Kennedy Intensifies the Cold War

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Kennedy Intensifies the Cold War
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Kennedy Intensifies the Cold War

• Addressing U.S. foreign policy containing
  Communism was JFKs top priority as president
• JFK believed Ike compromised with the USSR when
  the Cold War could have been won
• JFK aimed to close the missile gap increase
  U.S. defenses
• Looked to solve issues in Berlin, Vietnam, Cuba

Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well
or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any
burden, meet any hardship, support any friend,
oppose any foe to assure the survival the
success of liberty. We will do this
more. JFKs inaugural address
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Flexible Response

• JFK shifted from Ikes mutually assured
  destruction to a flexible response capable of
  responding to a variety of future problems
• Increased nuclear arsenal to 1,000 ICBMs 32
  Polaris subs to create a first-strike
  capability
• Increased the army air force
• Expanded covert operations created the Green
  Berets

JFK was convinced that the USSR had more
missiles, but really the U.S. had the lead with
600 B-52s, 2 Polaris subs, 2,000 warheads
To combat Communism to help underdeveloped
countries, JFK created the Peace Corps the
Alliance for Progress
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The Space Race
The Apollo Program

• JFK hoped to avoid another Sputnik hoped to
  beat the Soviets to the moon
• JFK greatly expanded NASA announced that the
  U.S. would get to the moon by 1970
• The U.S. landed a man on the moon in 1969

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Crisis over Berlin

• JFKs 1st confrontation with the Soviet Union
  came in Berlin
• Khrushchev was upset with the exodus of skilled
  workers from East Germany to West Berlin
• The USSR threatened to remove all U.S. influence
  from West Berlin, but settled on building the
  Berlin Wall in 1961

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Ich bin ein Berliner JFK, 1963
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The Berlin Crisis

• Berlins Significance
• Khrushchev demanded that the United States
  recognize East Germany as an independent
  Communist nation.
• West Berlin was an island of freedom.
• Many East Germans fled to West Germany through
  Berlin.
• Kennedy refused to be bullied, sent troops into
  West Germany, built nuclear shelters, and waited
  for Khrushchevs next move.

• The Berlin Wall
• On August 13, 1961, Khrushchev closed the
  crossing points between East and West Berlin.
• A high concrete wall was built to prevent further
  escapes to freedom.
• Kennedy sent more troops, and Vice President
  Lyndon B. Johnson visited West Berlin.
• Kennedy said A wall is a lot better than a
  war.
• Over time, the wall was extended and fortified.

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Containment in Vietnam

• Vietnam proved tough test
• Since 1954, Communist leader Ho Chi Minh gained
  popularity in North Vietnam By 1961, he gained a
  foothold in the South
• The U.S. gave aid to unpopular South leader Ngo
  Dihn Diem
• When Diem lost control of the South, JFK gave the
  OK for a coup against Diem in 1963

Strongly in our mind is what happened in China
at the end of World War 2, where China was lost.
We dont want that. JFK
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Monk Quang Duc protested Diems treatment of
Buddhists
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Containing Castro Bay of Pigs

• Fidel Castro took over Cuba in 1959 developed
  ties with Russia
• The Eisenhower administration (directed by the
  CIA) had been training Cuban exiles for an
  invasion overthrow of Castro
• In 1961, JFK gave the OK for the CIA to initiate
  the Bay of Pigs invasion

JFK blamed the Republicans for allowing a
communist satellite to arise on our very
doorstep
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The invasion called for U.S. air support but JFK
canceled the air strike without air support,
Castro squashed the invasion
Kennedy took full responsibility for the failure
of Bay of Pigs, but did not apologize for coup
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Bay of Pigs Invasion

• Background
• Fidel Castro was in power in Cuba.
• Came to power after a guerrilla war, promised to
  restore peoples rights and freedoms
• Once in power, he seized private businesses and
  made overtures to Soviet Union.

• Kennedy
• Kennedy learned that the CIA was training troops
  to invade Cuba and topple Castro.
• His advisors were mixed.
• Kennedy was worried about Communism spreading to
  Latin America.
• Kennedy gave the go-ahead.

• The Invasion
• Bay of Pigs invasion failed.
• Information was leaked early.
• Air strikes failed.
• Castro prepared for a land attack.
• Invaders were captured and ransomed back to
  United States.
• Strengthened Castros ties to the Soviet Union

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Cuban Missile Crisis
24 medium-range 18 short range ICBMs

• To protect Cuba from another U.S. invasion, the
  USSR began a secret build-up of nuclear missiles
• On Oct 14, 1962 a U-2 spy plane discovered Cuban
  missile camps
• How would the U.S. respond?

Immediate air strike?
Full-scale invasion?
Kennedy chose to quarantine Cuba to keep new
missiles out an invasion of Cuba if the USSR
did not remove its nukes
Diplomacy trade nukes in Cuba for nukes in
Turkey?
Naval blockade to keep warheads out?
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Kennedy announced a quarantine (blockade) to keep
more missiles out demanded that the Soviets
remove the missiles already in Cuba
The Cuban Missile Crisis
"We are eyeball to eyeball, and the other fellow
just blinked." Sec of State, Dean Rusk
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Cuban Missile Crisis
AndU.S. removal of nuclear weapons in Turkey

• The standoff ended when Russia removed its Cuban
  missiles the USA vowed to never invade Cuba
• The impact of the crisis
• Seen as a political victory for JFK
• Installed a hot line to improve US-Soviet
  communications
• This near-nuclear war convinced both sides to
  move from confrontation to negotiation

Our most basic common link is the fact that we
all inhabit this planet. We all breathe the same
air. We all cherish our childrens future. We are
all mortal. JFK
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The Cuban Missile Crises

• U.S. actions in the Bay of Pigs and Berlin crises
  encouraged hard-line leaders in the Soviet Union.
• The Soviets were worried about another invasion
  of Cuba and U.S. nuclear missiles placed in
  Turkey.
• Kennedy was worried about accusations of being
  soft on communism.

Buildup

• A U.S. U-2 spy plane detected Soviet
  surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) in Cuba.
• The Soviets argued that the SAMs were defensive
  missiles and swore that they didnt have
  offensive missiles in Cuba.
• Later U-2 flights showed that the Soviets had
  lied.

Crisis Begins
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The Cuban Missile Crisis

• Kennedy assembled a group of advisors, known as
  the ExComm, to help him plan a response.
• ExComm military members favored an air strike,
  perhaps followed by a land invasion of Cuba.
• Others argued for a naval blockade. Kennedy
  agreed with this plan.
• The world watched as Soviet ships carrying
  missile parts approached the naval blockade.
  They turned back.

Managing the Crisis

• Khrushchev agreed to dismantle the missiles if
  the United States pledged to never invade Cuba.
• Both Kennedy and Khrushchev took steps to ease
  tensions between their countries.
• They set up a hotline to allow direct
  communication during times of crisis.
• The Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was signed,
  ending atmospheric and underwater testing of
  nuclear weapons.

Effects of the Crisis
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How did Kennedys foreign policy reflect his
views of the world?

• Believed in peace that did not have to be
  enforced with weapons of war
• Believed in peace for Americans and for all men
  and women around the world

Kennedys Foreign Policy

• Trained and sent volunteers to Africa, Asia, and
  Latin America to serve for two years
• Most volunteers were young college graduates
• Increased goodwill toward the United States

Peace Corps

• Offered billions of dollars in aid to Latin
  America to build schools, hospitals, roads, power
  plants, and low-cost housing
• Intended to counter communisms influence

Alliance for Progress
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Kennedy Foreign Policy and the Cold War

• Kennedy also followed the Cold War policies of
  his predecessors.
• He continued the nuclear arms buildup begun by
  Eisenhower.
• He continued to follow Trumans practice of
  containment.
• He developed the strategy of flexible response.
• Strengthening conventional American forces so the
  nation would have other options than nuclear
  weapons in times of crisis

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To what degree was the USA winning the Cold War
from 1945-1963?
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The Cold War 1948-1975
The Cold War under Truman 1945-1952
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The Cold War 1948-1975
The Cold War under Eisenhower 1953-1960
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The Cold War 1948-1975
The Cold War under Kennedy 1961-1963
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The Cold War 1948-1975
The Cold War under Johnson 1963-1968