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The Soviet Union During The Cuban Missile Crisis

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Account for the disharmony between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cuban missile crisis.
The occurrence of the Cuban missile crisis remains the closest the world has ever come to nuclear war. The placement of Soviet nuclear weaponry on the island of Cuba in October 1962, sparked thirteen days in which the Cold war grew increasingly hotter as tensions between the two superpowers escalated. However, despite marking a turning point in US-Soviet relations it could be argued that Operation Anadyr cannot wholly account for the disharmony between the United States and the Soviet Union. This can be seen as despite reaching a visible climax in 1962 -with the Cuban missile crisis- the Cold war remained largely a political stalemate between the two superpowers. The incompatible ideologies of the United States and Soviet Union served as the primary cause for the disharmony between the two nations, as the competing systems subsequently meant the US and USSR were unable to coexist harmoniously. However, a decline in the political influence and military capabilities of the Soviet Union, accompanied by increasingly an aggressive US foreign policy following the election of Kennedy served to exacerbate the long standing ideological divide between the two superpowers.
The ideological incompatibilities of the United States and Soviet Union served as the primary cause accounting for the disharmony between the two superpowers during the Cuban missile crisis. A well supported

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