Thirteen Days

The events of Saturday afternoon indelibly impressed on the committee the awesome responsibility they held for the fate of innocent people all over the world. The President decided not to order an air strike for the following day. The committee reviewed the State Department’s proposed response to Krushchev’s letter, which stated that the missiles in Turkey could not be withdrawn. Dissatisfied with the suggested draft, Robert Kennedy proposed disregarding the most recent Khrushchev response, and instead answering the offer made in the preceding, more personal letter: withdrawal of Soviet missiles in exchange for an American commitment not to attack Cuba. This provoked heated debate in the committee.

Robert Kennedy observed that “everyone was tense; some were already near exhaustion; all were weighted down with concern and worry. President Kennedy was the calmest” (77). The debate continued without resolution until the President, “with a note of some exasperation” at Robert Kennedy’s rejection of the State department’s proposed response, asked that he and Ted Sorenson leave the meeting and draft a different letter (77). They returned a short while later with a response to Krushchev’s earlier letter, which the President reviewed, and, after minor revisions, agreed to sign.

The letter agreed to Krushchev’s original proposal, on the condition that the first step “is for work to cease on offensive missile bases in Cuba and for all weapons systems in Cuba capable of offensive use to be rendered inoperable” (78). The U.S. would then agree “to remove the quarantine measure now in effect, and to give assurances against an invasion of Cuba” (78). The letter went on to suggest that if both countries worked toward finalizing an agreement, they should be able to issue an official statement within days. Alluding to the Turkish missiles, the letter stated that resolving the Cuban crisis would allow consideration of an “arrangement regarding ‘other armaments’ as proposed in your second letter” (78). Kennedy expressed his commitment to “reducing tensions and halting the arms race,” while stressing the urgency of disabling the Cuban missiles (79).  

Reflecting on the death of Major Anderson, the President remarked that it “is always the brave and best who die,” while the government leaders who make the decisions carry on with their lives (80). Discussing the mistakes that inadvertently precipitate a war, the President observed, “war is rarely intentional” (80). The President was concerned that the Soviets and the Americans were on course for war that neither wanted, and one he was determined to prevent. President Kennedy was most disturbed by the consequences a nuclear war held for the world’s children.

Robert Kennedy met with the Soviet Ambassador again. While stressing that the President had worked hard to avoid a war, Robert Kennedy was clear that if the Soviets fired at American planes, the U.S. would be forced into a military response, a situation that could quickly spiral out of control. He informed Dobrynin “that if they did not remove those bases, we would remove them” (82). Robert Kennedy told the Ambassador that America could not remove missiles from Turkey in the immediate crisis but suggested this could occur once the situation was resolved. Reiterating that the President wanted a peaceful resolution, he told Dobrynin that the Soviets had to respond by the following day.

Afterwards, at the White House, neither Robert Kennedy nor the President felt encouraged by the meeting. In anticipation of a military strike, the President activated the Air Force Reserve. The President had done all he could to avoid a conflict, and it was now up to Khrushchev to respond. However, “the expectation was for a military confrontation by Tuesday and possibly tomorrow” (83).

The next morning Robert Kennedy kept a longstanding commitment to take his daughters to a horse show (84). He learned that the Soviets were going to remove the Cuban missiles at 10 am. When Robert Kennedy returned to the White House, Ambassador Dobrynin requested a meeting at which he announced that Khrushchev “had agreed to dismantle and withdraw the missiles” (84) and also conveyed his “best wishes” (84). Later, as he was preparing to leave the White House, President Kennedy made a remark about attending the theater that night, a joking allusion to Abraham Lincoln, and Robert Kennedy replied that he would accompany him. When Robert Kennedy left the President, “was seated at the desk writing a letter…” (84).