The Bay of Pigs incident

• 1. Eisenhower agreed a plan with the CIA to overthrow Castro, which Kennedy then inherited when he became President
• 2. Eisenhower’s and the CIA’s plan was for a group of Cuban exiles to be trained to invade Cuba, and then start an anti-Castro revolution and put a pro-US government in charge
• 3. On 17 April 1961, around 1,400 Cuban exiles landed on the ’Bay of Pigs’ in Cuba
• 4. However, Castro's government found out about the invasion, and around 20,000 soldiers were

  waiting for the exiles
• 5. The USA couldn't send American military aid to help the exiles
• 6. Ordinary Cubans did not rush to help the exiles
• 7. Castro showed evidence of the Cuban victory to the world's media and the invasion had failed
• Consequently, it was a public humiliation for the USA
• Consequently, it was very embarrassing for Kennedy who had just become President
• Consequently, it became one of the reason Khrushchev felt he could re-issue the Berlin Ultimatum at the Vienna Summit
• Consequently, the failure of the Cuban people to rise against Castro allowed Khrushchev to argue communism was popular
• Consequently, Castro declared himself to be a communist
• Consequently, there became stronger relations between the USSR and Cuba, and in September 1961, Khrushchev publicly announced he would send arms to Cuba