When Khrushchev bragged that he elected JFK

[Douglas Caddy]

What I reproduce below is not opinion formulated by me but by a regular columnist for the Wall Street Journal in its weekend edition, November 5-6, 2022

Title: "To End the Ukraine War, Shut Up About Negotiations"

Subtitle: "An ugly deal is probably coming but learn the right lessons from the Cuban Missile Crisis"

Business World, by Holman W. Jenkins, Jr.

 

"Perhaps less than serendipitously, a fairly conventional new history of the Cuban Missile Crisis by Max Hastings has landed in pundit inboxes. Spare a moment for last year's account of the same episode by Ukrainian historian, Serhii Piokhy, Jr. It contains a fetching account of dealings between Robert Kennedy and KGB's Yuri Barsukov in the 1960 election, which later had Khrushchev bragging to a scientific delegation that he elected JFK. 

 

"The book shows, with accidents and confusion happening all around them, the protagonists still trying to understand each other's political needs as the missile crisis unfolded. Recall that Kennedy controlled the war decision, with his threat of invading Cuba, at a time when he knew the U.S. possessed overwhelming nuclear superiority. 

 

"Kennedy wanted to avoid nuclear war as much as Khrushchev did, but still nuclear war was a more plausible option for one party than it is for either today."

 

[My note: I wonder if Oliver Stone and Putin ever discussed this in their conversations. If so, it may partially explain the background behind their discussions.]

 

Edited November 6, 2022 by Douglas Caddy

[Douglas Caddy]

 

JFK in his presidential campaign in 1960 made the missile gap a major issue, claiming that the U.S. had less missiles and was further behind in their development than the Soviet Union. He asserted this in the famous Nixon-JFK presidential debate. Nixon was handicapped in responding because he could not disclose classified government information that showed JFK's assertion was false. 

Missile gap - Wikipedia