed at the Soviet Union from Turkey also helped to precipitate the Cuban Missile Crisis. The two superpowers were ready to trade firepower and used a nearby country to do so. Khrushchev took preventive measures in order to keep the United States in check. To Cuba, the likeliness of an American invasion made accepting 162 nuclear warheads (including 90 tactical nukes) an easy choice. John F. Kennedy's ability to avoid war was important, though an essay by Thomas Patterson depicts JFK almost as if he is the antagonist, or at least a leader who is lost and unable to maintain control. When reminded of the Jupiter Missiles that acted as a counterpart to the Russian missiles in Cuba, Kennedy dismissed it and didn't acknowledge the importance of that, because "that was five years ago."