Nixon e la crisi di Cienfuegos: Cuba, autunno 1970

Abstract

Compared to the missile crisis of 1962 faced by President Kennedy, the “crisis” derived from the construction of a Soviet base for nuclear submarines in Cienfuegos Bay, on the southern coast of Cuba, is far less known. It dates back to the late summer-autumn of 1970, as the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union were moving tentatively toward what became the détente of the 1970s. There was no public clash or crisis, and the issue was managed by “quiet diplomacy”, but the Soviet challenge was intentionally based on political and strategic reasons. This second crisis arose from a matter left unsolved in 1962 and its resolution in October 1970 was more apparent than real. The same issue would have “resurfaced” for some months, at least until 1972.