Throughout history, numerous wars have been prevented at the very last second. Find out about some wars that never happened
Location: Several miles off the coast of Cuba
Date: October 27, 1962
You’ve probably heard of the Cold War. Lasting from 1947 until 1991 (when the Soviet Union collapsed), tensions between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) were really high. The Cold War was essentially a war between democracy and Communism. There were no battles, which is why it’s called the “Cold War,” but everyone knew that war could break out any minute.
One of the tensest times during this period of almost half a century was the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Cuba was (and is) a Communist state with close ties to the Soviet Union. The leader of the USSR, Nikita Khrushchev, thought it wise to get some Russian nuclear missiles over to Cuba. That’s because Cuba is only about 150 miles from the southern coast of America. Having nuclear missiles so close to the enemy of the USSR would come in handy if the Soviets decided to attack the US. Plus, just keeping the missiles in Cuba was a good threat, even if they would never actually be used.
President John F. Kennedy was alarmed. He immediately ordered a naval blockade around Cuba’s territorial waters. The American naval ships made sure that no cargo or other ships could get to Cuba.
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