Fidel Castro And The Bay Of Pigs

Fidel Castro and the Bay of Pigs

The Bay of Pigs invasion on 17 April 1961 marked one of the most embarrassing events in United States government history. Shortly after overthrowing Cuban President Fulgencia Batista in 1959, Fidel Castro’s regime became a concern to United States policymakers. Fidel Castro’s actions against U.S. companies and interests and the establishment of closer relationships with the Soviet Union immediately suggested that the Cuban leader was a threat to the United States. In March 1960, President Eisenhower ordered the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to train a force of Cuban exiles, known as Brigade 2506, for an armed attack on Cuba. John F. Kennedy inherited this issue when he became president in 1961 and decided to go forward with the plan. The attack against Cuba was planned carefully and treated delicately since the strategy was to overthrow a government with which the United States was not at war. The ultimate goal was to eliminate Castro’s government and establish a non-communist government friendly to the United States. On 17 April 1961, components of Brigade 2506 landed on the southern Cuban shores at the Bay of Pigs and were defeated within two days by Castro’s armed forces. This failure attempt against communism had various effects on U.S. policy with Cuba, damaged President Kennedy’s credibility, and most importantly led to the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Over 1,400 Cuban exiles gladly volunteered in an effort to bring down Castro. Many of the volunteers were former soldiers under ex-Cuban leader Batista. The CIA set up camps in Guatemala where they received training and weapons. The force was named the Brigade 2506, after the enlistment number of a soldier who was killed in training....

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...s subsequent failure.

It can be argued that this event represents a scenario of what the U.S. might have encountered if something similar would have happen in Iraq and/or Afghanistan. Also, the many questions of what would have happened if the U.S. would of succeeded in the Bay of Pigs invasion, most likely a U.S. occupation of Cuba. The Bay of Pigs invasion set new courses in American history with modifications to U.S. policy, the credibility of government leaders and a close encounter with a potential World War three. Fidel Castro’s dictatorship grew stronger in Cuba and left the U.S. with very little options to seek future involvement besides an embargo. The desired outcome of this invasion was put on the hopes that the local populace would turn against Castro and side with the U.S. cause. This event proved that the U.S. cannot always depend on that assumption.