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Placement of Jupiter missiles in Turkey
The United States concluded an agreement with NATO member Turkey on October 28 in order to place missiles in Turkey targeting the Soviet Union. -
USSR and Cuba establish diplomatic relations
The Soviet Union provided diplomatic recognition of the new Cuban government. -
Cuba openly aligns with USSR
Cuba openly aligned itself with Moscow after the Soviet government established trade relations and provided an economic credit to Havana. -
Jupiter missiles placed in Turkey
The Jupiter nuclear missiles were officially deployed in Turkey. -
Organization of American States (OAS) expels Cuba
At the OAS’s eighth meeting of ministers of foreign affairs, the United States led the other Western Hemispheric countries in a vote to eject Cuba from the OAS. -
US economic, commercial, and financial embargo of Cuba proclaimed
The United States announced a near-complete economic embargo of Cuba. Proclamation 3447: Embargo on all trade with Cuba -
Kennedy informed that US has photographic evidence of MRBM buildup
On the morning of October 16, Kennedy was informed by his National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy of the nuclear missile sites. Kennedy assembled an Executive Committee of the National Security Council, or “ExComm” to work on the crisis. Most members of the ExComm favored a military strike against the sites. Over time Kennedy decided to commit to a step before military attack: a blockade of Cuba to prevent the further Soviet supply of missiles. -
Soviet ships reverse course due to blockade
With the blockade in place, Soviet ships traveling to Cuba held or reversed course. The US subsequently allowed a few ships not carrying nuclear weapons to pass the blockade line. -
Khrushchev private letter says necessity for the Soviet deployment would disappear if the U.S. will pledge not to invade Cuba
Premier Khrushchev sent a private letter to Kennedy stating his willingness to remove the nuclear missiles from Cuba in exchange for an American pledge never to invade Cuba. -
Public Khrushchev letter demanding Turkish missiles withdrawal
After the previous private letter, Khrushchev issued a public demand: the Soviet Union would withdraw the missiles from Cuba if the US pledged to never invade Cuba and agreed to withdraw its missiles from Turkey lest it cast the United States as weak in the face of Soviet bellicosity. -
Khrushchev publicly announces that the USSR will withdraw its missiles from Cuba
The Soviet government announced they had accepted the American offer to never invade Cuba in exchange for removing the nuclear weapons from Cuba. The Soviets did not mention the secret deal that the Americans would also remove their missiles from Turkey. -
Disassembled missiles leave Cuba
The Soviet Union removed their nuclear missiles from Cuba. -
US ends blockade
With the Soviet missiles out of Cuba, the United States ended its blockade of Cuba. -
Last Jupiter missile leaves Turkey
The last Jupiter missile was removed from Turkey as per the secret agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union.