Kennedy’s New Policy re: Communism Flexible Response : Designed to give President many options for dealing with communism.

 Built up nuclear stockpiles  To deter enemies  Increased number of troops  In case of massive deployment  Increased Special Forces  For rapid response

Relations continued to sour: 1956: at UN “We will bury you.” Arms race continued.

 Fidel Castro becomes the communist dictator of Cuba in  Cuba is now a Soviet “satellite”

American fear of communism seemed justified when the Soviet Khrushchev embraced Castro as an ally.

 U.S. government (Ike) wanted to overthrow Castro and eliminate communism close to the U.S (containment).  The CIA began training Cuban exiles for an invasion to overthrow Castro.  Took place in the early days of JFK’s administration and failed

 The invasion went badly  Populace did not rise up.  Rebels beaten badly.  Kennedy decided against air strikes  Feared all out war with Cuba/USSR.  The invasion failed, U.S. failure to stop communism from becoming established in Cuba.

Kennedy and Khrushchev met in Vienna Khrushchev wanted the West out of Berlin Kennedy refused & war seemed imminent.

Kennedy warned Americans to prepare for war. Build shelters for nuclear war. Mobilized National Guard & asked for more defense spending.

People built shelters to “ride out” nuclear winter and survive a war.

Rather than go to war, the Soviets built a wall in Berlin to separate East and West. Not just a straight wall.

Kennedy visited Berlin in 1961 to address the people. Meant to boost morale and show American support for West Berlin. Famously stated “Ich bin ein Berliner!” Meant to say that he was a citizen of Berlin. Meant to show that all in the free west sympathized with the people of Berlin. It worked and people felt protected.

 After the Bay of Pigs invasion, the Soviet Union thought it could take advantage of the U.S.  The Soviet Union made a deal with Castro to place nuclear weapons on Cuba.

 The U.S. spied on Cuba and saw the missile sites being built; panic and fear spread through the U.S.

 JFK and his advisers decided to place a naval blockade around Cuba and not allow Soviet ships into Cuba  Soviet ships were sailing toward Cuba; one went through the blockade, and the rest turned back

The Soviet Union offered to remove the missiles if the U.S. promised not to invade Cuba US also agreed to move its missiles from Turkey. Kennedy finally agreed to the deal, and the crisis passed

The Soviet Union offered to remove the missiles if the U.S. promised not to invade Cuba US also agreed to move its missiles from Turkey. Kennedy finally agreed to the deal, and the crisis passed

 Kennedy did not publicly agree to dismantle missile bases in Turkey. In a secret telephone call, he told Khrushchev that – while he couldn’t agree to dismantle Turkish bases in a ‘tit-for-tat’ agreement – he did not see that the USA would need a need for them and that they would be dismantled soon.

CALLED CARIBBEAN CRISIS IN THE USSR

 Brinkmanship: threatening the use of all out nuclear war with the Soviet Union; “Chess” match between US/USSR through the quarantine and UN showdown…

 Brinkmanship: threatening the use of all out nuclear war with the Soviet Union; “Chess” match (quarantine/UN showdown…) between US/USSR…  Internal conflict between the military and Kennedy administration…  Also, Khrushchev was facing the same conflict with Soviet hardliners…he never gave the order to shoot down the U2 spy plane over Cuba and less than two years he will be deposed as Soviet Premiere

US/USSR signed the Limited Test Ban Treaty in Stopped atmospheric testing 108 countries eventually signed it. China refused to sign.