Cuban Project

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Minutes of Meeting of Special.pdf first page of a meeting report on Operation Mongoose, October 4 1962.

The Cuban Project (also known as Operation Mongoose) is the general name for CIA covert operations and plans initiated by U.S. President John F. Kennedy on November 30, 1961. The President authorized aggressive covert operations against the communist government of Fidel Castro in Cuba. The operation was led by Air Force General Edward Lansdale and came into being after the failed Bay of Pigs invasion.

The goal of the Cuban Project was to "help Cuba overthrow the Communist regime", including its leader Fidel Castro, and aim "for a revolt which can take place in Cuba by October 1962". American policy makers also desired to see "a new government with which the United States can live in peace." Source: U.S., Department of State, FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES 1961-1963, Volume X Cuba, 1961-1962 Washington, DC [1]

1 Origins
2 Planning
3 Execution
4 Legacy
5 References
6 See also

[edit] Origins

Ever since the Cuban Revolution, and the rise of communism under Fidel Castro, the United States felt threatened. After the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion, it had to take Cuba more seriously. A special committee was formed to search for a direct excuse to invade Cuba.

It was based on the estimation of the US government that coercion inside Cuba was severe and that the regime was serving as a spearhead for allied communist movements elsewhere in the Americas. There was also evidence that the repressive measures of the communists, together with the seeming failure of the government's socialist economic policies, had resulted in an atmosphere among the Cuban people which made a resistance program a distinct possibility at that moment. As such, the US designed their covert plan to fuel the growing anti-regime spirit to provoke an overthrow of the government and/or assassination attempts on Castro.

[edit] Planning

The United States Department of Defense Joint Chiefs of Staff saw the project's ultimate objective to be to provide adequate justification for a US military intervention in Cuba. They requested that the Secretary of Defense assign them responsibility for the project, but the Attorney General Robert Kennedy retained effective control.

Over thirty different plans were considered under the Cuban Project, some of which were carried out. The plans varied in their efficacy and intention, from propagandistic purposes to effective disruption of the Cuban government and economy. These included the use of American Green Berets, destruction of Cuban sugar crops, and mining of harbors.

Operation Northwoods was a 1962 plan, which was signed by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and presented to Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara for approval, that intended to use false flag operations in order to justify intervention in Cuba. Among other things considered were real and simulated attacks which would be blamed on the Cuban government. These would have involved attacking, or reporting fake attacks on, Cuban exiles, US military targets, Cuban civilian aircraft, and development of a terror campaign on US soil. [2]

The Cuban Project played a significant role in the events leading up to the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. The Cuban Project's six-phase schedule was presented by counter-insurgency specialist Air Force General Edward Lansdale on February 20, 1962; it was overseen by AG Robert Kennedy, and President John F. Kennedy was briefed on the operation guidelines on March 16, 1962. Lansdale outlined the coordinated program of political, psychological, military, sabotage, and intelligence operations as well as assassination attempts on key political leaders. Each passing month since his presentation, a different method was in place to destabilize the communist regime, including the publishing of views against Castro, armaments for militant opposition groups, the establishment of guerilla bases throughout the country and preparations for an October military intervention in Cuba. Many individual plans were reportedly devised by the CIA to assassinate Fidel Castro. These plans included using hair removal powder to make Castro's beard fall out, a poisoned wetsuit, the use of exploding cigars and the placing of explosive seashells in Castro's favorite places to go diving.[3]

[edit] Execution

The Cuban Project was originally designed to culminate in October 1962 with an "open revolt and overthrow of the Communist regime." This was at the peak of the Cuban Missile crisis, where the United States and the Soviet Union came alarmingly close to nuclear war over the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba. The operation was suspended on October 30, 1962, but three of ten six-man sabotage teams had already been deployed to Cuba. On November 8, 1962, one six-man CIA team blew up a Cuban industrial facility.

[edit] Legacy

The Cuban Project, as with the earlier Bay of Pigs invasion, is widely acknowledged as an American policy failure in Cuba.

[edit] References

[4] Operation Mongoose: The Cuba Project, Cuban History Archive, 20 Feb 1962.
[5] The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962, The National Security Archive.
[6] Meeting with the Attorney General of the United States Concerning Cuba, CIA minutes, 19 January 1962.
[7] Justification for US Military Intervention in Cuba, Joint Chiefs of Staff, 13 March 1962.
[8] Minutes of Meeting of the Special Group on Operation Mongoose, 4 October 1962.
[9] CIA Inspector General's Report on Plots to Assassinate Fidel Castro, CIA Historical Review Program, 23 May 1967.