CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS 'COULD BE SOLVED THIS WEEKEND'
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On October 28, 1962, The Sunday Star reports President John F. Kennedy told Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev last evening "that the...(Cuban Missile) crisis could be solved this weekend if he promptly reverses his nuclear power buildup in Cuba."
The President welcomed the Soviet Union's proposals of removal of the nuclear weapons under United Nations supervision coupled with ending the U.S. blockade of Cuba and a pledge not to invade the island.
The United States, however, is "going forward" with preparations for direct American military action providing the Russians do NOT stop work on their missile sites in Cuba.
In a related story, The Star reports that Air Force Major Rudolf Anderson Jr.*, flying a U-2 reconnaissance mission over Cuba, is missing-in-action and "presumed lost."
In response, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara has ordered that U.S. forces, including paratroopers and combat infantry, proceed to Southern Florida.
JFK+50 NOTE
Despite the positive headline, the crisis was getting worse day-by-day as by the 28th there was no sign the Soviets would stop work on their missile sites, the shooting down of Major Anderson's photo reconnaissance aircraft over Cuba & the dispatch of nearly 75,000 American military personnel to Southern Florida.
*Rudolf Anderson, Jr. (1927-1962) was born in Greenville, South Carolina & graduated from Clemson University. RAJ served in the Korean conflict, was the only U.S. fatality in the Cuban Missile Crisis & the first recipient of the Air Force Cross.
SOURCES
"Kennedy Sets Terms for Talks; 24 Air Reserve Units Called," by Garrett D. Horner, The Sunday Star, Washington, D.C., October 28, 1962, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
"Swift Action Follows Loss of Photo Plane, Troop Carriers with 74,214 Men Ordered to Duty," by Jerry O'Leary, Jr., The Sunday Star, Washington, D.C., October 28, 1962, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
