Presidential Doctrine of John F. Kennedy

Presidential Doctrine of John F. Kennedy

Abstract

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Shortly after his inauguration, Kennedy permitted a band of Cuban exiles, already armed and trained, to invade their homeland. The attempt to overthrow the regime of Fidel Castro was a failure. Soon thereafter, the Soviet Union renewed its campaign against West Berlin. Kennedy replied by reinforcing the Berlin garrison and increasing the Nation’s military strength, including new efforts in outer space. Confronted by this reaction, Moscow, after the erection of the Berlin Wall, relaxed its pressure in central Europe.

The Russians now sought to install nuclear missiles in Cuba. When this was discovered by air reconnaissance in October 1962, Kennedy imposed quarantine on all offensive weapons bound for Cuba. While the world trembled on the brink of nuclear war, the Russians backed down and agreed to take the missiles away. The American response to the Cuban crisis evidently persuaded Moscow of the futility of nuclear blackmail.

Presidential Doctrine of John F. Kennedy

One of the greatest challenges for President John F. Kennedy, was the Cuban Missile Crisis that began in October of 1962. This crisis began one year after the failed invasion of the CIA in Cuba. The Bay of Pigs fiasco had given Khrushchev the impression that the U.S. president was naive and inexperienced (Sage, 2011). This impression was the more likely cause, which fueled the Soviet’s in using Cuba as a base to build a launch pad for their nuclear missi……………….

The Kennedy doctrine in terms of the Cold War is referred to as “Flexible Response” (Gaddis, 1982). He considered himself a “Cold Warrior” and had been critical of Eisenhower’s foreign policy. Instead, he intended to “take a hard line with communism” (Sage, 2011). Kennedy’s “Flexible Response” also emphasized, that using all possible means at our nation’s disposal, to deal with any or all foreign threats. President Kennedy wanted to deter and even avoid war in general, and especially nuclear war.

The placement of nuclear missiles on the communist island just ninety miles from the state of Florida, posed a very real threat to all American citizens. Khrushchev put Kennedy into a position that demanded a strong and clear response that could have ultimately result in WWIII and the complete destruction of millions of people. His predecessor, Eisenhower, favored nuclear weapons over conventional forces because they “pack more bang for the buck” (Gaddis, 1982); had Eisenhower been president at the time, we may not even be in existence today. On the other hand, the Kennedy doctrine of “Flexible Response” required him to explore other means, such as diplomacy, before even resorting to nuclear war as an alternative.

Khrushchev eventually sent a message to President Kennedy offering to negotiate, in order to find a way to end this standoff. Through various methods of communication the two leaders came to an agreement. The agreem……………………………..

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