Soviet-American relations developed extremely unevenly in the middle and second half of the 1950s. In 1959, Khrushchev, who showed a genuine interest in the United States, visited this country on a rather lengthy visit. One of the components of his schedule was a speech at a meeting General Assembly UN in New York. Here he put forward a broad program of general and complete disarmament. This program, of course, looked utopian, but at the same time it provided for a number of initial steps that could reduce the intensity of international tension: the elimination of military bases on foreign territory, the conclusion of a non-aggression pact between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, etc. The propaganda response from Khrushchev's speech was weighty and forced the United States to sign a joint resolution with the USSR on the need to make efforts for general disarmament, adopted by the UN General Assembly. Khrushchev spoke at a session of the UN General Assembly in the fall of 1960 - now not as part of a visit to the United States, but as the head of the Soviet delegation to the UN. The problems of disarmament and support for the national liberation movement sounded in his first place. The dangerous backwardness of the USSR in the production of nuclear weapons forced the Soviet leader to make loud and even extravagant statements (which concerned primarily Western representatives) about the superiority of the USSR in missiles. In the heat of the controversy, despite the fact that he was in the UN building, Khrushchev even pounded his shoe on the table.

A return visit by US President D. Eisenhower to the USSR was being prepared, but fell through due to an incident with an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft shot down over Soviet territory. American aircraft and earlier they repeatedly violated the airspace of the USSR, and, having an advantage in speed and altitude, evaded the pursuit of Soviet interceptors and anti-aircraft missiles. But on May 1, 1960, the American pilot F. Powers was not lucky. In the Sverdlovsk region, where he managed to fly, there were already new modernized missiles. Being shot down, Powers, contrary to instructions, did not commit suicide, but surrendered. The testimony of the American pilot was made public and a trial took place over him. President Eisenhower refused to apologize to the USSR for this flight, which spoiled his relationship with the Soviet leader. Two years later, Powers, serving his sentence, was exchanged for a convict in the United States. Soviet spy R. Abel.

FROM THE SPEECH OF N.S. Khrushchev at the meeting of the UN General Assembly. October 11, 1960

“I declare, gentlemen, that the time will come when you will understand the need for disarmament. The people will throw out those who put obstacles on the way to peace and mutual understanding... You, the people of the socialist world, will not be intimidated by you! Our economy is flourishing, our technology is on the rise, the people are united. Do you want to impose on us an arms race? We do not want it, but we are not afraid. We will beat you! We have put the production of missiles on the conveyor. Recently I was at a factory and saw how rockets come out there, like sausages from a machine gun. Rocket after rocket comes out of our factory lines. Someone wants to try how we stand on the ground? You tried us and we beat you. I mean, they defeated those who went to war against us in the first years after October revolution... Some gentlemen will now begin to crackle that Khrushchev is threatening someone. No, Khrushchev does not threaten, but actually predicts the future for you. If you do not understand the real situation ... if there is no disarmament, then there will be an arms race, and any arms race will eventually lead to a military denouement. If the war starts, then we will not count many of those sitting here ...

What else to add?

For the time being, not all the peoples of Asia and the peoples of Africa, who have recently liberated themselves from colonial oppression, have realized their strength, are still following their hangmen-colonizers of yesterday. But today it is so, and tomorrow it will not be; this will not happen, the peoples will rise up, straighten their backs and want to be the real masters of the situation ... "

BERLIN WALL

The construction of the famous Berlin Wall served as a prologue to the exacerbation of the crisis in the Caribbean. In the geopolitical confrontation between the USSR and the West, the German question continued to occupy one of the main places. Special attention was chained to the status of West Berlin. East Berlin became the capital of the GDR. The western part of the city, where the US, British and French troops were located, formally had a special status, but clearly gravitated towards the Federal Republic of Germany. Khrushchev proposed convening a conference of the great powers to declare West Berlin a demilitarized zone. But after the incident with the U-2 aircraft, consultations on this issue ceased.

Meanwhile, the competent market policy of the authorities of West Berlin, their support from the FRG, as well as solid cash injections from the United States and other countries, made it possible to dramatically increase the standard of living of West Berliners compared to residents of the eastern sector. Such a contrast, along with open borders between parts of the city, stimulated emigration from East Berlin, which hurt the economy of the GDR. NATO also used this situation for an active ideological attack on the socialist system.

In August 1961, the leadership of the Department of Internal Affairs, in accordance with the decision taken in Moscow, called on the GDR to take measures against the policy of West Berlin. The subsequent actions of the German communists came as a complete surprise to the West. Ordinary members of the party created a living ring of wills of the border between sectors. Simultaneously, the rapid construction of a 45-kilometer concrete wall with checkpoints began. After 10 days, the wall was ready and immediately became a symbol of " cold war».

Simultaneously with the construction of the wall, transport communications between parts of the city were interrupted, and the border guards of the GDR were ordered to open fire on the defectors. During the years of the wall's existence, dozens of people who tried to overcome it were killed and injured. The wall stood until November 9, 1989, when, in the light of perestroika that began in the USSR and political transformations in the countries of Eastern Europe, the new government of the GDR announced an unhindered transition from East to West Berlin and vice versa. The official dismantling took place in January 1990.

CARIBBEAN CRISIS

The confrontation between the Soviet and Western blocs approached its most dangerous line during the so-called. Caribbean (Missile) crisis in the fall of 1962. A significant part of humanity was then on the verge of death, and before the start of the war, according to figurative expression, was the same distance as from the officer's palm to the button on the missile launcher.

In 1959, the pro-American regime was overthrown in Cuba, and pro-communist forces led by Fidel Castro came to power in the country. communist state in traditional zone US interests (in fact, at their side) was not just a blow, but simply a shock to the political elite in Washington. A nightmare was becoming a reality: the Soviets were at the gates of Florida. In order to overthrow Castro, the US Central Intelligence Agency immediately began preparing a subversive action. In April 1961, a landing party consisting of Cuban emigrants landed in the Bay of Pigs, but was quickly defeated. Castro sought closer rapprochement with Moscow. This was required by the task of defending the "Island of Freedom" from a new attack. In turn, Moscow was interested in creating a military base in Cuba, as opposed to NATO bases around the borders of the USSR. The fact is that Turkey already had American nuclear missiles that could reach the vital centers of the Soviet Union in just a few minutes, while Soviet missiles needed almost half an hour to hit the US. Such a gap in time could be fatal. The creation of the Soviet base began in the spring of 1962, and soon a secret transfer of medium-range missiles began there. Despite the clandestine nature of the operation (which was codenamed "Anadyr"), the Americans found out about what was on board the Soviet ships going to Cuba.

On September 4, 1962, President John F. Kennedy declared that the United States would in no way tolerate Soviet nuclear missiles 150 km from its coast. Khrushchev declared that only research equipment was being installed in Cuba. But on October 14, an American reconnaissance aircraft photographed the missile launch pads from the air. The US military proposed immediately bombing Soviet missiles from the air and launching an invasion of the island by forces marines. Such actions led to the inevitable war with the Soviet Union in the victorious outcome of which Kennedy was not sure. Therefore, he decided to take a tough stance, but not to resort to military attack. In an address to the nation, he said that the United States was beginning a naval blockade of Cuba, demanding that the USSR immediately remove its missiles from there. Khrushchev soon realized that Kennedy would stand his ground to the end and on October 26 sent a message to the president recognizing the presence of powerful Soviet weapons in Cuba. But at the same time, Khrushchev tried to convince Kennedy that the USSR was not going to attack America. The position of the White House remained the same - the immediate withdrawal of missiles.

October 27 was the most critical day of the crisis. Then a Soviet anti-aircraft missile shot down one of the many US reconnaissance aircraft over the island. Its pilot is dead. The situation escalated to the limit, and the US President decided to start bombing in two days Soviet missiles bases and start landing on Cuba. In those days, many Americans, frightened by the prospect nuclear war left big cities, independently dug bomb shelters. However, all this time, unofficial contacts were maintained between Moscow and Washington, the parties considered various proposals in order to move away from the dangerous line. On October 28, the Soviet leadership decided to accept the American condition, which was that the USSR withdraws its missiles from Cuba, after which the United States lifts the blockade of the island. Kennedy pledged not to attack "Liberty Island". In addition, it was agreed to withdraw American missiles from Turkey. In plain text, the Soviet message was delivered to the President of the United States.

After October 28, the Soviet Union withdrew its missiles and bombers from Cuba, and the United States lifted the naval blockade of the island. International tension subsided, but the Cuban leaders did not like this "concession" to the United States. Officially remaining in the Soviet position, Castro criticized the actions of Moscow, and especially Khrushchev. In general, the Cuban crisis showed the great powers that the continuation of the arms race, drastic actions on international arena can turn the world into the abyss of a global and all-destroying war. And, paradoxically, with the overcoming of the Cuban crisis, an impetus was given to detente: each of the opponents realized that the opposing side was striving to avoid a nuclear war. The US and the USSR became more aware of the limits of acceptable confrontation in the Cold War, the need to seek a compromise on issues of bilateral relations. For N.S. Khrushchev Caribbean crisis also did not go unnoticed. His concessions were seen by many as a sign of weakness, further undermining the authority of the Soviet leader among the Kremlin leadership.

APPEAL N.S. Khrushchev to D.F. KENNEDY October 27, 1962

“Dear Mr. President.

I read with great satisfaction your reply to Mr. Ran about taking measures to exclude contact between our ships and thereby avoid irreparable fatal consequences. This sensible step on your part strengthens me in the fact that you show concern for the preservation of the world, which I note with satisfaction.

You want to secure your country, and this is understandable. All countries want to protect themselves. But how can we Soviet Union, our government to evaluate your actions, which are expressed in the fact that you surrounded the Soviet Union with military bases, located military bases literally around our country. They placed their missile weapons there. This is not a secret. American responsible figures defiantly declare this. Your missiles are located in England, are located in Italy and are aimed at us. Your missiles are located in Turkey.

You are worried about Cuba. You say that it worries you because it is 90 miles by sea from the coast of the United States of America. But Türkiye is next to us, our sentries are walking around and looking at one another. Why do you think that you have the right to demand security for your country and the removal of those weapons that you call offensive, but you do not recognize this right for us.

After all, you have deployed destructive missile weapons, which you call offensive, in Turkey, literally at our side. How then does the recognition of our militarily equal opportunities fit in with similar unequal relations between our great states. It's impossible to reconcile.

Therefore, I am making a proposal: we agree to withdraw from Cuba what you consider to be offensive weapons. We agree to implement this and declare this obligation to the UN. Your representatives will make a statement that the United States, for its part, taking into account the anxiety and concern of the Soviet state, will withdraw its similar funds from Turkey. Let's agree on how long it takes for you and us to do it. And after that, the authorized representatives of the UN Security Council could monitor the implementation of the obligations taken on the spot.”

ANSWER D. KENNEDY N.S. KHRUSHCHEV. October 28, 1962

“I applaud Chairman Khrushchev's state-wise decision to stop building bases in Cuba, dismantle offensive weapons and return them to the Soviet Union under UN supervision. This is an important and constructive contribution to peace.

We will keep in touch with general secretary United Nations on reciprocal measures to ensure peace in the Caribbean.

I sincerely hope that the governments of the world in dealing with the Cuban crisis can turn their attention to the urgent need to end the arms race and reduce international tensions. This applies both to the fact that the countries of the Warsaw Pact and NATO confront each other militarily, and other situations in other parts of the world. the globe where tension leads to a fruitless diversion of resources to the creation of weapons of war.

“The events of the October days of 1962 are the first and, fortunately, the only thermonuclear crisis, which was a “moment of fear and insight” when N.S. Khrushchev, John F. Kennedy, F. Castro and all of humanity felt they were in “the same boat” that found themselves in the epicenter of the nuclear abyss.”

In the early 1960s Cuba has become an arena of rivalry between the great powers. The American government was quite alarmed at the prospect of having a communist state at its side. The revolutionary center that arose in Cuba represented a certain threat to American influence in Latin America. At the same time, the USSR was interested in turning Cuba into its ally in the fight against the United States.

USSR support

All the actions of the United States directed against Cuba were skillfully used by the Soviet government in their own interests. Thus, the economic blockade organized by the USA led to the fact that the Soviet Union began to supply oil to Cuba. The USSR and the countries of the socialist camp bought Cuban sugar, supplied the population of the island with everything necessary. This allowed the revolutionary regime to survive. In April 1961, the US attempt by Cuban emigrants to intervene on the island ended in the defeat of the landing force. It was after these events that F. Castro began to call the Cuban revolution socialist.

Deployment of nuclear missiles in Cuba

The economic, political and military pressure of the United States on the rebellious island led to a further tightening of the revolutionary regime. Under these conditions, the Cuban authorities decided to strengthen the country's defense capability with the help of the USSR. The Soviet government, under a secret agreement with the Cuban leadership in the summer and autumn of 1962, deployed medium-range nuclear missiles in Cuba. Under the gunpoint of Soviet missiles were vital important centers USA.

The transfer of missiles was carried out in the strictest secrecy, but already in September 1962, the US leadership suspected something was wrong. On September 4, President Kennedy declared that the United States would under no circumstances tolerate Soviet nuclear missiles within 150 kilometers of its borders. In response, Khrushchev assured Kennedy that there were no Soviet missiles or nuclear weapons in Cuba and never would be. He called the installations discovered by the Americans Soviet research equipment. material from the site

October Crisis

The dramatic events in October 1962 developed in the following way. On October 14, pictures of an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft showed the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba. October 22 was followed by an official statement by US President John F. Kennedy on the blockade of the island. American missile units were brought into combat readiness. Nuclear warheads were activated on 100 missiles. On October 24, Soviet ships loaded with missiles reached the quarantine line and stopped. Never a danger nuclear war was not so real. On October 25, Kennedy sent a telegram to Khrushchev demanding that Soviet missiles be withdrawn from the island. The Soviet leader sent two responses, in the first he demanded US guarantees of a non-aggression on Cuba, and in the second he demanded the withdrawal of American Mars missiles from Turkey. Kennedy accepted the first, while the second condition was met a few months later. On October 28, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles.

The Cuban crisis was followed by some improvement in international relations, which led to the signing on August 5, 1963 of an agreement between the USSR, USA, Great Britain on a test ban nuclear weapons in three spheres - in the atmosphere, outer space and under water. This improvement, however, began already in the absence of the main actors Caribbean crisis: on November 22, 1963, John F. Kennedy was assassinated, and on October 14, 1964, N. S. Khrushchev was removed from all his party and state posts.

Caribbean (Cuban) crisis of 1962 - a sharp aggravation of the international situation caused by the threat of war between the USSR and the USA due to the deployment of the Soviet missile weapons in Cuba.

In connection with the ongoing military, diplomatic and economic pressure of the United States on Cuba, the Soviet political leadership at its request in June 1962 decided to deploy on the island Soviet troops, including missile (codenamed "Anadyr"). This was explained by the need to prevent US armed aggression against Cuba and to oppose Soviet missiles to American ones deployed in Italy and Turkey.

(Military Encyclopedia. Military Publishing. Moscow, in 8 volumes, 2004)

To accomplish this task, it was planned to deploy three regiments of missiles in Cuba medium range R-12 (24 launchers) and two regiments of R-14 missiles (16 launchers) - a total of 40 rocket launchers with a range of missiles from 2.5 to 4.5 thousand kilometers. For this purpose, the consolidated 51st missile division was formed, consisting of five missile regiments from different divisions. The total nuclear potential of the division in the first launch could reach 70 megatons. The division in its entirety ensured the possibility of defeating military-strategic facilities almost throughout the entire territory of the United States.

The delivery of troops to Cuba was planned by the civilian courts of the Ministry navy THE USSR. In July-October, 85 cargo and passenger ships took part in Operation Anadyr, which made 183 voyages to and from Cuba.

By October, there were over 40,000 Soviet troops in Cuba.

On October 14, an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft in the San Cristobal area (Pinar del Rio province) discovered and photographed the starting positions of the Soviet missile troops. On October 16, the CIA reported this to US President John F. Kennedy. On October 16-17, Kennedy convened a meeting of his apparatus, including the top military and diplomatic leadership, at which the deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba was discussed. Several options were proposed, including the landing of American troops on the island, an air strike on launch sites, and a maritime quarantine.

In a televised speech on October 22, Kennedy announced the appearance of Soviet missiles in Cuba and his decision to declare a naval blockade of the island from October 24, put the US military on alert and enter into negotiations with the Soviet leadership. More than 180 US warships with 85 thousand people on board were sent to the Caribbean Sea, American troops in Europe, the 6th and 7th fleets were put on alert, up to 20% strategic aviation was on combat duty.

On October 23, the Soviet government issued a statement that the US government "takes upon itself a heavy responsibility for the fate of the world and is playing a reckless game with fire." The statement did not acknowledge the fact of the deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba, nor any concrete proposals for a way out of the crisis. On the same day, the head of the Soviet government, Nikita Khrushchev, sent a letter to the President of the United States, in which he assured him that any weapons supplied to Cuba were intended only for defense purposes.

On October 23, intensive meetings of the UN Security Council began. UN Secretary-General U Thant appealed to both sides to show restraint: the Soviet Union - to stop the advance of their ships in the direction of Cuba, the United States - to prevent a collision at sea.

October 27 was the Black Saturday of the Cuban crisis. In those days, squadrons of American planes swept over Cuba twice a day for the purpose of intimidation. On this day, an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft was shot down in Cuba, flying around the field position areas of the missile forces. The pilot of the aircraft, Major Anderson, was killed.

The situation escalated to the limit, the US President decided two days later to begin the bombing of Soviet missile bases and a military attack on the island. Many Americans left major cities, fearing an imminent Soviet strike. The world was on the brink of nuclear war.

On October 28, Soviet-American negotiations began in New York with the participation of representatives of Cuba and Secretary General UN, which ended the crisis with the relevant obligations of the parties. The USSR government agreed to the US demand for the withdrawal of Soviet missiles from the territory of Cuba in exchange for assurances from the US government that the island's territorial inviolability would be respected, and a guarantee of non-interference in the internal affairs of that country. The withdrawal of US missiles from Turkey and Italy was also announced confidentially.

On November 2, US President Kennedy announced that the USSR had dismantled its missiles in Cuba. From 5 to 9 November, the missiles were removed from Cuba. On November 21, the United States lifted the naval blockade. On December 12, 1962, the Soviet side completed the withdrawal of personnel, missile weapons and equipment. In January 1963, the UN received assurances from the USSR and the USA that the Cuban crisis had been eliminated.

The material was prepared on the basis of information from open sources.

55 years ago, on September 9, 1962, Soviet ballistic missiles were delivered to Cuba. This was the prelude to the so-called Caribbean (October) crisis, which for the first time and so close brought humanity to the brink of nuclear war.

"Metallurg Anosov" with deck cargo - eight missile transporters with missiles covered with tarpaulin. During the Caribbean crisis (blockade of Cuba). November 7, 1962 Photo: wikipedia.org

The Caribbean crisis itself, or rather its most, lasted 13 days, from October 22, 1962, when the application of missile attack in Cuba, where by that time an impressive Soviet military contingent was stationed.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation on the eve published a list of official losses of Soviet citizens who died on the island from August 1, 1962 to August 16, 1964: there are 64 names in this mournful register.

Our compatriots died during the rescue of Cubans during the strongest hurricane "Flora", which swept over Cuba in the autumn of 1963, during combat training, from accidents and diseases. In 1978, at the suggestion of Fidel Castro, a memorial to the memory of Soviet soldiers buried in Cuba was built in the vicinity of Havana, which is surrounded by maximum care. The complex consists of two concrete walls in the form of mournfully bowed banners of both countries. Its content is supervised in an exemplary manner by the country's top leadership. By the way, the Soviet military, who, together with the Cubans, were involved in the coastal defense of the island in the fall of 1962, were dressed in Cuban uniforms. But on the most stressful days, from October 22 to 27, they took out vests and peakless caps from their suitcases and prepared to give their lives for a distant Caribbean country.

Khrushchev made the decision

So, in the autumn of 1962, the world faced the real danger of a nuclear war between the two superpowers. And the real destruction of mankind.

In official US circles, among politicians and in the media, at one time the thesis became widespread, according to which the cause of the Caribbean crisis was the alleged deployment of "offensive weapons" by the Soviet Union in Cuba, and the Kennedy administration's response, which brought the world to the brink of thermonuclear war, was "forced" . However, these statements are far from the truth. They are refuted by an objective analysis of the events that preceded the crisis.

Fidel Castro inspects the armament of Soviet ships on July 28, 1969. Photo: RIA News

Sending Soviet ballistic missiles to Cuba from the USSR in 1962 was an initiative of Moscow, and specifically Nikita Khrushchev. Nikita Sergeevich, shaking his shoe on the podium of the UN General Assembly, did not hide his desire to "put a hedgehog in the pants of the Americans" and waited for a convenient opportunity. And this, looking ahead, he brilliantly succeeded - Soviet lethal missiles were not only located a hundred kilometers from America, but the United States did not know for a whole month that they had already been deployed on Freedom Island!

After the failure of the operation in the Bay of Pigs in 1961, it became clear that the Americans would not leave Cuba alone. This was evidenced by the ever-increasing number of acts of sabotage against the Island of Freedom. Moscow received almost daily reports of American military preparations.

In March 1962, at a meeting in the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU, according to the recollections of the outstanding Soviet diplomat and intelligence officer Alexander Alekseev (Shitov), ​​Khrushchev asked him how Fidel would react to the proposal to install our missiles in Cuba. "We," Khrushchev said, "must find such effective remedy intimidation that would deter the Americans from this risky step, because our speeches at the UN in defense of Cuba are clearly not enough<… >Since the Americans have already surrounded the Soviet Union with their military bases and missile installations for various purposes, we must pay them in their own coin, give them a taste of their own medicine, so that they can feel for themselves what it is like to live under the gun of a nuclear weapon. Speaking of this, Khrushchev stressed the need for this operation to be carried out in strict secrecy so that the Americans would not discover the missiles before they were put on full alert.

Fidel Castro did not reject this idea. Although he was well aware that the deployment of missiles would entail a change in the strategic nuclear balance in the world between the socialist camp and the United States. The Americans had already deployed warheads in Turkey, and Khrushchev's retaliatory decision to place missiles in Cuba was a kind of "missile leveling." A specific decision on the deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba was made at a meeting of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU on May 24, 1962. And on June 10, 1962, before the July arrival of Raul Castro in Moscow, at a meeting in the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU, USSR Minister of Defense Marshal Rodion Malinovsky presented a project for an operation to transfer missiles to Cuba. It assumed the deployment of two types of ballistic missiles on the island - R-12 with a range of about 2 thousand kilometers and R-14 with a range of 4 thousand kilometers. Both types of missiles were equipped nuclear warheads with a capacity of one megaton.

The text of the agreement on the supply of missiles was handed over to Fidel Castro on August 13 by the USSR ambassador to Cuba, Alexander Alekseev. Fidel immediately signed it and sent with him Che Guevara and the chairman of the United Revolutionary Organizations, Emilio Aragones, to Moscow, allegedly to discuss "actual economic issues". Nikita Khrushchev received the Cuban delegation on August 30, 1962 at his dacha in the Crimea. But, having accepted the agreement from the hands of Che, he did not even bother to sign it. Thus, this historic agreement remained formalized without the signature of one of the parties.

By that time, Soviet preparations for sending people and equipment to the island had already begun and were irreversible.

The captains did not know about the purpose of the mission

Operation "Anadyr" for the transfer of people and equipment across the seas and oceans from the USSR to Cuba is inscribed in golden letters in the annals of world military art. Such a jewelry operation, carried out under the nose of a super-powerful enemy with his exemplary tracking systems at that time, world history does not know and did not know before.

Equipment and personnel were delivered to six different ports of the Soviet Union, in the Baltic, Black and Barents Seas, allocating 85 ships for the transfer, which made a total of 183 flights. Soviet sailors were convinced that they were going to northern latitudes. For the purpose of secrecy, camouflage robes and skis were loaded onto the ships in order to create the illusion of a "sailing to the North" and thereby exclude any possibility of information leakage. The captains of the ships had the appropriate packages, which had to be opened in the presence of the political officer only after passing through the Strait of Gibraltar. What can we say about ordinary sailors, even if the captains of the ships did not know where they were sailing and what they were carrying in the holds. Their astonishment knew no bounds when, after opening the package after Gibraltar, they read: "Keep a course for Cuba and avoid conflict with NATO ships." For camouflage, the military, who, naturally, could not be kept in the holds for the entire trip, went out on deck in civilian clothes.

The general plan of Moscow was to deploy in Cuba a Group of Soviet Forces consisting of military formations and parts of the Rocket Forces, Air Force, Air Defense and Navy. As a result, more than 43 thousand people arrived in Cuba. The basis of the Group of Soviet Forces was a missile division consisting of three regiments equipped with R-12 medium-range missiles, and two regiments armed with R-14 missiles - a total of 40 missile launchers with a range of missiles from 2.5 to 4.5 thousand kilometers. Khrushchev later wrote in his "Memoirs" that "this force was enough to destroy New York, Chicago and other industrial cities, and there is nothing to say about Washington. A small village." At the same time, this division was not tasked with inflicting a preemptive nuclear strike according to the United States, it was supposed to serve as a deterrent.

Only decades later, some, until then secret, details of the Anadyr operation became known, which speak of the exceptional heroism of Soviet sailors. People were transported to Cuba in cargo compartments, the temperature in which, at the entrance to the tropics, reached more than 60 degrees. They were fed twice a day in the dark. The food spoiled. But, despite the most difficult conditions of the campaign, the sailors endured a long sea passage of 18-24 days. Upon learning of this, US President Kennedy said: "If I had such soldiers, the whole world would be under my heel."

The first ships arrived in Cuba in early August 1962. One of the participants in this unprecedented operation later recalled: “The poor fellows were walking from the Black Sea in the hold of a cargo ship that had previously transported sugar from Cuba. The conditions, of course, were unsanitary: hastily knocked together multi-storey bunks in the hold, no toilets, underfoot and on teeth - leftovers granulated sugar. From the hold they released to breathe air in turn and for a very long time. a short time. At the same time, observers were posted on the sides: some watched the sea, others watched the sky. The hatches of the holds were left open. In the event of the appearance of any foreign object, the "passengers" had to quickly return to the hold. Carefully camouflaged equipment was on the upper deck. The galley was designed for cooking for several dozen people who make up the crew of the ship. Since there were much more people, they were fed, to put it mildly, not very well. Of course, there was no question of any hygiene. In general, they lay in the hold for two weeks with practically no daylight, without minimal amenities and normal food.

Slap for the White House

The Anadyr operation was the biggest failure of the American intelligence services, whose analysts kept counting how many people could be transported to Cuba by Soviet passenger ships. And they got some ridiculously small figure. They did not understand that these ships could accommodate significantly more people than for a regular flight. And the fact that people can be transported in the holds of dry cargo ships could not even occur to them.

In early August, the American intelligence agencies received information from their West German colleagues that the Soviets were increasing the number of their ships in the Baltic and Atlantic almost tenfold. And the Cubans who lived in the United States learned from their relatives who were in Cuba about the importation of "strange Soviet cargo" to the island. However, until the beginning of October, the Americans simply "passed this information past their ears."

Hiding the obvious for Moscow and Havana would mean even greater American interest in sending cargo to Cuba and, most importantly, in their contents. Therefore, on September 3, 1962, in a joint Soviet-Cuban communiqué on the stay in the Soviet Union of the Cuban delegation consisting of Che Guevara and E. Aragones, it was noted that "the Soviet government met the request of the Cuban government to provide Cuba with arms assistance." The communiqué said that these weapons and military equipment intended solely for defense purposes.

A list of official losses of Soviet citizens from August 1, 1962 to August 16, 1964 has been published. There are 64 names in the mournful register

The fact that the USSR delivered missiles to Cuba was an absolutely legal matter and permitted by international law. Despite this, the American press published a number of critical articles about the "preparations in Cuba." On September 4, US President John F. Kennedy announced that the United States would not tolerate the deployment of surface-to-surface strategic missiles and other types of offensive weapons in Cuba. On September 25, 1962, Fidel Castro announced that the Soviet Union intended to establish a base in Cuba for its fishing fleet. At first, the CIA did believe that a large fishing village was being built in Cuba. True, later Langley began to suspect that, under his guise, the Soviet Union was actually creating a large shipyard and a base for Soviet submarines. American intelligence surveillance of Cuba was strengthened, the number of reconnaissance flights of U-2 aircraft, which continuously photographed the territory of the island, increased significantly. It soon became obvious to the Americans that the Soviet Union was building launch pads for anti-aircraft guided missiles (SAMs) in Cuba. They were created in the USSR several years ago in Grushin's highly classified design bureau. With their help, in 1960, an American U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, piloted by pilot Powers, was shot down.

The hawks were for hitting Cuba

On October 2, 1962, John F. Kennedy orders the Pentagon to put the US military on alert. It became clear to Cuban and Soviet leaders that it was necessary to accelerate the construction of facilities on the island.

Here, bad weather played into the hands of Havana and Moscow, concerned about the speedy completion of ground work. Due to heavy cloud cover in early October, U-2 flights, suspended for six weeks by that time, did not begin until 9 October. What they saw on October 10 amazed the Americans. The photographic reconnaissance data showed the presence of good highways where until recently there was a desert area, as well as huge tractors that did not fit in the narrow country roads in Cuba.

Then John Kennedy gave the order to activate photo reconnaissance. At that moment, another typhoon hit Cuba. And new pictures from a spy plane loitering at an extremely low altitude of 130 meters were taken only on the night of October 14, 1962 in the San Cristobal area in the province of Pinar del Rio. It took days to process them. U-2 discovered and photographed the starting positions of the Soviet missile forces. Hundreds of photographs testified that not just anti-aircraft missiles, but ground-to-ground missiles had already been installed in Cuba.

On October 16, presidential adviser McGeorge Bundy reported to Kennedy on the results of the overflight of Cuban territory. What John F. Kennedy saw fundamentally contradicted Khrushchev's promises to supply Cuba with only defensive weapons. The missiles discovered by the spy plane were capable of wiping out several major American cities. On the same day, Kennedy gathered in his office the so-called working group on the Cuban question, which included senior officials from the State Department, the CIA and the Department of Defense. It was a historic meeting at which the "hawks" put pressure on the US President in every possible way, inclining him to an immediate strike on Cuba.

General Nikolai Leonov recalled how then Pentagon chief Robert McNamara told him at a conference in Moscow in 2002 that the majority in the US political elite in October 1962 insisted on a strike on Cuba. He even clarified that 70 percent of the people from the then US administration held a similar point of view. Fortunately for world history, the minority view prevailed, which was held by McNamara himself and President Kennedy. "We must pay tribute to the courage and courage of John F. Kennedy, who found a difficult opportunity to compromise in defiance of the vast majority of his entourage and showed amazing political wisdom," Nikolai Leonov told the author of these lines.

There were only a few days left before the climax of the Caribbean crisis, which RG will tell about ...

Nikolai Leonov, retired lieutenant general of state security, author of biographies of Fidel and Raul Castro:

The CIA frankly missed the transfer of such a large number people and weapons from one hemisphere to another, and in close proximity to the shores of the United States. Move secretly forty thousand army, great amount military equipment - aviation, armored forces and, of course, the missiles themselves - such an operation, in my opinion, is a model of staff activity. As well as a classic example of enemy disinformation and disguise. Operation "Anadyr" was designed and carried out in such a way that the mosquito would not undermine the nose. Already during its implementation, it was necessary to make urgent and original decisions. For example, rockets, already transported on the island itself, simply did not fit into the narrow Cuban rural roads. And they had to expand.

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On October 15, 1962, an American U2 spy plane discovered parts of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. This marked the beginning of the Caribbean Crisis, during which the world was on the verge of the 3rd World War.

US President John F. Kennedy speaks to reporters during a televised address to the nation about the blockade of Cuba, and his warning to the Soviet Union, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, October 24, 1962 in Washington, DC.

Photographs of the secret missile base in San Cristobal, Cuba, with details various parts base, removed in October 1962.


President John F. Kennedy met with Air Force Major General Richard Heyser, left, and Air Force Chief of Staff General Curtis LeMay, center, at the White House in Washington to discuss US military action during the Cuban Missile Crisis.


Map of Cuba, with notes by US President John F. Kennedy, in the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston, Massachusetts. Crosses mark Soviet missile bases.


Photograph of a Soviet missile base in Cuba, which was used as evidence during a meeting of the UN Security Council, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, October 24, 1962.


President John F. Kennedy announces to the American people, via television and radio, a naval blockade of Cuba, October 22, 1962.


US Ambassador to the United Nations, E. Stevenson, second from right, displays photographs of Soviet missile bases during an emergency session of the UN Security Council at United Nations Headquarters in New York, October 25, 1962.


(From left to right) Soviet Representative to the UN A. Zorin, Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, Mario Garcia-Inchaustegui, and US Representative E. Stevenson.


Cuban President Fidel Castro responded to President Kennedy's naval blockade on Cuban radio and television by ordering Cuban air defenses to shoot down spy planes. October 23, 1962.


US President John F. Kennedy signs executive order authorizing the use of military force while securing a naval blockade of Cuba. October 23, 1962


Women for Peace picketers hold banners outside the United Nations headquarters in New York, October 23, 1962.


Two soldiers set up a machine gun position on a beach in Key West, Florida on October 27, 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis.


New Yorkers line up to buy newspapers in October 1962.


Soviet F-class submarine on the surface near the Cuban coast, October 25, 1962.


Members of the Organization for Nuclear Disarmament during a protest against US actions during the Cuban Missile Crisis, October 28, 1962 in London, England.


anti-aircraft missiles US Army stationed in the Strait of Florida at Key West, Florida on October 27, 1962.


Photograph taken November 1, 1962, showing rockets being removed from the Sagua La Grande base, Cuba.


President John F. Kennedy addresses the nation on the status of the Cuban Missile Crisis as he tells the American people that Soviet missile bases in Cuba are being withdrawn, November 2, 1962.


Six missiles are being loaded onto soviet ship at the port of Casilda Cuba, November 6, 1962. Notice the shadow in the lower right corner is from an American spy plane.


P2V Neptune US patrol aircraft escorting a Soviet cargo ship during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.


The Soviet ship Kasimov takes out 15 Soviet missiles from Cuba after they are removed.


A Soviet submarine off the coast of Cuba escorts the withdrawal of Soviet missiles from Cuba in accordance with the US-Soviet agreement, November 10, 1962.


An American field hospital deployed at Opa Loca Airport, a former naval airfield in Miami, Florida, in November 1962


American troops in Florida, November 1962.


The US missile ship Dahlgren escorts the Soviet missile-removing ship Leninsky Komsomol, which left the port of Casilda, Cuba, November 10, 1962.