The Cuban Missile Crisis Revision Cards
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- Created on: 23-05-15 12:15
Give Some Background Info on What Cuba in 1952-3 was Like
1. Cuba was an American puppet govt led by Batista, who did everything to keep the Americans happy. He let US businessmen + the Mafia take huge rofits in a country where most people lived in poverty.
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Give Some More Background Info on What Cuba in 1952-3 was Like
2. Cuban's had been exloited by the US, who bought the sugar fr a low price + kept Cuban's poor. 3. In 1959 - Castro overthrew the govt + Batista' govt fled to the USA.
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What Did Castro Do to Get Rid of American Influence?
1. He nationalised US companies owned in Cuba. 2. He took over much US-owned land + gave the land to ordinary Cuban farmers. 3. He nationnalised American-owned sugar mills.
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What Did Castro Do to Get Rid of American Influence?
4. He nationalised the sugar industry + asked the USA to pay a reasonable price. 5. He became close with the USSR. 6. Khruschev sent hime advisers, economic aid + military equopment,
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How Did the USA React to the New Cuban Leader, Castro? And What Happened After That?
a) At this point Castro was willing to be okay with the USA -BUT- the US stopped all aid to Cuba + all imports of Cuban sugar.
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Why Did the USSR Buy Sugar From Cuba?
c) They wanted a base close to the USA to close the missile gap (USA had missiles on Turkey pointing towards the USSR).
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What Happened at the Beggining of the Bay of Pigs?
a) In 1961 *new* US President Kennedy decided to back a CIA plan to but Batita back in charge of Cuba. b) the CIA gavve weapons + training to Cuban exiles so they could try to retake Cuba.
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How Else Did the USA React to the New Cuban Leader, Castro?
US President Eisenhower broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba + this policy continued under Eisenhower’s successor, President Kennedy.
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What Happened When the Cuban Exiles Arrived at the Bay of Pigs?
a) They were expecting to be welcome -BUT- they were met by Cuban troops with weapons supplied by the USSR. The rebels were easily defeated + many were killed. b) This invasion = Castro decided that Cuba needed Soviet military assistance.
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What Did Kennedy Fear When the USA Failed at the Bay of Pigs?
1. The failure at the Bay of Pigs made Kennedy fear that it would encourage other countries to become Communist + risk becoming enemies of the USA. 2. The crisis strengthened Castro’s position in Cuba.
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Khrushchev Offered the Cuban's Protection, What Did This Secretely Mean?
Nuclear Missiles
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How Did the USA Discover the Nuclear Missiles?
In 1962 a U2 spy plane on a routine mission took pictures of missiles which were nearly operational.
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Give Two Reasons Why Khrushchev Put Missiles in Cuba
1. He wanted to produce more nuclear warheads + close the 'missile gap' between the USA + USSR..2. The USA had missiles in Western Europe + Turkey (well within range of the USSR). Placing missiles in Cuba would help restore the missile balance.
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Give Another Two Reasons Why Khrushchev Put Missiles in Cuba
3. The USSR had cheaper, medium-range missiles compared to the USA. So a launch site in Cuba (close to the US coast) was an ideal place to put missiles. 4. Soviet missiles in Cuba would strengthen Khrushchev’s position against the USA.
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Give Another Reason Why Khrushchev Put Missiles in Cuba
5. Khrushchev was keen to defend Castro. Cuba was the only Communist country in the western hemisphere + had just survived the Bay of Pigs attack.
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Give Another Reason Why Khrushchev Put Missiles in Cuba
6. Khrushchev was keen to strengthen his own political position in the USSR. Missiles in Cuba would be seen as another propaganda victory against the USA.
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What Were Kennedy's 3 Options When He Discovered the Missiles in Cuba?
1. Do nothing. 2. Blow up the missiles (i.e. air strike). 3. Put a quarantine (i.e. blockade) around Cuba + make the Russian's make the next move.
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What Option Did Kennedy Choose When He Discovered the Missiles in Cuba?
Put a quarantine around Cuba + make the Russian's make the next move.
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What Was the Advantage of Kennedy's Option to 'DO NOTHING'?
ADV - USA had a larger nuclear force than the USA anyway. Reacting to the Cuban missiles could've lead to a nuclear war between the USA + USSR.
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What Was the Disadvantage of Kennedy's Option to 'DO NOTHING'?
DISADV - this would make him look weak + could encourage the USSR to challenge the USA elsewhere in the world, possibly Berlin.
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What Was the Advantage of Kennedy's Option to 'BLOW UP THE MISSILES' (i.e. 'AIR STRIKE')?
ADV - it would destroy the missiles before they became operational.
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What Were the Disadvantages of Kennedy's Option to 'BLOW UP THE MISSILES' (i.e. 'AIR STRIKE')?
1. The US air force could not guarantee to destroy all the missiles. 2. Some missiles might be launched against the US + kill millions of people. 3. Bombing missile sites would also kill Soviet soldiers + this would cause Khrushchev to respond.
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What Were the Advantages of Kennedy's Option to 'BLOCKADE CUBA'
1. This would show firm action by the USA without using immediate force. 2. This would give Khrushchev time to consider his next actions 3. This would give the USA the option of an air strike or invasion later if the blockade did not work.
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What Were the Disadvantages of Kennedy's Option to 'BLOCKADE CUBA'?
1. A blockade would not remove the weapons already in Cuba. 2. Action was likely to be slow in producing results. 3. It did not rule out Soviet retaliation in other parts of the world - e.g. Berlin.
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What Did the 1st Letter That Khrushchev Sent Kennedy Say?
26th October - if Kennedy promised not to invade Cuba then the missiles would be removed.
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What Did the 2nd Letter That Khrushchev Sent Kennedy Say?
If Kennedy removed their missiles from Turkey then Khrushchev would remove his from Cuba.
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Why Was Khrushchev's 2nd Letter That He Sent to Kennedy Not An Option for Kennedy?
The 2nd letter said that 'if Kennedy removed the missiles from Turkey then Khrushchev would remove his from Cuba.' it was not an option for Kennedy bc it would make him look weak.
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Which One of Khrushchev's Two Letter's Did Kennedy Agree To?
Kennedy afreed openly to the 1st letter and secretely to the 2nd.
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What were two outcomes of the Cuban Missile Crisis?
1. A hotline was set up between USA (Whitehouse) and USSR (Kremlin). 2. A Test Ban Treaty was signed.
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What was the hotline?
In 1963 - a telephone hotline was set up to give instant contact between the the Whitehouse (USA) and the Kremlin (USSR) if there was a crisis.
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What was the Test Ban Treaty?
It prohibited the testing of nuclear weapons in outer space, underwater or in the atmosphere.
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Why did Kennedy react as he did? (2 reasons)
1. He was under pressure from US military leaders to bomb + invade Cuba immediately. 2. Kennedy tried to give himself + Khrushchev a means of solving the crisis without immediate conflict. This is why he chose a blockade.
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Why else did Kennedy react as he did? (1 reason)
3. JFK realised he needed to give Khrushchev a way out without appearing to humiliate the Soviet leader – that is why (in private) he agreed not to invade Cuba + later remove US missiles from Turkey.
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Why else did Kennedy react as he did? (1 reason)
4. Kennedy used the opportunity of Khrushchev’s 1st letter to explore ways to solve the crisis whilst at the same time convincing the Soviets that he was prepared for war.
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Why can it be seen that the USA won the Cuban Missile Crisis? (2 reasons)
1. The Turkey deal was kept secret, the West + the world saw JFK as a 'victor'. He stood up to the USSR + they backed down + he faced down Communism. 2. JFK saved face after the Bay of Pigs.
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Why can it be seen that the USA WON the Cuban Missile Crisis? (1 reason)
3. JFK had stood up to some of his military advisers who wanted to invade Cuba. The crisis showed how dangerous their ideas were.
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Why can it be seen that the USA LOST the Cuban Missile Crisis? (2 reasons)
1. JFK agreed not to invade Cuba + (in secret) to remove NATO missiles from Turkey at a later date. 2. Castro remained in power in Cuba so the Communist threat remained.
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Why can it be seen that the USA LOST the Cuban Missile Crisis? (1 reason)
2. JFK had made lots of enemies. a) He was distrusted by some key generals, who thought he wasn't fully prepared to fight the spread of Communism. b) He was hated by the Cuban exiles in the USA since Castro had survived the Bay of Pigs + the CMC.
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Why can it be seen that the USSR WON the Cuban Missile Crisis? (2 reasons)
1. Khrushchev prevented a US invasion of Cuba + guaranteed no further invasion attempts would take place. 2. In public, he could claim to have acted reasonably + as a peacemaker by agreeing to remove the missiles from Cuba.
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Why can it be seen that the USSR WON the Cuban Missile Crisis? (1 reason)
3. Khruschev achieved both is aims a) the USA never bothered Cuba again (which is still a Communist country). b) the USA's NATO missiles in Turkey were also removed (although this was unknown at the time).
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Why can it be seen that the USSR LOST the Cuban Missile Crisis? (2 reasons)
1. Khrushchev lost prestige. He had been forced to resign. China broke off relations with Russia. Soviet missiles were removed + many in the USSR felt humiliated. 2. Khrushchev was unable to make public his agreements with the USA.
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Why else can it be seen that the USSR LOST the Cuban Missile Crisis? (2 reasons)
3. Khrushchev was replaced as Soviet leader. 4. Khrushchev was seen as weak by Soviets but peacemaker by west.
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Why can it be seen that Cuba WON the Cuban Missile Crisis? (2 reasons)
1. Castro remained in power + the USA agreed not to attempt further invasions. 2. Cuba remained heavily armed, although not with nuclear weapons, and became a focus for other Communists in South America.
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Why can it be seen that Cuba LOST the Cuban Missile Crisis? (1 reason)
Cuba remained poor + isolated in the western hemisphere, unable to trade with the USA and therefore dependant on the USSR for supplies and equipment.
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Why did the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion cause problems for the USA?
The invasion convinced Castro that the USA was an enemy and made him look to the USSR for support and protection. 2. The failed invasion made Castro even more popular. 3. This damaged the trustworthness of senior figures in the CIA, from the exiles.
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What is Brinkmanship?
When the USSR + USA pushed each other to the brink (i.e. who's going to crumble first) during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
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Other cards in this set
Card 2
Front
Give Some More Background Info on What Cuba in 1952-3 was Like
Back
2. Cuban's had been exloited by the US, who bought the sugar fr a low price + kept Cuban's poor. 3. In 1959 - Castro overthrew the govt + Batista' govt fled to the USA.
Card 3
Front
What Did Castro Do to Get Rid of American Influence?
Back
Card 4
Front
What Did Castro Do to Get Rid of American Influence?
Back
Card 5
Front
How Did the USA React to the New Cuban Leader, Castro? And What Happened After That?
Back
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