282. Editorial Note
On January 22, 1963, President Kennedy met with the National Security Council. According to notes of his remarks, he stated the following regarding Cuba: “The time will probably come when we will have to act again on Cuba. Cuba might be our response in some future situation—the same way the Russians have used Berlin. We may decide that Cuba might be a more satisfactory response than a nuclear response. We must be ready—although this might not come. We should be prepared to move on Cuba if it should be in our national interest. The planning by the US, by the Military, in the direction of our effort should be advanced always keeping Cuba in mind in the coming months and to be ready to move with all possible speed. We can use Cuba to limit their actions just as they have had Berlin to limit our actions.” For text, see Foreign Relations, 1961–1963, volume XI, pages 668–669.
Three days later, at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Security Council on January 25, Ambassador at Large Thompson expressed his opposition to several proposed courses of action against Cuba, including an instruction that would prohibit the shipment of U.S.-owned goods on Free World ships engaged in the Cuba trade. According to the summary record of the meeting, Thompson “thought we should act toward Cuba in such a way as not to provoke a reaction from theUSSR, particularly during the current period when we are seeking to negotiate a nuclear test ban treaty and when we do not yet know what will flow from the split between the Chinese Communists and the USSR.” Furthermore, “he feared that if we implemented the proposed shipping orders, we might delay the withdrawal of Soviet troops still in Cuba.” Director of Central Intelligence McCone and Secretary of State Rusk both expressed doubts that the Russians would remove their troops. “We must assume that the forces there are going to stay,” stated Rusk, and therefore “the risk of delaying Soviet troop withdrawal was not great.” At a meeting of the NSC Executive Committee on February 5, the President approved the shipping order. For text of the summary record of both meetings, see ibid., pages 681–687 and 689–692.