MIKE GRACIA

In a televised speech of extraordinary gravity, President John F.
Kennedy announces on October 22, 1962 that U.S. spy planes 
discovered Soviet missile bases in Cuba. These missile sites—
under construction but nearing completion—housed medium-
range missiles capable of striking a number of major cities in
the United States, including Washington, D.C.

Kennedy announced that he was ordering a naval “quarantine”
of Cuba to prevent Soviet ships from transporting any more
offensive weapons to the island and explained that the United
States would not tolerate the existence of the missile sites
currently in place. The president made it clear that America
would not stop short of military action to end what he called a “clandestine, reckless and provocative threat to world peace.”