Learn about the 13-day standoff in October 1962 between the U.S. and the Soviet Union over nuclear-armed missiles in Cuba. Find out how Kennedy and Khrushchev avoided a nuclear war and reached a deal to end the crisis.

The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (Spanish: Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (Russian: Карибский кризис, romanized: Karibskiy krizis), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of nuclear missiles in Italy and ...

Cuban missile crisis, major confrontation at the height of the Cold War that brought the United States and the Soviet Union to the brink of a shooting war in October 1962 over the presence of Soviet nuclear-armed missiles in Cuba.

Timeline of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Monday, October 15. A U-2 reconnaissance aircraft reveals several SS-4 nuclear missiles in Cuba. Tuesday, October 16. Crisis begins: President Kennedy convenes his Executive Committee to consider America's options. Wednesday, October 17.

A summary of the direct and dangerous confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union over nuclear missiles in Cuba. Learn about the key events, decisions, and communications that led to the resolution of the crisis.