With the United States possibly on the verge of going to war with Iran, amid Iran’s armed conflict with Israel, the tensions harken back to the Cuban Missile Crisis, when the U.S. was on the brink of nuclear war.
President Donald Trump is weighing whether to join Israel and take military action against Iran for its alleged nuclear capabilities. Trump demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender” and said “nobody knows what I’m going to do.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s supreme leader said that if the U.S. gets involved, it would cause “irreparable damage.” Russia and China, two of the biggest nuclear powers, have ties with Iran, leading to fears of a broader war.
The same tense atmosphere of nuclear brinkmanship and the dangers of escalation harkens back to the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.
The 13-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union put the world on the edge of nuclear war because the USSR deployed nuclear missiles in Cuba. President John F. Kennedy responded with a naval blockade and demanded the removal of the missiles, setting up a showdown between American and Soviet ships. A deal was ultimately reached before any fire or missiles were launched, but for almost two weeks the possibility of nuclear war looked closer than ever.
