As Russian troops continue their atrocities on Ukrainian soil, Vladimir Putin raises alerts to the maximum not only in Europe, but throughout the world. Last week the head of the Kremlin said that Russia could send long-range missiles to other countries and He once again threatened to use a nuclear weapon. Hours later, Cuba announced that Russian warships will arrive in Havana next week. This maneuver by Moscow quickly drew comparisons with the Missile Crisis of 1962 that almost left the planet on the brink of an atomic conflict.
In this context of growing tension, the United States and the United Kingdom accused Putin of bringing the West closer to its most dangerous nuclear escalation since that crisis.
The Russian ships will arrive under the pretext of carrying out joint naval exercises with the Cuban navy, an action that according to experts imitates historical movements that in their time triggered global alarms. Security specialists have expressed concern about the possible implications of this arrival on the stability of the region and relations between Washington and Moscow.
Last Thursday Joe Biden He made it clear that he is closely watching Putin and how he might react as Ukraine’s military makes progress against the Russian invaders.
“For the first time since the Cuban Missile Crisis, we have a direct threat with the use of nuclear weapons, if in fact things continue on the path they have taken,” the president said at a campaign event in New York. And he added: “We have not faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis.”
According to the US president, Putin “is not joking when he talks about the potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons, because his military, you could say, has significantly poor results.”
“I don’t think there is such a thing as the ability to easily (use) a tactical nuclear weapon and not end up in Armageddon,” he added.
In early May, before Putin’s recent threats and the deployment of ships to Cuba, the British prime minister Rishi Sunak He had already warned that Putin brought the West closer to the most dangerous nuclear escalation since the Missile Crisis. “Putin’s recklessness has brought us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any time since the Cuban Missile Crisis.”
In statements to local media, the Cuban regime affirmed that the visit of the Russian ships is part of a previously established military cooperation agreement and does not represent a threat to regional security. The ships that make up the Russian naval detachment are, according to the statement from the Cuban authorities, the frigate Gorshkov, the nuclear-powered submarine Kazan, the fleet oil tanker Pashin and the rescue tug Nikolai Chiker.
However, Neighboring countries and international organizations continue to closely monitor the situationaware of the historical impact that the foreign military presence had on the island.
Faced with the growing Russian threat, the six NATO countries bordering Russia (Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland) They agreed last month create a “drone wall” which will allow protection from provocations on its borders with the help of unmanned aerial vehicles.
“This is something completely new: a drone border from Norway to Poland, the goal of which would be to protect our border with the help of drones and other technologies,” explained the Lithuanian Interior Minister. Agnè Bilotaitè.
For the so-called “drone wall,” participating states would use drones to monitor the border section, as well as anti-drone systems that would stop drones used for smuggling and provocations from hostile countries, such as Russia or Belarus.
Belarus, Moscow’s main ally, is also a focus of concern in this context of growing concern. In a move that has resonated strongly internationally, last March Russian troops transferred tactical nuclear weapons to Belarusian soil, placing these dangerous arsenals significantly closer to NATO territory. This deployment, confirmed by senior Western officials to Foreign Policyis interpreted as a clear political signal from Putin, expanding the military threat to the alliance amid the prolonged conflict in Ukraine.
The world has been under the nuclear shadow since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Putin has not eliminated the possibility of using tactical nuclear weapons of low performance, considering this option in the face of setbacks on the battlefield. This threat has grown in recent days after kyiv was authorized to use Western weapons in Russian territory. In this regard, Putin warned Germany that the use of its weapons by Ukraine to attack targets in Russia would be a “dangerous step.”
Missile Crisis, the event that almost led to a nuclear war
On October 16, 1962, what became known as the “Missile Crisis” began between the United States and the Soviet Union. For 13 days in October, the world was on the brink of a nuclear conflict due to the installation of Soviet missiles in Cuba, pointing at North American soil.
That critical situation ended on October 29 after an agreement in which the USSR withdrew its missiles and Washington did the same with its missiles in Turkey.
The installation of missiles in Cuba, under the regime of Fidel Castro, was a response to the failed invasion of Playa Girón in April 1961, carried out by anti-Castro forces with American support. According to the CIA, The missiles initially identified as SAM (Surface-to-Air Missile) turned out to be MRBM (Medium-Range Ballistic Missile), capable of carrying nuclear warheads and reaching up to three thousand kilometers.
The discovery of missiles in Cuba began in August 1962 using U-2 spy planes. These flights revealed the existence of missiles and other suspicious installations. On October 14, 1962, a flight confirmed the presence of the MRBMs, leading to a series of emergency meetings at the White House.
During the following weeks, various options were considered: from the invasion of Cuba to a massive air attack. The administration of John F. Kennedy He finally opted for a naval blockade to prevent the arrival of new weapons to Cuba, a measure that escalated tension between the two superpowers.
On October 27, the crisis reached its most critical point when an American U-2 was shot down over Cuba. In a risky move, Kennedy decided to respond to only one of the two letters sent by the Soviet premier, Nikita Khrushchevin which he offered to remove the missiles in exchange for a promise not to invade Cuba.
The risk of direct confrontation was palpable. As the crisis escalated, both superpowers sought a diplomatic solution to avoid disaster. The intervention of the former ambassador Llewellyn Thompson and secret negotiations eventually led Khrushev to agree to dismantle the missiles in Cuba in exchange for Kennedy’s promise not to invade the island. Also, United States. promised to secretly remove Jupiter missiles from Türkiye.
The Missile Crisis marked a high point in the Cold War, which continued until 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR. The outcome of the crisis, for its part, had important consequences: Kennedy was assassinated just over a year later and Khrushchev was removed from office two years later. However, the agreement reached during those critical 13 days remained and prevented a global nuclear war.
