Cuban Missile Crisis & Soviet Afghanistan War

Cuban Missile Crisis

Tension between USA and USSR over missile bases in Cuba, resolved peacefully.

Fidel Castro

Cuban leader who turned communist, leading to USSR alliance.

Bay of Pigs

Failed CIA invasion of Cuba, boosting Castro's image.

ExComm

National Security Council committee advising Kennedy during the crisis.

Naval Blockade

Kennedy's chosen action to contain the Cuban missile threat.

Detente

Period of improved relations between superpowers in the 1970s.

Operation Cyclone

US support to Afghan Mujahideen against Soviet invasion.

Mujahideen

Afghan fighters aided by the US against Soviet forces.

Mikhail Gorbachev

Soviet leader who realized USSR couldn't win in Afghanistan.

Partial Test Ban Treaty

Agreement to limit nuclear testing, signed in 1953.

Afghanistan Invasion

Soviet forces invaded in 1979, facing Mujahideen resistance.

International Terrorism

Result of Mujahideen's actions and global impact of the war.

Arms Reduction Talks

Negotiations to reduce nuclear weapons, affected by the war.

Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND)

Peace group protesting US nuclear missiles in Europe.

Fundamentalist Groups

Extremist organizations like Mujahideen emerging post-war.

Nuclear Missiles in Europe

US deployment leading to tensions and protests.

Los Angeles Olympics Boycott

USSR's response to US actions by boycotting the 1984 Olympics.

US-Soviet Relations

Impacted by the war and resulting in various consequences.

Cuban Dictator Fulgencio Batista

Overthrown by Fidel Castro in 1959, leading to US-Cuba tensions.

USSR Missile Bases in Cuba

Established in 1962, leading to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Kennedy's Decision

Chose naval blockade over other aggressive options during the crisis.

US Withdrawal from Arms Reduction Talks

Jimmy Carter's response to the Soviet war in Afghanistan.

Soviet Troop Withdrawal from Afghanistan

Completed by 1989 after realizing the futility of the war.