In 1962, the Russians decided to place nuclear missiles in Cuba. However, the Americans found out about this, and there were literally a few minutes left before the nuclear apocalypse. At the center of these events was the young and aspiring dictator Fidel Castro at that time. He already had experience massacres"opponents" and liquidation former comrades.

We must eliminate Fidel Castro and his brother Raul, the Minister of Defense! This idea was first expressed by Colonel J. S. King, head of the CIA's Western Division, on December 11, 1959, in a memorandum addressed to Director Allen Dulles and his deputy, Richard Bissell. King recalled that a left-wing dictatorship is being formed in Cuba: Castro nationalized banks, industry and business and at the same time supports revolutionary movements in Latin America. In 1960, the CIA offered the mafia $150,000 to kill Fidel. However, the mafia never managed to get close to him.

Terror in Cuba was growing. Presumably, by the end of 1960, 15-17 thousand opponents of the new regime were executed. Hundreds of thousands of people fled to the United States. On December 1, 1961, Fidel Castro even proudly declared: “I am a Marxist-Leninist and will remain one until my last breath.” Thus, he lost the support of most countries Latin America, and in January 1962 the Organization of American States expelled Cuba from its ranks. In February, the United States imposed a trade embargo on Cuba.

It was in December that General Edward Lansdale, a veteran of special operations in Vietnam, along with William K. Harvey and Samuel Halpern of the CIA, launched the sabotage operation Mongoose. Her goal was to send a terrorist group to Cuba and find a way to eliminate Fidel Castro. It was one of 30 parts of the Cuban Project plan.

In addition, the CIA was involved in the landing of 1,500 Cuban exiles on the island on April 17, 1961, on a beach at the Bay of Pigs. Beginning in March 1960, they were trained in camps in Guatemala, Nicaragua and the US-administered Panama Canal Zone. President Kennedy inherited this task from Eisenhower. However, Kennedy was skeptical about the landing in Cuba and ordered that American forces not interfere during the operation itself. Fidel Castro sent an army against the invading emigrants, which defeated them to smithereens in three days.

“The Bay of Pigs was a personal defeat for J.F. Kennedy,” Nalewka wrote. “The President took full responsibility upon himself, but until the end of his life he reproached himself for having given in to the authorities of the intelligence service.” CIA Director Dulles was forced to resign. Kennedy appointed John McCone, a Republican who had distinguished himself as chairman of the Commission on atomic energy.

Russian “students” and “economic experts” are going to Cuba

Missiles are being deployed in Cuba! On Sunday, October 14, 1962, a U-2 reconnaissance plane took 928 photographs over Cuba, in which experts saw one launcher and several more dismantled. One missile was even installed at a position near San Cristobal, a hundred kilometers southwest of Havana. 20 containers at the airfield in San Julian were hidden by Il-28 bombers, according to codification - Beagle. In 12 minutes of flight at an altitude of nine to ten kilometers, Major Richard S. Heiser covered about 90% of the territory.

Context

How the US played Russian roulette with nuclear war

Lessons from the Cuban Missile Crisis

Sergei Khrushchev@InoTV: "For father Cuban missile crisis was an invitation to bargain"

“The United States must eliminate this threat!” - Kennedy decided and immediately gathered members of the Executive Committee of the National Security Council (ExCom). By noon at White House The Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Justice arrived, as well as some of their deputies, the Director of the CIA with his specialists, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and various advisers.

The contents of the images were explained in detail by the Deputy Director of the CIA, General Marshall Carter. According to him, two types of Soviet medium-range missiles were visible. SS-4 is a code designation used in Intelligence Agency Department of Defense (DIA), in NATO - Sandal, for the Russian R-12, the range of which reaches 630-700 nautical miles, that is, about 1.5 thousand kilometers. And the range of the SS-5/Skean or P-14 reaches 1100 nautical miles, that is, 2 thousand kilometers. In 10 - 20 minutes they would have destroyed all American and Canadian cities in the east. 80 million victims!

Kennedy grew increasingly gloomy. Are the missiles ready to launch yet? Are there nuclear warheads? These two questions bothered him the most.

Carter could only give him a vague answer: it looked like they wanted to deploy 16 to 24 SS-4s, and it would take a week to two. So far we have no evidence that nuclear warheads are stored there, but we have no doubt that they were brought or will be brought.

The situation in Cuba has changed radically. The USSR does not have enough intercontinental missiles that could threaten us - a hundred at most, and we have seven thousand more. Therefore, the Union wants to turn the island into an unsinkable base, from where it can easily and quickly attack us.

Bundy, Intelligence Director John McCone, Joint Chiefs of Staff Maxwell Taylor, and former Secretary of State Dean Acheson proposed different solutions: either immediately bomb the missile sites, or send marines there, or do both!

Already on August 10, Kennedy received a warning from McCone that the USSR was going to deploy medium-range missiles in Cuba. The Americans had a fairly large intelligence network on the island, and its members reported the arrival of large number Russians with unknown cargo, marking restricted areas, and some managed to hear mentions of missiles. Then the President ordered the intelligence service to verify this information with everyone possible ways. At the end of August, a U-2 plane flew over Cuba.

These are all just defense missiles. Secretary of State Dean Rusk and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara who participated in the meeting of the US National Security Council on August 17 agreed on this opinion. McCone insisted. No! These are medium-range missiles.

He knew this for sure because the CIA and British MI6 received their description from Agent Hero, Colonel of the Soviet military intelligence service GRU Oleg Penkovsky.

He was able to photograph the instructions for the R-12 and R-14 missiles, which described the maintenance and period required to install these missiles. So the CIA knew exactly what types of missiles looked like and what properties they had, as well as methods for camouflaging them, including containers for transporting them. The agent had access to many secret military documents and photographed everything in his power, and passed the films on to his contacts or talked about the details with American and British intelligence officers during his trips to the West. Thanks to the fact that many issues of the military magazine were copied, Western generals knew the thinking and strategy of the Soviets.

Indeed, the USSR has never deployed missiles of this type outside its territory, but they have Cuba under control. And this time the USSR did exactly that, McCone believed.

However, neither the president nor the ministers wanted to believe the reports about these missiles. They still believed that we were talking only about anti-aircraft missiles.

McCone, 60, then traveled to Seattle in the northeastern United States to get married and then went on a honeymoon to France.

Since the end of July, more than five thousand people from the Soviet Union and other countries of its bloc have arrived in Cuba, according to the CIA's final report dated August 22. Ostensibly, these were all economic experts and students, but the secrecy surrounding them raised suspicions that their tasks were different. Many arrived on ships that were overloaded. IN lately 20 Soviet ships were spotted carrying military cargo.

New political trends

The United States still could not cope with the humiliation of Soviet superiority in space. The first person in the Universe in April 1961 was Russian Yuri Gagarin. The first American, John Glenn, flew into space in February next year. In the summer of 1962, the USSR confirmed its superiority by sending two people on two spaceships one after another.

The President placed particular emphasis on modern combat missiles and nuclear weapons, as well as on expanding the traditional arsenal. These projects cost tens of billions of dollars. In addition, Kennedy changed his mind about nuclear war: instead of a crushing response, he preferred strikes against exclusively strategic enemy targets. The concept of flexible response has emerged.

“The United States has come to the conclusion that in a possible nuclear war military strategy"We should be treated in much the same way as conventional military operations in the past," said Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. - During nuclear conflict the main goal should be the destruction of the enemy’s military potential, and not its civilian population. In this way, we are giving a potential enemy the most powerful impetus possible to refrain from attacking our cities.”

The USSR should have known that if it surpassed NATO forces in one area of ​​​​arms, this would immediately entail a reaction to top level, which could ultimately lead to nuclear war. “NATO has repeatedly stated that it will never use military force first, nevertheless, the alliance will not give in to the USSR and will not refuse to use nuclear weapons first if the alliance is attacked,” British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher wrote in her memoirs “The Downing Street Years.”

Kennedy confirmed that he allows nuclear strike first, in March 1962 in Newsweek magazine: “Let the USSR not think that the United States will not strike first if American vital interests are threatened.”

The USSR did not give up. In mid-1961, in the north, he conducted tests hydrogen bomb with a yield of 50 megatons, that is, it was ten times more powerful than all the warheads and bombs used in World War II.

In May or June 1960, GRU agent Murat obtained a copy of the American plan dated November 1959 for nuclear bombings The Soviet Union and the countries controlled by it, as retired captain first rank Viktor Lyubimov wrote in Military Parade magazine. The plan talked about the planned NATO operation after this strike.

In February or March 1962, Murat stole even more detailed plan, according to which the Americans wanted to destroy 696 targets on the territory of states Warsaw Pact.

The data obtained shocked the Soviet leadership. How can we prevent this? It would be convenient to make Cuba, which cannot establish normal relations with the United States, its unsinkable base.

When Fidel Castro overthrew Batista, he acted not like a communist, but like a political simpleton. He wanted to maintain equal relations with the United States, but Washington could not understand this. Insensitive American politics gradually cut Cuba off from Western world. The revolutionary leader was pressured by his leftist comrades, and Moscow opened its arms to him. Moreover, Castro did not want to end up like the democratically elected President of Guatemala, Jacobo Arbenz, who was overthrown by the generals with the help of the CIA in 1954. Fidel liked power, and in order to remain at the helm, he eliminated his right-wing friends. The dictatorship of Batista was soon replaced by the leftist dictatorship of Castro. For the Americans, he turned into enemy number one because he stubbornly contradicted them and tried to infect the dissatisfied in Latin America with revolutionary ideas.

Nevertheless, he did not dare to encroach on the American military base in Guantanamo Bay, which is located in the north of the island. He only tried to democratically terminate the early-century lease agreement on this territory.

Unofficial connection with the Kremlin

When Robert Kennedy, the president's brother, became attorney general, he realized that the government needed to establish some kind of informal and quick communication with the Kremlin. As a rule, intelligence officers are suitable for such purposes. He knew from the FBI that the head of the representative office of the Soviet news agency TASS, and then the embassy press attache, Georgy Bolshakov, was in fact a GRU colonel who was well acquainted with Khrushchev’s son-in-law Alexei Adzhubey. Bolshakov also occasionally met with Daily News editor John Goleman.

The minister asked the journalist to arrange a meeting with Bolshakov. When the colonel informed the leadership about this, such meetings were categorically forbidden to him. Did they really put a spoke in his wheels? Were you jealous of his connections? Probably all together.

On the morning of May 9, 1961, when Victory Day was celebrated in the USSR, Golman called Bolshakov to negotiate new meeting and said: “Now I will take you to the Minister of Justice.” The agent could no longer refuse and spat on his superiors’ ban.

They went to the minister's private residence. Both Bolshakov and Kennedy tested the waters, talking about politics: about the situation in Laos, Cambodia and Cuba, about the upcoming meeting of John Kennedy with Khrushchev. The Russian spent five hours at the residence. The minister told him that only the president, who also approved it, knew about this meeting, and if the Russian diplomat wanted to call him, he could do so on his office phone, telling the secretary or adviser his name. They will know who he is.

After returning to the embassy, ​​Bolshakov telegraphed to Moscow. The authorities were not happy. The GRU leadership was tormented by questions: why did Robert Kennedy choose Bolshakov? Why do Americans need such informal contact? "The situation when a member American government meets with our man, especially secretly, knows no precedents,” the GRU generals wrote in an internal memorandum.

For the second time, the minister invited the Soviet diplomat on May 21, 1961 to his summer residence. And again they talked about a whole series of political issues. Then they talked on the phone. This was a kind of preparation for the meeting between John Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev in Vienna. Despite the fact that the Soviet leader did not trust the intelligence reports too much, this time he found them useful. Messages from Bolshakov were received by a group of advisers led by Anatoly Dobrynin, which was preparing materials for the meeting in Vienna.

However, Kennedy and Khrushchev were not found common language. The Soviet leader was under the impression that the president was too young and soft and simply not mature for such a post.

Nevertheless, Khrushchev realized how important this contact was, so he even sent unofficial messages to the White House through Bolshakov.

A subsequent series of approximately four meetings between the Minister of Justice and the GRU colonel took place from September 1961 to September 1962. Robert Kennedy gave Bolshakov the opportunity to talk with some White House advisers. Thus, he wanted to make it clear to the leadership of the USSR how politics was done, and what pressure and tricks the US political leaders had to resist.

Their relationship strengthened and became more and more personal. Sometimes the Russian and his wife spent weekends with the Kennedy family outside the city, and in return invited the family to a purely personal celebration - their wedding anniversary.

In early September 1962, shortly before Bolshakov left on vacation, the minister invited him to the White House and brought him to the president, who told the Russian that he was concerned about the number of Soviet ships carrying military cargo in Cuba. American aircraft will cut off this supply route. When Bolshakov said that Khrushchev did not like the number of overflights by reconnaissance planes, Kennedy promised to stop them. Robert Kennedy added that the military is putting pressure on his brother, and the Kremlin must take this into account.

In Moscow, Bolshakov learned that Khrushchev was also on vacation. He conveyed a message to the General Secretary that he had important information for him from the White House, and Bolshakov was taken straight to Khrushchev in Pitsunda in Crimea. The Kremlin leader was in good spirits: “Is Kennedy president or not? If he is a strong president, he should not be afraid of anyone. After all, he has power in his hands, and even his brother is the Minister of Justice.” Khrushchev misjudged the head of the White House, considering him an indecisive intellectual.

However, Khrushchev did not mention in his conversation with Bolshakov the deployment of missiles in Cuba. Even at the embassy in Washington, no one knew about this.

Suspicious intelligence photos

In early September 1962, Robert Kennedy met with Soviet ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin. The diplomat said that the weapons that Moscow is sending to Cuba are of a defensive nature.

Photographs from a U-2 reconnaissance aircraft taken on September 5 indicated the installation of anti-aircraft missiles. But there were more people present to service them than would normally be required.

On September 4, John Kennedy warned Moscow against deploying surface-to-surface missiles in Cuba. The Kremlin responded on September 11: We are not going to deploy strategic missiles outside Soviet territory. Bolshakov told Robert Kennedy the same thing when he returned from vacation. At the same time, at the beginning of September soviet soldiers nine missile positions were already built: six for the R-12 and three for the R-14. The president sent the second warning on September 13. Even the CIA's September 19 Special National Intelligence Assessment stated that Soviet offensive weapons in Cuba were unlikely.

Despite this, the president finally gave the order to put 150,000 reserve troops on combat readiness. At the same time, it was announced that large-scale exercises would take place in the Caribbean Sea in mid-October. Havana claimed that this was all just a cover for the invasion operation. Moscow reiterated that it is not sending nuclear weapons to Cuba.

At a UN meeting in New York, Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko threatened the United States that if it attacked Cuba, it could provoke a war with the Soviet Union. His words were supported by Cuban President Osvaldo Dorticos.

Defense Secretary Robert McNamara took another preventative step. On October 1, he discussed with the chiefs of staff and the commander of the Atlantic Fleet, Admiral Robert Dennison, preparations for a blockade of Cuba, if necessary.

They were prompted to do so by a message from Colonel John R. Wright of the DIA, which he conveyed in the morning: “We are aware of 15 locations where it is planned to deploy SA-2/Goa anti-aircraft missiles (Soviet designation - S-75). Since September 15, radio signals confirming the presence of SA-2 have been picked up by the antennas of the National Security Agency. A closed zone appeared in the central part of the province of Pinar dal Rio, and locals had to leave it. We have unconfirmed reports of the presence of SS-4/Sandal medium range missiles. One of our informants saw some long “cigars” on special chassis on September 12 in Campo Libertad near Havana.”

The next day, the head of the State Department's intelligence department, Roger Hilsman, sent out information that MiG-21 fighters and 16 Komar coastal patrol missile boats were in Cuba.

However, footage taken from the U-2 from October 5th to 7th did not confirm the presence of offensive weapons. But in images from the Samos reconnaissance satellite on October 10, photo analysts from the National Photo Interpretation Center (NPIC) saw the outlines of missile positions under construction in the western part of the island. We must head there again and as soon as possible!

However, new flights were postponed due to bad weather. It was not until Sunday, October 14, that pilot Major Richard S. Heiser was able to take to the skies. His images were analyzed on Monday. At half past eight that evening, CIA Deputy Director Ray Cline called Bundy and Roger Hilsman to tell them the shocking news that intermediate-range missiles were being deployed in Cuba.

They spoke on an unsecured line and Kline used code names, which both officials understood. Hillsman briefed Secretary of State Dean Rusk. The President was on a campaign tour, and Bundy gave him the information only in the morning. But Defense Secretary McNamara presented pictures of San Cristobal at midnight.

Why are Soviet missiles deployed? At noon on Tuesday, Excom members were unable to reach a consensus. Perhaps, by doing so, Khrushchev wants to strengthen his position before the next negotiations on the status of West Berlin? Or does he want to threaten American territory?

Ambassador Thomas Thompson, who had returned from Moscow three months earlier and knew Khrushchev better than anyone, recommended giving the USSR time to think. Perhaps they want to take a more advantageous position before the negotiations on Berlin.

The President ordered U-2 flights to be carried out much more often: since the spring of 1962, the island was photographed, as a rule, twice a month, and now it must be six times a day. This is how Kennedy wanted to record every square meter Cuban territory. He repeated two questions: when will these missiles be ready to launch, and do they have nuclear warheads?

On Tuesday, October 16, politicians and generals could not agree on anything. McCann spoke about the situation with former president Eisenhower. The widely respected war hero recommended an immediate naval and air operation.

Kennedy remained cautious: “I don’t want to become the Tojo of the sixties!” Hideki Tojo was the Japanese prime minister who ordered the attack on Pearl Harbor without declaring war and was executed as a war criminal in 1948. The President's greatest fear was that the USSR would use violence to seize West Berlin.

However, the president agreed to a partial mobilization of the armed forces. On Tuesday evening the 82nd and 101st were put on alert. airborne divisions, the air force stepped up its reserves and the navy tightened its control in the Caribbean. Later, two armored divisions and part of an infantry division were transferred to Florida. Withdrawn from Germany infantry regiment and an artillery unit. In the south, the fleet expanded its aviation. All preparations were carried out in the strictest secrecy.

Bolshakov called Robert Kennedy with a placating message from Khrushchev: “Under no circumstances will we send surface-to-surface missiles to Cuba.” The ambassador himself did not even suspect that this was a lie, that the Kremlin had deceived him too.

The planned Fibriglex-62 exercise began on Monday in the Caribbean Sea off the island of Vieques. 40 warships with four thousand Marines They were practicing a strike against the nominal dictator Ortsak, but in reality - against Castro.

Cuban Missile Crisis 1962- an acute political and military conflict between the USSR and the USA, which put the world on the threshold nuclear war. It was the peak Cold War, after which relations between the two superpowers began to thaw. But what happened there and what does the Caribbean have to do with it? Let's look at it step by step:

Participants in the Cuban Missile Crisis:

Main roles: general secretary USSR - N. Khrushchev and US President J. Kennedy.

Secondary role: leader Cuban revolution Fidel Castro.

Stages:

1. 1959 A socialist revolution is taking place in Cuba under the leadership of Fidel Castro. Relations with the United States are becoming strained, because... Cubans nationalize American-owned businesses. At the same time, relations are being improved with the USSR, which begins to purchase sugar from Cuba and sends its specialists to help build a socialist society.

2. The US has its ballistic missiles in Turkey. Thus, everything was within reach European part Russia and Moscow in particular. The USSR perceives this step as a threat.

3. Nikita Khrushchev in 1962 decides, in response to the US refusal to remove Turkish missiles, to locate his ballistic missiles in Cuba - in close proximity to the United States. Moreover, Fidel Castro has long asked to strengthen the Soviet presence to protect against possible US encroachments.

4. Operation “Anadyr” – August-September 1962. Actually, the deployment of Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba. It took place under the guise of sending cargo to Chukotka.

5. September 1962. American reconnaissance aircraft photographed the construction of anti-aircraft installations in Cuba. US President Kennedy and Congress discuss the US response. A military invasion of Cuba was proposed, but Kennedy opposed it. As a result, they agreed on a naval blockade (which, according to international law, is considered an act of war).

6. October 24, 1962 Beginning of the naval blockade of Cuba. At the same time, 30 Soviet ships with nuclear warheads were heading there. The problem was that there was nothing illegal about the very fact of the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba. NATO installed exactly the same missiles throughout Europe and in Turkey in particular. The Presidium of the CPSU Central Committee declares increased combat readiness.

7. October 25, 1962 Increased combat readiness of the US armed forces to a record level in history.

8. October 26, 1962 Khrushchev writes a letter to Kennedy proposing to dismantle the missiles subject to guarantees of the security of the regime in Cuba.

9. October 27, 1962, “Black Saturday.” Contemporaries called it “the day when the calendar could end.” An American U-2 spy plane was shot down over Cuba. On the same day, the Soviet submarine B-59 collided with the American Navy. The submarine under the command of Captain Savitsky and his assistant Arkhipov left for Cuba on October 1, had no contact with Moscow and the crew did not know about the political situation. The Americans did not know that there were nuclear missiles on the submarine and began to bombard the submarine, forcing it to surface. The crew of the submarine and the commander decided that the war had already begun and began voting for a strike on the American forces - “We will all die, but we will sink them.” From officers Vasily Arkhipov refused the blow. According to the instructions, the attack could be launched

only if all officers agreed, so instead of a nuclear strike, a signal was given to the American Navy to stop the provocation and the boat surfaced. If Vasily Arkhipov had voted “for,” a nuclear war would have started.

45 years ago, on October 22, 1962, the US government announced the discovery of Soviet missiles in Cuba. The Caribbean (Cuban) crisis broke out in relations between the USSR and the USA. The deployment of Soviet ballistic missiles in Cuba was considered by the Soviet leadership as a response to the deployment of American missiles in Turkey and Italy, as well as threats of invasion American troops to Cuba.

Background

The decision to deploy missiles was made by the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee on May 24, 1962 after the failure of the US-initiated attempt by Cuban counter-revolutionary forces to land on Playa Giron (Bay of Cochinos) in April 1961 and in connection with US military plans regarding Cuba that became known to the Soviet government.

In one of his speeches N.S. Khrushchev said that if the United States touched Cuba, the USSR would strike back at them. According to Khrushchev, it was not possible to provide defense against a possible US invasion of Cuba with conventional weapons. Only missiles with nuclear warheads could become a reliable means of deterring possible US aggression.

To accomplish this task, it was decided (code name "Anadyr") to deploy in Cuba missile division consisting of three regiments of R-12 medium-range missiles (24 launchers) and two regiments of R-14 missiles (16 launchers). The missiles' flight range ensured defeat the most important objects on the territory of the USA.

Total group size Soviet troops in Cuba amounted to 43 thousand people. Up to 80 vessels were used to transport personnel with weapons and equipment navy USSR. On July 12, 1962, loading of personnel and equipment began in the ports of the Baltic, Black and Barents Seas.

Escalation of the conflict

After receiving information through their intelligence channels about the increase in the number of Soviet “specialists” and their “incomprehensible and new” activities on the island, the US authorities warned the USSR government about the inevitable serious consequences of expanding Soviet or Cuban capabilities to strike the United States. In a response message, the USSR government stated that the supply of weapons and military equipment to Cuba was carried out “exclusively for defense purposes.”

On October 14, an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft in the area of ​​San Cristobal (Pinar del Rio province) discovered and photographed Soviet launch positions missile forces. On October 16, 1962, the CIA reported this to US President John Kennedy. IN short terms The Americans also determined the type of missiles.

On October 22, the US government announced the discovery of missiles in Cuba. Fifteen minutes after the American statement, the Commander-in-Chief of the Cuban Armed Forces, Fidel Castro, declared a combat alert and general mobilization. The strength of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Cuba at that time was about 400 thousand people.

The discovery by American reconnaissance aircraft on the island of Soviet medium-range missiles ready for installation gave rise to the United States to bring forward the accusation that for several months, by decision of the Soviet government, conditions were created on the island for a nuclear missile strike on the United States. The USSR, through the mouth of its diplomatic representatives abroad, denied these accusations, although, as it became known later, Soviet diplomats They did not have information about what was actually happening in Cuba, nor did they know that some of the missiles were already equipped with warheads, and the Soviet military command on the spot was authorized to decide on their use.

"On the eve" of World War III

The culmination of the crisis was a television speech by US President John F. Kennedy on October 22, 1962, in which “as the first steps” a naval blockade of Cuba was announced, and Soviet Union an ultimatum was made to immediately remove Soviet missiles from the island. Kennedy gave the order to withdraw fleet units to the Caribbean Sea, as well as to put strategic aviation on alert. The US Navy, intended to organize the blockade, consisted of 238 ships: 8 aircraft carriers, 2 cruisers, 118 destroyers, 13 submarines, 65 landing craft and 32 auxiliary ships. Almost 250,000 American troops were concentrated in Florida, consisting of Marine Corps, aviation, airborne, tank and other divisions, corps and units.

The USSR government responded by declaring that it would deliver “the most powerful retaliatory strike.” In the USSR, all armed forces and, first of all, the Strategic Missile Forces were put on high alert.

Within days of the crisis, the world was closer to a third world war involving nuclear weapons than at any time in the post-war decades. The demonstration of determination to use extreme measures was accompanied by an active propaganda campaign in both the USSR and the USA, designed to help psychological impact to the opposite side.
Hearings were held at the UN Security Council, to which the USSR, Cuba and the USA addressed requests.

On October 26, when it became clear that the United States was determined to remove the missiles at any cost, Khrushchev sent a more conciliatory message to Kennedy. He recognized that Cuba has a powerful soviet weapons, but convinced the president that the USSR was not going to attack America.

October 27th was the “Black Saturday” of the Cuban crisis. In those days, squadrons of American aircraft flew over Cuba twice a day for the purpose of intimidation. On this day in Cuba, an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft was shot down while flying around the field position areas of the missile forces. The plane's pilot, Major Anderson, was killed.

Weakening of the confrontation

October 28, to avoid further aggravation international situation, which threatened to develop into a military confrontation with unpredictable consequences right up to the start of a new world war, the USSR government considered it reasonable to agree to the US demand for the withdrawal of Soviet missiles from Cuba in exchange for assurances from the US government about respect for the territorial integrity of the island and guarantees of non-interference in the internal affairs of this country . The withdrawal of American missiles from the territory of Turkey and Italy was also announced confidentially.

On November 2, US President Kennedy announced that the USSR had dismantled its missiles in Cuba. From November 5 to November 9, the missiles were removed from Cuba. November 21 US canceled naval blockade. December 12, 1962 Soviet side completed the withdrawal of personnel, missiles and equipment. In January 1963, the UN received assurances from the USSR and the USA that the Cuban crisis had been eliminated.

The most dangerous invention of mankind - nuclear weapons - has repeatedly brought the planet to the brink of destruction. The world was closest to the end of the world in the fall of 1962. The attention of the international community in October was focused on events unfolding in the Caribbean. The confrontation between the two superpowers became the pinnacle of the arms race and the highest point of tension in the Cold War.

Today, the Cuban crisis, as it is called in the United States, is assessed in different ways. Some consider Operation Anadyr a brilliant job Soviet intelligence services and organization of military supplies, as well as risky but competent political move, others brand Khrushchev for shortsightedness. To assert that Nikita Sergeevich foresaw absolutely all the consequences of the decision to place nuclear warheads on Liberty Island, not true. Cunning and experienced politician probably understood that the reaction from the United States would be decisive.

"Nikolaev" in the port of Casilda. The shadow of the RF-101 Voodoo, the reconnaissance aircraft that took the photo, is visible on the pier

The actions of the Soviet military leadership in Cuba should be considered taking into account the background to the development of the crisis. In 1959, the revolution finally won on the island, and Fidel Castro became the head of state. Cuba did not receive any special support from the USSR during this period, since it was not considered a stable member of the socialist camp. However, already in the 1960s, after the introduction of an economic blockade by the United States, supplies of Soviet oil began to Cuba. In addition, the Soviets become the main foreign trade partner of the young communist state. Thousands of specialists in the field have flocked to the country agriculture and industry, large capital investments began.

The interests of the Union on the island were dictated by far from ideological convictions. The fact is that in 1960 the United States managed to deploy its medium-range nuclear missiles on Turkish territory, which caused extreme indignation in Moscow. A successful strategic position allowed the Americans to control huge Soviet territories, including the capital, and the speed of launching and reaching the target for this weapon was minimal.

Cuba was located in close proximity to the US borders, so the deployment of an offensive weapons system with a nuclear charge could to some extent compensate for the created superiority in the confrontation. The idea of ​​​​placing launchers with nuclear missiles on the island belonged directly to Nikita Sergeevich, and was expressed by him on May 20, 1962 to Mikoyan, Malinovsky and Gromyko. Afterwards the idea was supported and developed.

Cuba's interest in placing Soviet military bases on its territory was obvious. From the moment of approval as political leader and head of state, Fidel Castro became a constant target for various kinds of American provocations. They tried to eliminate him, and the United States was openly preparing a military invasion of Cuba. Evidence of which was even unsuccessful attempt landings at the Bay of Pigs. Increase Soviet contingent and the build-up of weapons on the island gave hope for the preservation of the regime and the sovereignty of the state.

Nikita Khrushchev and John Kennedy

Having secured Castro's consent, Moscow launched a broad secret operation to transfer nuclear weapons. The missiles and components for their installation and combat readiness were delivered to the island under the guise of trade cargo, unloading was carried out only at night. About forty thousand military men, dressed in civilian clothes, who were strictly forbidden to speak Russian, left for Cuba in the holds of ships. During the journey, the soldiers could not go out to open air, since the command was seriously afraid of being exposed ahead of schedule. The leadership of the operation was entrusted to Marshal Hovhannes Khachaturyanovich Bagramyan.

First rockets soviet ships unloaded in Havana on September 8, the second shipment arrived on the 16th of the same month. The captains of the transport ships did not know the nature of the cargo and its destination; before departure, they were given envelopes that they could open only on the high seas. The text of the order indicated the need to proceed to the shores of Cuba and avoid encounters with NATO ships. The bulk of the missiles were deployed in the western part of the island, and the overwhelming majority of the military contingent and specialists were concentrated there. Some of the missiles were planned to be installed in the center, and several in the East. By October 14, forty medium-range nuclear-capable missiles were delivered to the island and installation began.

The actions of the USSR in Cuba were watched warily from Washington. Young American President John Kennedy convened the ex-committee of the National Security Executive Committee daily. Until September 5, the United States sent U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, but they did not bring information about the presence of nuclear weapons. However, it became increasingly difficult to hide further the intentions of the USSR. The length of the rocket together with the tractor was about thirty meters, so their unloading and transportation was noticed local residents, among whom were many American agents. However, it seemed to the Americans that assumptions alone were not enough; only photographs taken on October 14 by Lockheed U-2 pilot Heiser left no doubt that Cuba had become one of the strategic Soviet bases equipped with nuclear missiles.

Kennedy considered the Soviet leadership incapable of such decisive action, so the pictures came as somewhat of a surprise. From October 16, reconnaissance planes begin to fly over the island up to six times a day. The committee put forward two main proposals: to begin military action, or to organize a naval blockade of Cuba. Kennedy was immediately critical of the idea of ​​invasion, as he understood that such a thing could provoke the outbreak of World War III. The president could not take responsibility for the consequences of such a decision, so American forces were sent to blockade.

The first image of Soviet missiles in Cuba obtained by the Americans. October 14, 1962

The intelligence activities of the Americans in this incident showed themselves to be the worst side. The information presented by the intelligence services to the president turned out to be far from the truth. For example, the number of USSR military personnel, according to their information, in Cuba was no more than ten thousand people, while the real number long ago exceeded forty thousand. The Americans also did not know that the island had not only medium-range nuclear missiles, but also atomic weapons near-spectrum action. The bombing, which the American military so persistently proposed, could no longer be carried out, since four launchers were ready by October 19. Washington was also within their reach. The landing also threatened with catastrophic consequences, since the Soviet military was ready to use a complex called “Luna”.

The tense situation continued to escalate as neither side was willing to make concessions. For the United States, the deployment of missiles in Cuba was a security issue, but the USSR was also in the crosshairs of the American missile system in Turkey. The Cubans demanded to open fire on reconnaissance aircraft, but were forced to obey the decisions of the USSR.

On October 22, Kennedy made a public statement to the Americans that offensive weapons were indeed being installed in Cuba against the United States, and the government would consider any act of aggression as the beginning of a war. This meant that the world was on the verge of destruction. The international community supported the American blockade, largely due to the fact that the Soviet leadership long time hid true meaning of your actions. However, Khrushchev did not recognize it as legal and stated that fire would be opened on any of the ships that showed aggression towards the Soviet maritime transport. The USSR still ordered most of the ships to return to their homeland, but five of them were already approaching their destination, accompanied by four diesel submarines. Submarines carried on board weapons capable of destroying most of American Navy V this region, but the US was not informed about this.

On October 24, one of the ships “Alexandrovsk” landed on the shore, but a telegram was sent to Khrushchev calling for prudence. The day after the scandalous revelation at a UN meeting, the United States issued an order on combat readiness for the first time in history. 2. Any careless action could cause the outbreak of war - the world froze in anticipation. In the morning, Khrushchev sent a conciliatory letter in which he offered to dismantle the missiles in exchange for a US promise to abandon the invasion of Cuba. The situation calmed down somewhat, and Kennedy decided to postpone the start of hostilities.

The crisis escalated again on October 27, when the Soviet leadership put forward an additional demand for the dismantling of American missiles in Turkey. Kennedy and his entourage suggested that a military coup had taken place in the USSR, as a result of which Khrushchev was removed. At this time, an American reconnaissance plane was shot down over Cuba. Some believe that this was a provocation on the part of the commandant, who advocated a categorical refusal to withdraw weapons from the island, but most call the tragedy unauthorized actions Soviet commanders. On October 27, the world came closest to the brink of self-destruction in its entire history.

On the morning of October 28, the Kremlin received an appeal from the United States, which proposed to resolve the conflict peacefully, and the conditions for resolution were Khrushchev’s first proposal. According to unconfirmed reports, the liquidation of the missile complex in Turkey was also verbally promised. In just 3 weeks, the USSR dismantled nuclear installations, and on November 20, the blockade of the island was lifted. A few months later, the Americans dismantled the missiles in Turkey.

Coverage radius of missiles stationed in Cuba: R-14 - large radius, R-12 - medium radius

The most dangerous moment in human history occurred in the twentieth century, but it also marked the end of the arms race. The two superpowers were forced to learn to find a compromise. Modern politicians often try to evaluate the result of the Cuban crisis as a defeat or victory for the Union. From the author's point of view this article draw a clear conclusion in this case it is forbidden. Yes, Khrushchev was able to achieve the liquidation of the American base in Turkey, but the risk turned out to be too great. The prudence of Kennedy, who was under intense pressure from the Pentagon to start a war, was not calculated in advance. Attempts to save missile base in Cuba could become tragic not only for Cubans, Americans and Soviet people, but also destroy all of humanity.