Question:
Briefly identify your specific research topic. What happened and when? What impact did this event/issue have on the international community? Provide citations of one primary and two secondary sources you believe you will use in your final paper. Explain the two main theories of international relations. Which do you think is most useful in helping you understand the topic of your research paper? Why? Identify the key types of state and non-state actors in international relations. Which are involved in the topic of your research paper and how? What factors (sovereignty, power, nationalism, perception, religion, culture, politics, economics, etc) have impacted the topic of your research and how?
Answer:
The essay seeks to explain one of the important topics of International relations that display an interminable historical process. It aims to understand the development and trajectory of Cuban Missile Crisis, which was one of the significant facets of the Cold War. The event has an international significance, as far as the character is concerned.
The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Revolution was a 13-day encounter between the United States and the Soviet Union. The movement was not an over-night phenomena and it was occasioned by a concatenation of factors and circumstances. The movement occurred in 1962 due to an unfortunate dispersion of Soviet ballistic missile in the insular region of Cuba. This phase of confrontation between the two supreme blocs pushed the Cold War crises to the crescendo (Allison, 2012).
Cuban Missile Crisis was a phase of confrontation/engagement between the two super blocs of the global politics. In the process of the cold war, the two leading actors of the front-line blocs were John F. Kennedy of the USA and Nikita Khrushchev of the Soviet Russia. After the engagement in the tensile conflict, the two actors had gravely influenced the scenario. Although John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev were the potential actors of the event, Fidel Castro also maintained his dominant mark in the sphere. The dominant leaders were John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev who were directing the scene from the background. The non-actors involved in the conflict were the USA intelligence force and other associates of the USA bloc (history.state.gov, 2016)
Using the concept of Neorealism or Structural Realism, the essay explains the character of the Cold War episode that had happened in the year 1962. The cold war phase defines as the protracted period of tussle between the powerful zones of the International politics. The Cuban Missile Crisis entails a showdown between the two leading blocs of the global relations. Through the concept of Neorealism or structural realism, the essay elucidates and analyzes the cold war event. The concept of Neorealism or structural realism forms an important aspect of International relations. Kenneth Waltz (1924-2013) is credited to concoct this theory of International Relations and it is encapsulated in the book Theory of International politics. The concept adumbrates a general structure for discussing the interminable patterns of state behavior and state communication in the global arena (Www.popularsocialscience.com, 2013)
The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 indicates a dangerous encounter between the United States and the Soviet Russia. In order to discuss the event through the prism of Neorealism theory of International Relations, one has to comprehend the character of the behavior of the actors (John F. Kennedy of USA and Nikita Khrushchev of Russia) and their responses. The episodic crisis signifies the involvement of the White House and the Kremlin and their substantial associates of the upper stratum of the bureaucracy. According to the Cuban Missile Crisis (1962) (Central American Intelligence, primary source), after the cognizance of the plans of the two opposing forces, the president of the United States and the prime minister of the Soviet Russia began to act in a fierce and way. However, the nuclear war-like situation was abated by the timely intervention of Nikita Khrushchev (Gibson, 2012). With the help of the Neorealism theory of International Relations, the event is discussed.
The essay explains two important factors that have a deep impact on the International event of Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The first factor is the ‘Balance of Power’ in the section. The essay discusses the changing equations of the International power politics after the World War-II that hugely influenced the scene. The domineering status of the USA in the global relations and the Soviet Russian occupation of perilous missiles had aggravated the situation (Blight & Welch, 2013). The Soviet Russia became the paladin of the bomb politics during the Cold War time. Therefore, the factor of ‘Balance of power’ is essential to determine the course of the event.
The second factor reveals light on the course and development of the event, as far as the popular culture is concerned. The emergence of Castro Politics had deeply embittered the US-Cuba relations. In the present time, the US president Barrack Obama endeavored to ameliorate the situation. In 2009, the newly appointed US president made the communication between the USA and Cuba convenient. However, the Cuban arrest of American contractor has augmented the crises (Www.nytimes.com, 2013)
In the essay, the international event is assessed through the lens of Neorealism theory that examines the ‘behavioral shift’ of the actors of the blocs. At the same time, it reflects on the prominent aspects such as ‘balance of power’ and ‘culture’ to analyze the episode of the chosen topic.
Reference
Allison, G. (2012). Cuban Missile Crisis at 50: Lessons for US Foreign Policy Today, The. Foreign Aff., 91, 11.
Blight, J. G., & Welch, D. A. (2013). Intelligence and the Cuban missile crisis. Routledge.
Gibson, D. R. (2012). Talk at the brink: deliberation and decision during the Cuban missile crisis. Princeton University Press.
Www. history.state.gov,. 2016. The Cuban Missile Crisis –Office of the historian. Retrieved 13 September 2016, from https://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968/cuban-missile-crisis
Www.nytimes.com,. 2013. The last thaw: US-Cuban relations in picture – The New York Times. Retrieved 11 September 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016
Www.popularsocialscience.com,. 2013. Neorealism in International Relations –Popular Social Science. Retrieved 12 September 2016, from http://www.popularsocialscience.com/2013
