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Q2. “The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 was a triumph for Khrushchev rather than for Kennedy.” How far do you agree?

The Cuban Missile Crisis (CMC) — known as the October Crisis or The Missile Scare, was a 14-day confrontation in October 1962 between the United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) and Cuba on one side, and the United States (US) on the other side. The crisis is generally regarded as the peak of the Cold War as it heightened tensions between USA and the USSR, and the moment in which the Cold War came closest to turning into a nuclear conflict. Both Kennedy and Khrushchev achieved some form of triumph, though perhaps in different forms and extent. In order to examine if it was a better triumph for Khrushchev or Kennedy, we need to compare what both sides gained from this confrontation, which can be viewed through military, personal, political, and ideological aspects. One way or another, the fact that the Cuban Missile Crisis did not escalate into a full confrontational war shows that both sides had gained something in their favour, before being willing to compromise with the opposite party. In my opinion, I disagree that the CMC of 1962 was a triumph for Khrushchev rather than for Kennedy. In fact, I believe that Kennedy was the one who walked away with the better deal. Although Khrushchev was victorious ideologically, it was Kennedy who came out on top as he managed to reign supreme throughout all the other aspects; politically, personally, and military-wise.
The CMC can be considered as military triumph for Kennedy as he managed to achieve his aim of securing the US’s national security by successfully negotiating with the USSR for the removal of missiles in Cuba. The Soviet missiles in Cuba was less than 150 kilometres from US cities and could fire into US with a range of 1000 miles, giving the Soviets the capacity to strike cities deep within the US. This posed a great threat to US’s security. In order to protect USA from any potential

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