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The United States Finds Proof
A US U-2 plane captured photographic proof of the Soviet's building missile bases in Cuba. This marked the start of the Cuban missile crisis. Later on October 23 a low level photograph was taken which showed the construction better than the first photographs. -
The President is Notified
The Secretary of Defense was notified at midnight but President John F. Kennedy was not notified of the Soviet missiles that were being constructed in Cuba until 6:30 that morning. The picture shows the President and Secretary of Defense at a meeting on October 15, 1962. -
Kennedy Meets with Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs
Kennedy met with the Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andrei Gromyko on October 18, 1962. Andrei Gromyko denied that the missiles were for offensive purposes and said that they were only for defensive purposes. -
The Final Decision
President Kennedy and his advisors had to decide between using an airstrike to destroy the missiles and implementing a naval blockade to prevent Soviet ships from continuing construction on the missiles. -
President Kennedy Notifies the Public
President Kennedy notified the American people at 7:00pm on October 22 about the missiles that were being constructed in Cuba. He made the announcement on all the major television channels that were nation-wide. -
Kennedy's Naval Blockade Fails
As the Soviets approached the naval blockade they would not communicate with the Americans. This resulted in the American's firing off a warning shot, but instead of going above the ship the shot hit the ship and badly damaged it. -
Soviet missiles in Cuba are Operational
The Soviets had completed some of their missiles and are threatening the United States with an attack. The size of the missiles that were operational is shown on the left. -
US Strikes First
The US launched 5 warning missiles from Turkey that hit Moscow at 1:00pm. The US prepared for a counter attack but nothing happened except for a few threats from the Soviets. -
The Soviets get Revenge
All the Soviet missiles in Cuba become operational and are fired towards the US at 6:00pm on October 27, 1962. The range of the missiles is shown on the left but they were only directed at the US. Any area around the missiles will also be inhabitable due to the spread of the radiation in the air. -
The Soviets get What they Wanted
The US had been destroyed and Canada had also experienced a lot of radiation sickness. This wiped out the entire US population and 20 million Canadians. The Soviets now controlled Canada and the US.
