Though Cuba has been an ongoing struggle of events against the USA, the revolution has brought Cubans far from prosperity. Cubans endure. Surviving the dissolution of the Soviet system has been a heavy burden. Fidel Castro calls it a 'special period' and he exhorts Cubans to shoulder the shortages, to brace themselves against declining sugar prices, to share the physical and psychological isolation, to shore up the eroding gains of the Cuban Revolution. 'Socialismo o muerte' ('Socialism or death') a billboard proclaims. But as the growing 'dollar economy' puts most manufactured goods beyond the reach of ordinary Cubans and they are excluded from the best hotels, bars and beaches, one gets the nagging impression that the Revolution is becoming a mere series of slogans. While Cubans today have less earning power than they did prior to the loss of Soviet aid in 1989, they have rebounded from the severe shortages and austere rationing of the early 1990s. In the first five years after the cut-off of Russian aid, the economy contracted by a third. Though food rationing staved off even worse nutritional and public-health calamity, Cuban caloric intake also fell by a third or more.
In the spring of 1962, Russia agreed to install missiles in Cuba which would enable it to counter any threat or attack. The main concern obviously was countering US aggression in Cuba. The soviets union wanted to display their strength and secure Cuba. Castro agreed to the plan since he wanted to play America by fighting fire with fire. Washington went into alarm and blockaded the Cuban island. They viewed these weapons as a direct threat to America and hence forbade Russia from delivering the weapons. In October American U-2 spy planes shot pictures of missiles that were on Cuban soil. America in further alarm told Russia to withdraw the missiles and stop the incoming shipment else they would invade Cuba. The UNO at the time was unable to make a move against either Russia or the US threat. It waited so long that it became no longer involved.
At this point, the world waited while Khrushchev evaluated the American threat. American bases had been put into alarm of nuclear war. This could’ve been the start of a nuclear World War. However, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles and Kennedy promised not to invade Cuba or pose as a threat to its solidarity as a state. Castro wanted to call the USA’s bluff but Russia knew that another World War would take a toll on its country. The Cuban Missile crisis marks the triumph of Cuba in becoming an important country both strategically and internationally. The crisis also portrayed American aggression and lack of UN support. Cuba which had traditionally been an example of a country dominated by the USA was now dependent on Russia for support.
Conclusively, the Cuban Revolution was majorly successful since it eliminated American control and brought Cuba to rule on its own terms. Though the revolution brought down the strength of the ruling class, it did not improve things for Cuban civilians. They fell into worse poverty and were faced with a communist dictator. Even so, the Cuban revolution stands out since it went in defiance against world super power The United States of America. While America did try to turn back the clock, they were unable to influence the Cuban people or bring a change to the new social order. Imperialism had been broken down and the Revolution had triumphed.
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