Yields of nuclear warheads of deployed missiles varied up to 25 megatons. The cuban missile crisis the belfer center for science and. Soviet missiles in cuba and it will become more difficult for us as time passes to generate the sense of urgency needed to get action approved in the organization of american states oas. Kennedy was confronted with an earthshattering revelation. Soviet union fg00601 case files 128191, 128197, 129230, 185551, 185560 fg01004 case file 545516 fg011 case files 552596, 583755, 598566. Center for cryptologic history telemetry intelligence. Reagan presented to the world that this was a reality when in fact this system of defence was years from being ready, it has been said this was the beginning of the end of the soviet union. Cuban missile crisis 4 the first consignment of r12 missiles arrived on the night of september 8, followed by a second on september 16.
Nie 11559, september 1959, soviet capabilities in guided missiles and space vehicles pdf only 680kb memorandum, june 1964, the soviet reconnaissance satellite program pdf only 187 kb. Nikita khrushchev, the cuban missile crisis, and the aftermath. If the congress wishes to have a third force for retaliation against the soviet union, then a more survivable system of mx mobile missiles or modified mobile minuteman iii missiles could be developed and deployed in a basing system in. The united states and the soviet union began negotiating in 1981 about. In the case of the cuban missile crisis, at the very least, the kgb.
Nikita khrushchev, the cuban missile crisis, and the aftermath jason roeschley the cuban missile crisis of october 1962 was one of the most significant events of the twentieth century. At the start of 2017 nine statesthe united states, russia, the united kingdom, france, china, india, pakistan, israel and the democratic. Russias icbm force is being gradually modernized as soviet era missiles are replaced by new systems, albeit not on a. Key questions teachers can ask to further discussions. The introduction of nucleartipped missiles into cuba was a bold stroke to resolve all at once the german problem, the china problem, and the difficulties. United states and the soviet union in 1962, brought about by the deployment of u. The colocation of nuclear and generalpurpose forces in the soviet union and now in russia was and is prompted by economic and administrative considerations, not by the strategic goal of trying to deter u. On the other hand, if no statement is made we would lose. This collection of documents, spanning three decades from the 1960s to the 1980s, focus on cias collection and analysis of the soviet navy. By this time, the soviet union had a major landbased ballistic missile force in being. Shown below is a photograph of the anders station now closed where hard ball was located on shemya island, alaska. Reconnaissance flights have detected the presence of sovietmade medium range ballistic missiles mrbms in cuba. Early history of the soviet missile program 19451953. The introduction of nucleartipped missiles into cuba was a bold stroke to resolve all at once the german problem, the.
Prominent antinuclear activist who gained recognition for the release of the. Twenty years later, in 1983, the cias topsecret national intelligence estimate nie, soviet capabilities for. Rearrange individual pages or entire files in the desired order. By midoctober, the total deployment would reach fortytwo thousand of the planned fortyfive thousand men. Cias analysis of the soviet union, 19471991 central. For a major study of the jupiter deployments and their role in the crisis, see philip nash, the other missiles of october. Pavel baev, russian nuclear modernization and putins wondermissiles. The cuban missile crisis was a major event of the cold war that took place during john f. The alert came at a time of high tension between the two countries, due in part to the u. Media in category missiles of russia and the soviet union the following 31 files are in this category, out of 31 total. President kennedy took and the significance of the cuban missile crisis.
Soviet intelligence and the cuban missile crisis belfer center for. Jfk files reveal fbi warning on oswald and soviets missile fears this article is more than 2 years old publication of nearly 3,000 documents sheds more light on response to assassination of us. Israel has more capable ballistic missiles, but fewer in number and type. Given the short flight time of the attacking missiles, once. Documents in pdf format require the adobe acrobat reader. Refinements in guidance and control systems saw missile accuracy improve steadily. On a political level, there might be charges of inaction and of no win policy. Many of the documents in this collection reflect the tensions in the bipolar cold war and specifically focused on the soviet navys development of its naval forces during that timeframe. Depending upon the speed such missiles are classified as. Thus, in contrast to the longheld view that nuclear weapons and the possibility of escalation.
Progress was greatly augmented by the reverse engineering of german technology captured by. As the heir to the substantial soviet missile arsenal, russia boasts the widest inventory of ballistic and cruise missiles in the world. The soviet missile base in cuba gain a more favorable position in the nuclear balance of power. Khrushchev also hoped that the missiles in cuba would provide him with a powerful bargaining position that could force the u. Another, a former german v2 repair facility, was converted by the soviets into a v2 assembly area. China was neither emboldened nor more cautious because of its rudimentary nuclear capability. Many of these missile systems, and the scientists who had developed them, were acquired by the soviets after the war, permitting the ussr to quickly establish its. Actual nuclear warheads are not covered by the treaty.
By the end of 2015, approximately half of the force had been upgraded, and all of the remaining sovietera icbms will be retired by 2024. This category has the following 6 subcategories, out of 6 total. So tehran turned to missiles to deal with an immediate wartime need after iraqs 1980 invasion. In addition, this collection is a continuation of previous releases on the warsaw pact forces available at cia analysis of warsaw pact forces and soviet and warsaw pact military journals and adds 82 newly released documents ranging from translation of. Iran acquired sovietmade scudbs, first from libya, then from syria and north korea. The cuban missile crisis, also known as the october crisis of 1962 spanish. Eisenhower, kennedy, and the jupiters, 1957 1963 chapel hill, nc, 1997. In october 1962, a united states spy plane captured evidence of the soviet union moving nuclear weapons into cuba, 90 miles away from the coast of florida. He argues that soviet leaders in the spring of 1962 were seized with an irresistible desire to solve the most grueling dilemmas of soviet foreign policy.
This was the first time that the ussr had placed nuclear missiles outside its own borders. Center for cryptologic history telemetry intelligence telint. Hardball could also collect data from soviet military satellites that sent data to soviet telemetry receiving locations in the far eastern land area of the soviet union. Russia remains a major power in the development of missiles of all kinds, and russian strategic rocket forces constitute a significant element of moscows military strategy. Authority under international law to take action if the. Only about 75 b52s will be modernized to improve penetration probabilities against future soviet surfaceto. The r12 was the first operational intermediaterange ballistic missile, the first missile ever massproduced, and the first soviet missile deployed with a thermonuclear warhead. Jfk files reveal fbi warning on oswald and soviets missile. Even as that perception was disproved, it became evident that the soviets were placing their. Khrushchev was worried that the usa had placed a significant number of missiles in bases throughout western europe. Irfna nitric acid musudan is thought to be a version of the soviet ssn6 missile fuel. Soviet missiles, which require only 25 minutes to reach the us mainland.
The quarantine and the crisis lingered until the removal of the soviet missiles was verified at sea on november 20, and the soviet union agreed to remove the mediumrange il28 bombers it had also. The display of this artwork reflects the deep conviction of both president and mrs. The wasserall, a german surfacetoair mis sile, was captured by the soviets at the end of. It was a major event in the cold war, but ended in an agreement between the u. Whoever actually initiated the process leading to their installation historians still argue over the exact mix of soviet and cuban motives and ini tiatives, it. It is a first attempt to penetrate what may ultimately turn out to be one of the most tragic.
In addition, earlier in the month the soviet union shot down a korean airlines passenger plane that strayed into its. List of important missiles in india and their range pdf. Kennedy, nuclear devastation of the globe was avoided. The upholding of strategic stability is defined in russian official documents. Early history of the soviet missile program 1945 1953 how ir evolved, inirial german influence 0. Arms control and nuclear weapons in the fsu 63 111. It is a first attempt to penetrate what may ultimately turn out to be one of the most tragic stories in the 200year history of the american republic. Reagan presented to the world that this was a reality when in fact this system of defence was years from being ready, it has been said this. In that sense, missiles in cuba add to an already clear and present danger although it should be noted the nations of latin america have never previously been subjected to a. In the sino soviet border conflict, however, nuclear weapons had little apparent influence on chinas decision to attack the soviets on 2 march.
Whoever actually initiated the process leading to their installation historians still argue over the exact mix of soviet and cuban motives and ini tiatives, it seems clear that the decision was linked to the bay of. It used these 300km missiles against iraq from 1985 until the war ended in 1988. Beginning in the 1950s, the united states built a system of sensors to detect an incoming attack and kept its landbased missiles in a state of readiness so they could be launched within a matter of minutes after receiving warning. The mfa describes the painting as picassos last major statement about the horrors of war, perhaps inspired by the cuban missile crisis. Because of the actions of soviet premier nikita khrushchev and u. In addition to being based on submarines, however, the trident ii missile would also have a short flight time to the soviet union and the ability to attack and destroy hardened soviet facilities.
All the documents and commentary selected for this study are contained on the. Socalled intermediaterange missiles were banned and eliminated as a result of the. Wikimedia commons has media related to otr21 tochka subcategories. Icbms intercontinental ballistic missiles, mobile in start strategic arms. The r12 was the first operational intermediaterange ballistic missile, the first missile ever massproduced, and the first. Russian nuclear modernization and putins wondermissiles ifri. This went against the terms of the 1967 outer space treaty. Close calls with nuclear weapons union of concerned scientists. To keep rough parity with the usas larger icbm force, russia is prioritizing the deploy. The development of soviet and russian ballistic missile. Cuban missile crisisstrategic consideration, october 1962. Soviet technological breakthrough that would threaten the submarine force.
One, for example, was involved with aircosurface missiles, such as the previously mentioned hs 293. The crisis ended the next morning was october 28, 1962. Soviet rocketry spanned the entire history of the soviet union 19221991. With the implementation of the treaty, all launchers and missiles of weapons sys tems belonging to this category, approxi mately 2,700 missiles incl. Jfk files reveal fbi warning on oswald and soviets. Oct 27, 2017 jfk files reveal fbi warning on oswald and soviets missile fears this article is more than 2 years old publication of nearly 3,000 documents sheds more light on response to assassination of us. This fear increased when missiles were placed in turkey right on the soviet border in 1961. Military aid to the soviet union will come as a surpriseand perhaps as an unwelcome shockto almost all readers. Kennedys presidency, and today is remembered as a major accomplishment of kennedys time in office. Most were acquired from foreign sources, notably north korea. Background and introduction telemetry intelligence telint later to be called fisint was a critical source of performance information on foreign missiles and space vehicles. Ball could also collect data from soviet military satellites that sent data to soviet telemetry receiving locations in the far eastern land area of the soviet union. The conflict was the closest the world came to a fullblown nuclear war during the cold war period.
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