Pge 10B EUGENE REGISTER-GUARD, Wed., Nov. 7, 1962
It Depends on How You Look at It
By RELMAN MORDf
i Of tht Associated Prcu
Was President Kennedy Slow to See Russia's Nuclear Buildup in Cuba?
' (Editor's note: Here is the
the second article of the behind-the-scenes
story of the
Cuban crisis. Today's story
digs into the controversial
question: was President Ken
nedy slow to recognize the
Soviet nuclear buildup in
Cuba?)
WASHINGTON Contro
versy swirls today around the
question: was President Ken
nedy slow to recoRnize that the
Russians were molding Cuba in
to a powerful nuclear gun,
aimed straight at the heart of
the United States?
Republicans say he was,
"those missile bases were
there a long, long time before
the President spoke, "says Sen
Hugh Scott, R-Pa., referring to
Kennedy s statement of Oct. 22,
when he proclaimed the "quar
antine" on offensive weapons to
Cuba.
In mid-September, Scott said
the Republicans had "very hard
information" about Soviet mis
sile sites in Cuba. The same
facts were available to the ad
ministration, he says.
Before that, on Sept. 8, Sen.
jicnnctn a. Keating, n-N y,
said he thought a blockade of
Cuba to screen ships for incom
ing war material might be nec
essary. This is what administration
authorities say in reply;
"In late August, we began re
ceiving reports from Cuban ref
ugees and other sources of mis
sile sites being built in Cuba,
We think this is the same infor
mation Keating was getting.
"Every one of those reports
was carefully checked.
"And in every case, they turn
ed out to be reports of "Sam
sites or 'Cruise Sites.'
"Samsite" is military short
hand for "surface-to-air missile
site." In other words, a form of
antiaircraft. "Cruise Site" is
a type of coastal defense. Neith
er has the range to reach the
U.S. Technically, they could be
considered in the category of
defense weapons.
The Soviet government had
repeatedly told Kennedy that de
fensive weapons were the only
type bcin installed in Cuba.
"He received a stream of assur
ances, publicity and in private,
to this effect, an authority
says.
It was not until the week of
Oct. 15, when reconnaissance
spotted definite evidence of a
rapid buildup that, figuratively,
the alarm-bell rang, administra
tion officers say.
In all versions of the story,
officials stress the speed of the
Russian construction work
sometimes almost with grudging
admiration.
A man who participated in all
the decision-making conferences
says "only four or five days"
elapsed between evidence of the
first bulldozer scars and the
rise of installations that serve
a missile site. "They couldn't
have been detected earlier," he
says.
Kennedy said in his statement
of Oct. 22, "within the past
week, unmistakable evidence
has established the fact that a
series of offensive missile sites
is now in preparation.
"He (Kennedy) was con
fronted with a set of new facts
that required a new decision,"
an administration officer says.
Thursday, Oct. 18, is a critical
point in the story.
On that day, after some 72
hours of intensive conferences
more new reconnaissance evi
dence from Cuba, and continual
briefings based on it, the Presi
dent was very close to making
his decision an arms blockade
on Cuba. The die was not yet
cast, but Kennedy was close to
it.
And on that same day, he met
in the White House with the
Soviet foreign minister, Andrei
A. Gromyko. Most of their con
versation was about Berlin
Then Kennedy came around to
Cuba.
He suddenly rose from his
rocking chair, walked out of his
office, and returned with copies
of his statements in September
on Cuba, He read them to
Gromyko. On Sept. 13, he had
said:
'But let me make this clear
once again. If at any time the
Communist buildup in Cuba
were to endanger or interfere
with our security in any way
. . , or become an offensive
military base of significant ca
pacity for the Soviet Union, then
this country will do whatever
must be done to protect its own
security and that of its allies.
Gromyko repeated the assur
ances that Soviet actions
Cuba were solely for "the pur
pose of contributing to the de
fense capabilities cf Cuba.
Meanwhile, the conferences
designed to hammer out
course of action were going on
full blast.
Should the U.S. call on th
United Nations to issue a kind
of cease-and-desist order to
Russia?
Very early, that was ruled
out.
"It would only have meant
discussions and prolonged de
lays, talking while the Russians
rushed ahead with the work in
Cuba," an official said.
There were various military
alternatives; a sudden air strike
invasion, a blockade. Each had
its proponents. The arguments
were hot and heavy.
The quick air strike, some
felt, would destroy the sites in
a few minutes. Should it be
preceded by a warning to the
Russians and other workers to
get well away from the regions
to come under attack?
"I'll put it this way, says a
participant in the discussions.
The President never let the ar
gument get away from the fact
yCOmin ES XV ( iff))
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that that isn't the way the U. S.
operates. Our traditions and
morals would preclude a minia
ture Pearl Harbor in Cuba.
"I'll never let the argument
get away from the fact that that
isn't the way the U.S. operates.
Our traditions and morals would
preclude a miniature Pearl Har
bor in Cuba.
Gradually, the consensus
seemed to be veering toward
the blockade as the best course.
Those in the conferences
recognized, however, that the
blockade would only stop the
inflow of weapons. It would
not by itself dismantle the mis
sile sites.
"So if the quarantine didn't
work, there was always the pos
sibility of taking a secondary
course of action," an authority
says.
Top officials of the White
House and the Departments of
Defense, State and Justice par
ticipated in the conferences.
Later, two experts on Com
munist operations were called
in. They were Charles "Chip"
Bohlen and Llewellyn E. Thomp
son. Both have served as am
bassadors to Mnsnnw nnrl
long experience in Soviet affairs.
Their advice wan cnunhf r
two Questions: "What ar th
Russians up to in Cuba? What
will they do if . . . .?"
Kennedy came into the talks
only when the conferees had
reached virtual agreement on
some specific points. He did
not sit in on the long discus
sions. He seldom commented.
Mostly he asked questions "I
want to know how many days
this would take," or who's hand
ling that?"
Often, he directed further
study of a point.
By Saturday, Oct. 20, he was
able to say:
"All right, we'll go with ths
blockade. But I want to have
another talk in the morning."
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