Timeline History of Cuba & US Relations

Spring 2013Mrs. DentChapter 3

American Interest In Cuba

• By the end of the 19th century, Spain had lost most of its colonies– Retained Philippines & Guam in Pacific– Retained Cuba & Puerto Rico in Caribbean

• US had interest in Cuba – only 90 miles south of Florida

• US tried to buy Cuba, Spanish responded they’d rather see Cuba sunk in the ocean…

Cuba’s War for Independence

• Cubans rebelled against Spain between 1868-1878

• Cuban revolt wasn’t successful• 1886 – Cubans DID force Spain to

abolish slavery• American capitalists began

investing millions of dollars in large sugar cane plantations on the island

Cuba’s 2nd War for Independence

• Anti-Spanish sentiment in Cuba erupted into 2nd war for independence

• Jose Marti – Cuban poet and journalist in exile in NY launched revolution in 1895

• Active guerrilla campaign and deliberately destroyed property, especially American owned sugar mills and plantations

• Hoped that provoking US would cause US to intervene and help rebels achieve a free Cuba

Spanish Response

• 1896 – Spain sent General Valeriano Weyler to Cuba to restore order

• Weyler tried to crush rebellion by herding entire rural population of central & western Cuba into concentration camps

• 300,000 Cubans in camp, thousands died from hunger and disease

De Lome Letter

• US President McKinley tried diplomatic means to resolve the crisis – Spain recalled General Weyler, modified concentration camp policy, offered Cuba limited self-government

• Feb. 1898 – New York Journal published private letter written by Enrique Dupuy de Lome, the Spanish minister to the US – criticized President McKinley calling him “weak” and “bidder for admiration of crowd”

• Embarrassed Spanish government apologized and de Lome resigned

• Americans angry over insult to President McKinley

U.S.S. Maine• Prez McKinley ordered U.S.S. Maine to Cuba to bring home

American citizens in danger from fighting and protect American property

• Feb. 15, 1898 – ship blew up in the harbor of Havana – over 260 men killed

• No one knew WHY ship exploded, but American newspapers claimed Spanish blew up ship

• “Remember the Maine” became rally cry for US intervention in Cuba

• April 20 – US declared war on Spain

Spanish-American War

• Naval blockade of Cuba• June 1898 – American forces landed in Cuba and

converged on port city of Santiago• Army of 17,000, including Rough Riders

(Theodore Roosevelt – future US president)• July 1 – most famous land battle, dramatic uphill

charge by Rough Riders cleared way for infantry attack on San Juan Hill

• July 3 – naval battle destroyed Spanish fleet

Conclusion of Spanish-American War

• August 12 – US and Spain signed armistice (cease fire agreement)

• 15 week war of actual fighting• December 10 – US and Spain met

in Paris to agree on treaty• Spain freed Cuba• Spain turned over Guam and Puerto Rico to US• Spain sold Philippines to US for $20 million

Cuba after the War• Cuba was occupied by American troops when war ended• Jose Marti feared US would replace Spain and dominate

Cuban politics• Fears realized when same officials who served Spain

remained in office• Cubans who protested were imprisoned or exiled• However, American military provided food and clothing

for thousands, helped farmers put land back into cultivation, organized elementary schools, helped eliminate yellow fever through improved sanitation and medical research

Platt Amendment• 1900 – newly formed Cuban government wrote constitution• 1901 – US insisted Cuba add to constitution several provisions, Platt

Amendment– Cuba could not make treaties that might limit its independence or permit

a foreign power to control any part of its territory– US reserved right to intervene in Cuba– Cuba was not to go into debt– US could buy or lease land on the island for naval stations and refueling

stations• US made it clear that army would not withdraw until Cuba adopted

Amendment, Cubans protested• 1903 – Platt Amendment became treaty between Cuba and US, in effect for 31

years• Cuba became a US protectorate (a country whose affairs are partially

controlled by a stronger power)• US rationale was to protect American businesses that had invested in island’s

sugar, tobacco, mining industries, railroads, and public utilities

1900-1950

• Cuba became one of most prosperous nations in this region

• Popular tourist spot for Americans, ferry service from FL

• Series of military dictatorships• Fulgencio Batiste – efficient leader in 1930s-40s,

again in 50s but became corrupt (canceled elections, declared himself President)

Introducing Fidel Castro

• Son of a wealthy planter from eastern province• Went to University of Havana studied politics• Became a lawyer and then candidate for Cuban

Congress in 1952• In his 30s became revolutionary and launched

invasions in 1956 encouraged Cubans to take up arms and overthrow government when Batiste canceled elections

1959 – The Cuban Revolution• US had supported Batiste because he kept order but as he

became more corrupt, the US stopped sending military supplies

• Batiste accused F. Castro of communist influence• F. Castro didn’t talk about communism or radical

economic theories but promised to restore constitution and hold free elections

• F. Castro and his guerrilla army overthrew Batiste (he was exiled to Dominican Republic)

• F. Castro takes charge• Brother Raul Castro as deputy• Ernesto “Che” Guevara is 3rd in command (doctor from

Argentina) – appointed to several key posts in banking and industry where he nationalized businesses, has become a symbol of rebellion worldwide

1960 – Nationalized Businesses

• Nationalized most businesses, including American companies (Colgate-Palmolive soap factory and telephone companies) without compensation

• Seized farms and homes without compensation• Hundreds of F. Castro’s political opponents were

executed without fair trials• US broke diplomatic relations and imposed an

economic embargo

1961 – Bay of Pigs

• Soviets saw Cuba as a key strategic asset in America’s backyard, and Soviets supported Cuba with money and weapons

• CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) planned to secretly train a small number of anti-Castro exiles for a guerilla insurrections (similar to how Castro gained power from Batiste!) to oust F. Castro

• CIA underestimated Castro’s support and were OVER-confident of the exiles’ military capabilities

• Word leaked and early April, The New York Times prepared a front page article

1961 – Bay of Pigscontinued

• April 15 – disguised old American B-26 bombers flew over Cuba to knock out Castro’s tiny air force, but Castro hid his fighter planes and put old planes on runways as decoys, attack killed civilians

• April 16 – Public funeral for victims, F. Castro announced he was a communist and strengthens ties with the Soviet Union

• April 17, 1961 – 1,500 men landed in southern coast swamp of Bay of Pigs

• President Kennedy was worried that the invasion would expose US involvement, so he withheld air and naval support that he’d promised the exiles

• F. Castro soldiers captured or killed almost all the exiles within 3 days• Embarrassing and disastrous defeat for the US and President Kennedy• Huge propaganda victory for F. Castro

Operation Mongoose• President Kennedy still tried

to bring F. Castro down• Nov. 1961 – approved

Operation Mongoose• Series of schemes to

destabilize the Cuban government

• At least 8 attempts were made on F. Castro’s life (poison pills, exploding cigars, booby-trapped seashell, etc)

1962 – Cuban Missile Crisis• Bay of Pigs failure made Soviets “more adventurous”• Soviet Leader Nikita Khrushchev knew the US had more

nuclear weapons than the Soviet Union, and some were stationed in Turkey (less than 200 miles from Soviet border)

• Soviets secretly built missile sites in Cuba capable of firing nuclear-tipped rockets at the US to help close the “missile gap” and prevent another US invasion of Cuba

• Oct. 16 – US spy plane flying over Cuba photographed launch pads for nuclear missiles

• Soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba could hit targets 2,000 miles away within 15 minutes or less – could reach New York, Washington, and other cities in the Midwest, South, and East (not Pacific NW)

• Invoking principles of 1823 Monroe Doctrine (US would respond forcefully to any foreign interference in North or South America) – two options– Attack Cuba using air strikes to destroy missile sites,

followed by invasion to oust F. Castro– Navy blockade to keep Soviet ships from sending in any

more missiles

1962 – Cuban Missile Crisis continued• Oct. 22 – Kennedy went on TV to announce a naval blockade until

the Soviet removed missiles, showed strength without backing Soviet Union into a corner in which its only options were to give in to American demands or to retaliate using its own weapons

• High alert for 13 days and Americans woke up each morning wondering if nuclear war was about to break out, nuclear exchange could obliterate both sides (Mutually Assured Destruction – MAD)

• Oct. 26 – US raised readiness level to DEFCON 2 (Defense Condition) – only time this has happened

• Oct. 27 – Black Saturday – US Navy forced Soviet submarine to surface, sub commander given authority to launch nukes if threatened, given order to fire, but subordinate officer refused to obey, avoided war

• F. Castro played no part in intense negotiations but in a letter urged Khrushchev to launch a nuclear first strike

• Oct. 28 – Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev agreed to remove nuclear weapons

• Kennedy promised the US would not invade again, pledged to lift blockade, and remove missiles from Turkey

• Economic embargo tightened and Cuban government blames embargo rather than decades of disastrous policies on Cuba’s downfall (even though Cuba is free to trade with every other country in the world except for the US)

1980 – Mariel Boatlift• Mariel boatlift – domestic unrest prompts F.

Castro to allow anyone to leave• 125,000 Cubans head to FL before border

closed again after 6 months

1991 – Break Up of Soviet Union

• Soviet Union disintegrated• Soviet Union had contributed subsidies of up

to $6 billion a year for the past 2 decades• F. Castro loses financial lifeline and Cuba’s

economy collapses• US left as the world’s sole superpower

1999 – Venezuela Ally

• Cuba found a new ally in Hugo Chavez• He was a radical President in oil-rich

Venezuela• Chavez sold Cuba cheap oil• (Chavez died in March 2013, presidential

elections are over but are being contested – what will Cuba’s fate be?)

2006-2008 – Change of Power• F. Castro (age 82) became ill• Ceded power to brother Raul Castro (age 77) in 2006• F. Castro officially resigns in 2008 and Raul formally

takes over as Cuba’s president• Raul allowed Cuban to buy cell phones, computers,

DVD players for the first time in first few weeks as President

• Not much else has changed• Experts expect Cuba to follow China/Vietnam –

communist countries that abandon failed socialist economic policies in favor of more free market approaches while maintaining tight political party country to keep authoritarian regime in power

• Decades of political repression have left most Cubans in dire poverty, salaries are low, housing is inadequate, capital Havana is crumbling, it’s in a time warp from the 1950s

2009 – Restrictions Lifted

• President Obama lifts restrictions for Cuban-Americans who want to travel or send money to their homeland

• Hasn’t lifted trade embargo, will wait until Cuba opens its economic and political systems more

• Embargo – fierce debate– Opponents: hurt ordinary Cubans and

helped Castro brothers stay in power– Supporters: insist trade ban will help

topple Cuba’s government and transform country

2010 - Today• F. Castro admitted that Cuba’s socialist economy “doesn’t even work for us

anymore” • Cuba announced that a million government workers were to be laid off

(hope that they will open private businesses to stimulate the economy…but with what money?)

• 338,000 Cubans work for themselves• Today Cubans live off rations, cope with chronic food shortages,

government salaries average about $20 a month (doctors, teachers, etc)• Can buy/sell homes• Almost 2 million Cubans live in US (over 850,000 in FL), send $600 million a

year back to families in Cuba• Government maintains tight political control, dissidents and human rights

activists are rounded up and jailed• Guantanamo Bay Naval Base – detainment/interrogation facility run by U.S.

military (2002-present) – some protest legality and human rights but others see prisoners as terrorists/threat