The Cuban Crisis and Cold War
According to Locke and Wright (2019), the major event contributing to the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States was the Cuban Crisis of 1962. After the Cuban revolution, the influence of the Soviet Union extended near the US borders. Nikita Khrushchev, the then-premier of the Soviet sought to entrench communism across the US. The Soviet Union was emboldened following the Cuban Revolution, which led to the installation of Fidel Castro, who was pro-communism: The Cuban Crisis and Cold War.
Fidel allowed the Soviet Union to move missiles into Cuba, threatening the safety of the US. Missiles from Cuba would hit the Eastern US within minutes upon launch from Cuba. Feeling threatened, the US was preparing to hit Cuba to eliminate the threat through regime change or military intervention in Cuba.
To that end, the US maintained a defensive military establishment after the Second World War instead of dismantling its military. This was after the realization that communism was spreading quickly, and it was almost impossible to stop it, hence the need to maintain a defensive strategy. The US felt even more threatened following China’s entry into the fray. China was pro-communism and had already attained influence across multiple countries across Asia (Locke & Wright, 2019). The combined threat of the Soviet Union and China led to the US Army enhancing its armory in preparation for a potential war.
Overall, America’s war strategy was consumed by the desire to thwart Russian influence. In particular, the US’s foreign policy officials were concerned by the rise of pro-communism independence movements. On the other hand, the Soviet Union sought to stamp its authority by supporting independence liberation movements harboring anti-American sentiment. Subsequently, the USSR and the US engaged in multiple proxy wars in what came to be known as the Cold War.
References
Locke, J., & Wright, B. (2019). The American Yawp. https://www.americanyawp.com/text/wp-content/uploads/yawp_v2_open_pdf.pdf
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Question 
Check-in 4
Provide a brief response to the following question:
- In your view what event before 1970 played the largest role in the Cold War, and why?
The Cuban Crisis and Cold War