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Cuban Missile Crisis Research Paper

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The Cuban Missile Crisis, the opening of relations with China, and the Vietnam War all contributed to the end of the Cold War from the American perspective. Each shook the stereotypes of communism and showed that communism and capitalism can negotiate. They also changed the American perception that total victory was necessary for success. Neither the Soviet Union nor the United States wanted to go to nuclear war, but the US did not realize this until the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. This was the first time the United States and Soviet Union really communicated and led to the instillation of the Moscow-Washington hotline. Nixon’s opening to the People’s Republic of China ten years later confirmed that capitalism and communism could negotiate. …show more content…

Two immediate factors include poor leadership and a decrease in the influence of the Soviets over their satellite states. As stated in the textbook, “When Gorbachev became general secretary of the Soviet Communist Party in March 1985, he was the best-educated, most worldly, and least dogmatic leader of his country since Lenin” (484). Gorbachev himself “blamed his three predecessors for presiding over twenty years of stagnation” and sought to reform the Soviet Union before it buckled under the economic strain (484). The lack of leadership in the Soviet Union allowed the economic situation to become awful, which in turn assisted in the Soviet Union’s demise. Gorbachev and even some of his predecessors allowed reformers to enter the communist bloc to deal with the economic issues, and through this crack capitalism entered Eastern Europe. Soviet leaders used the Iron Curtain to hide the backwardness of the Soviet Union from the Soviet people and the people of the satellite states; as communication with the west increased, the people began to realize the problems within communism. The people of Eastern Europe also realized the inaccuracies of the stereotypes they held regarding westerners. Combined with this realization, economic issues contributed to a decrease in Soviet influence over the satellite states. Therefore, two underlying contributors were increased communication with the west and economic

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As the United States and Soviet Russia entered the Cuban Missile Crisis in October of 1962, it was clear that this was the closest that the two sides had gotten to flirting with the idea of a real nuclear war. As a result of this fact, deliberations between the two for a compromise grew increasingly more tense, and it highlighted the similarities and differences between the United States and Soviet intentions. Clearly, it was in the interest of not only the U.S. and USSR, but the whole human race to find a peaceful compromise to the crisis, and the actions from both sides, public and secret, stopped the greater crisis of nuclear war from happening. The discovery of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba capable of reaching most points on the North

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During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union used different strategies in order to become the most powerful nation in the world. The U.S. used foreign aid, surrogate war, and brinkmanship to spread the ideals of capitalism. On the other hand, USSR used foreign aid, multinational alliances, and propaganda to expand the influence of communism. However, that policy increased the tensions between two superpowers which led the world into a whole new chapter. The used of the method, foreign aid, surrogate war, and brinkmanship was the most successful policies that helped the United States became one of the most powerful countries.

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After World War 2, relations between former allies, the United States of America and Soviet union, broke down and brought about an error, the Cuban Missile

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Which eventually triggered the Cold war, and the soviets ended up losing having no

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It also promoted strengthening of totalitarian regime in the USSR. Armament race led also to discoveries: more intensively the nuclear physics began to develop, wider scope was gained by space researches. Historical Background After the end of World War II which became the most large-scale and cruel conflict for all history of mankind there was an opposition between the countries of the communistic camp on the one hand and the western capitalist countries with another. Between two superstates of that time of the USSR and the USA. It is possible to characterize Cold War briefly as rivalry for domination in the new post-war world.

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The Cuban Missile Crisis was the height of the Cold War since there was so much tension between the two superpowers, and both sides had deadly nuclear weapons which could have led to war. During this time, war seemed inevitable to the citizens such as Dino Brugioni. Brugioni “made arrangements for his young family to get out of Washington in the event of war” and stated "’I had seen atomic blasts and I knew the destruction they had left, and I felt sure that Washington would be a target’" (Fidgen 2012). Brugioni is one of many US citizens who believed that nuclear war would be inevitable after the discovery of the Soviet missiles in Cuba, which shows the widespread fear of nuclear war during this time.

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J., Ginsberg, B., Shepsle, K. A., & Ansolabehere, S. (2017). American government: power & purpose. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. doi:http://wwnorton.com/college/polisci/american-government12/core/ch/08/principles.aspx 2. How did the fall of the Soviet Union and the decline of the Cold War threat lead to a conflict in members ' policy and political goals?

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