Over the course of the twentieth century, the United States has made some crucial decisions in regard to foreign policy. When the President of the United States looks to his advisors and policymakers to decide what course of action to take, he must weigh all of the different variables. One of the most important variables that influence foreign policy decision making is the geopolitical view. A geopolitical variable takes into account a country’s geography and physical terrain and how that relates to certain foreign policymaking decisions.
In the early 1960’s, President Kennedy’s decision to institute a naval blockade around Cuba was carefully made with full knowledge of the geopolitical variables. Throughout the Cuban Missile Crisis, the geopolitical variables greatly influenced President Kennedy’s decision to institute the naval blockade which eventually ended the Crisis. The Cold War was one of the most difficult times for foreign policymakers in the United States. In September of 1962, the Soviet Union began deploying medium-range nuclear missiles to Cuba.
The strategic plan of the Nikita Khrushchev was to have Soviet nuclear missile sites ninety miles off the coast of the United States to serve as military threat. When a United States U-2 spy plane brought back photographs of these missile sites in Cuba on October 15, 1962, U. S. military leaders acted immediately. The following day, October 16, 1962, the Cuban Missile Crisis began. When discussing what course of action to take, U. S. officials had to analyze all of the variables that would affect their decision. The most obvious geopolitical variable that was posed was Cuba’s proximity to the United States.
Prior to this incident, United States foreign policy was based on a policy of isolationism. This meant that because the United States was so far away from other military threats, their own security was never so heavily threaten. Even in World War II, the United States was so isolated from Europe that the continental United States was never threaten in a militaristic sense. Now that the Soviet Union had nuclear missiles ninety miles off the coast of Florida, it posed a clear threat to the national security of the United States.
This immediate threat to the United States prompted serious action from President Kennedy. He and his advisors narrowed their options down to ten possible courses of action. The decision to institute a naval blockade was based on several geopolitical reasons. First, Cuba’s proximity to the United States made it necessary to act against the Soviets. The proximity to the United States also had several positive impacts on the decision making process. This proximity would allow for easy deployment of U. S. troops, equipment, and supplies.
Since troops, and in this case naval vessels, were only being sent ninety miles away, it would cost millions less than a full scale deployment of forces to an overseas country. Second, the small Island country of Cuba allows for a naval blockade of its ports. If the Soviets were to send missiles to a country the size of Mexico, then it would be much harder to implement a naval blockade. If Cuba were the size of Mexico, this route probably would not have been taken. The decision to institute a naval blockade was made with full knowledge of the geopolitical variables.
Since these nuclear missiles were ninety miles off the coast of Florida, a full scale invasion or air strike was not carried out because of the negative consequences that could have occurred. Since an invasion or air strike was not one hundred percent reliable, a failed invasion could have sparked a nuclear holocaust. The geopolitical variables were heavily weighed when deciding what course of action to take. The geopolitical variables of Cuba greatly affected President Kennedy’s decision in the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The close proximity of Cuba to the Unites States was the main variable that affected how the U. S. foreign policy was formed. G. R. Sloan said it best in his book, Geopolitics in US Strategic Policy, 1890-1987, when he wrote, “It was a challenge to one of the most important geographical patterns of political history, in terms of the perceptions of United States policymakers: the American dominance of the Western Hemisphere. ” The Soviet Union placed a clear threat to the national security of the United States. U. S. policymakers used geopolitical variables to help President Kennedy decide on the naval blockade that ended the Cuban Missile Crisis.