Batista had been in complete control of the island since 1933, either directly or through other presidents. During most of Castro's early years, Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar (1901–1973), an oppressive dictator (a leader who uses force and terror to maintain control), ruled Cuba. He graduated from the University of Havana in 1950 with a law degree. A young Fidel Castroīorn in Mayarí, Cuba, in 1926, Castro grew up in a solidly middle-class home. president and a newly established leader of a small nearby island, Fidel Castro Ruz (1926–), would keep the world's population on the edge of their seats for many days.

The intersection of the careers of a U.S. … It shall be the policy of this Nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack by the Soviet Union on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union.… No one can foresee precisely what course it will take or what costs or casualties will be incurred.' In the following decades, especially during the 1990s as Soviet documents became available, records revealed that in late October 1962, the world was indeed at the brink of a nuclear holocaust. I have directed the Armed Forces to prepare for any eventualities. shoreline.Īs noted in the Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, in his televised address, Kennedy said, 'Should these offensive military preparations continue … further action will be justified. The president had undisputable evidence that Soviet-built nuclear missiles capable of reaching the United States and many Latin American countries were in place in Cuba, 90 miles (145 kilometers) from the U.S. A prime example of this was displayed on the evening of October 22, 1962, when Kennedy addressed the nation via television. relations with the Soviet Union were declining, and the world seemed to be proceeding deeper into crisis and conflict. Kennedy was taking on a difficult job: U.S. Nixon (1913–1994) in the presidential election. Kennedy (1917– 1963) of Massachusetts defeated Vice President Richard M.

Batista y eisenhower