This documentary movie describes the events, which have gone down in history as the tensest moment of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States of America. In spite of the fact that the Cuban Missile Crises have been resolved without a direct armed encounter, the events of those days will always remind humanity of a real possibility of an apocalypse. Fortunately, the common sense of the leaders of the two superpowers has prevailed over emotions and political ambitions, and the war has not begun.
However, history has a tendency for repetition, and the present events have a definite resemblance with the cold war arms race. It seems to me that politicians all over the world, while making any important decision should remember the lessons obtained from the Cuban Missile Crises. This movie is an obvious example of the shallow foreign policy of both states.
In 1962, John Kennedy announced that the Soviet Union had deployed their nuclear-armed missiles on Cuba. The deployment of these missiles met the interests of Castro and Khrushchev. The Cuban government, in such a way, obtained the additional weapon against the USA, while the USSR reduced the flight-in time of their missiles to the American territory. Formally, the deployment of the Soviet missiles on Cuba did not contradict the international laws.
However, because of the physical proximity of Cuba, the danger to the USA was very serious. Those missiles were able to destroy such cities as New York, Chicago, and Washington. When the American government found out about the stationing of the Soviet missiles, Khrushchev did not recognize the fact of their presence. Later on, after the naval blockade of Cuba implemented by the USA, the Soviet leader had to admit the obvious things.
In such a way, the destiny of humanity depended upon the leaders of three states: Khrushchev, Kennedy, and Castro. While depicting those events, the movie shows both the role of the political figures as well as ordinary persons in this conflict. For instance, during the description of the events of the Black Saturday, the movie represents the interview of the Soviet soldier who has shot down an American scout aircraft. The participation of the eyewitnesses of this crisis makes the movie rather vivid and more effective than just a chronological representation of the historical events.
After the Black Saturday, the President of the USA made a decision to attack the island with the Soviet military bases and missiles. According to the plan, more than one hundred warplanes had to bomb Cuba since the first days of the invasion. The world was on the brink of nuclear war. However, the next day the government of the Soviet Union decided to accept concession. They agreed to remove their missiles from Cuba in return for Kennedys promise to lift the blockade of the island and not to attack it in the future. In such a way, the Cuban Missile Crisis ended.
Nowadays, it is difficult to imagine the emotions of people who have realized that the danger of nuclear war has passed. Common sense has won. “Fear saved the civilization – Khrushchevs fear and Kennedys fear. Both of them experienced this existential, basic, primal fear of the nuclear war” (Cuban Missile Crisis: Three Men Go to War).
To my mind, in spite of the peaceful reconciliation of this crisis, these events have shown the worthlessness of such an international organization as the UN. The destiny of the planet was in the hands of three persons, and all humanity was in the role of a forceless observer.
Works Cited
Cuban Missile Crisis: Three Men Go to War. Ex. Prod. John Murray. Online video clip. PBS Video. 2012. Web.