The Bay of Pigs invasion begins - Apr 17, 1961 - HISTORY.com Within the CIA, the Bay of Pigs invasion of April 1961 was regarded as the "perfect failure." Cold War The Bay of Pigs invasion begins Share this: The Bay of Pigs invasion begins Author The Bay of Pigs invasion begins URL Publisher A+E Networks The Bay of Pigs invasion begins when a CIA-financed and -trained group of Cuban refugees lands in Cuba and attempts to topple the communist government of Fidel Castro. The attack was an utter failure. Fidel Castro had been a concern to U.S. policymakers since he seized power in Cuba with a revolution in January 1959. Castro’s attacks on U.S. companies and interests in Cuba, his inflammatory anti-American rhetoric, and Cuba’s movement toward a closer relationship with the Soviet Union led U.S. officials to conclude that the Cuban leader was a threat to U.S. interests in the Western Hemisphere. In March 1960, President Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered the CIA to train and arm a force of Cuban exiles for an armed attack on Cuba. John F.

Kennedy inherited this program when he became president in 1961. Though many of his military advisors indicated that an amphibious assault on Cuba by a group of lightly armed exiles had little chance for success, Kennedy gave the go-ahead for the attack. On April 17, 1961, around 1,200 exiles, armed with American weapons and using American landing craft, waded ashore at the Bay of Pigs in Cuba. The hope was that the exile force would serve as a rallying point for the Cuban citizenry, who would rise up and overthrow Castro’s government. The plan immediately fell apart–the landing force met with unexpectedly rapid counterattacks from Castro’s military, the tiny Cuban air force sank most of the exiles’ supply ships, the United States refrained from providing necessary air support, and the expected uprising never happened. Over 100 of the attackers were killed, and more than 1,100 were captured. The failure at the Bay of Pigs cost the United States dearly. Castro used the attack by the “Yankee imperialists” to solidify his power in Cuba and he requested additional Soviet military aid.

Eventually that aid included missiles, and the construction of missile bases in Cuba sparked the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, when the United States and the Soviet Union nearly came to blows over the issue. Further, throughout much of Latin America, the United States was pilloried for its use of armed force in trying to unseat Castro, a man who was considered a hero to many for his stance against U.S. interference and imperialism. Kennedy tried to redeem himself by publicly accepting blame for the attack and its subsequent failure, but the botched mission left the young president looking vulnerable and indecisive. Related Videos Bay of Pigs Invasion - Cold War - HISTORY.com Bay of Pigs Invasion A+E Networks Introduction On January 1, 1959, a young Cuban nationalist named Fidel Castro (1926-) drove his guerilla army into Havana and overthrew General Fulgencio Batista (1901-1973), the nation’s American-backed president. For the next two years, officials at the U.S. State Department and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) attempted to push Castro from power.

Finally, in April 1961, the CIA launched what its leaders believed would be the definitive strike: a full-scale invasion of Cuba by 1,400 American-trained Cubans who had fled their homes when Castro took over. However, the invasion did not go well: The invaders were badly outnumbered by Castro’s troops, and they surrendered after less than 24 hours of fighting. Cuba: The Bay of Pigs Invasion (1961) Cuban Defenders during the Bay of Pigs Invasion. Photo by Three Lions/Getty Images The Bay of Pigs Invasion In April of 1961 the United States government sponsored an attempt by Cuban exiles to assault Cuba and overthrow Fidel Castro and the communist government he led. The exiles were well armed and trained in Central America by the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency). The attack failed because of the selection of a poor landing site, inability to disable the Cuban Air Force and overestimation of the Cuban people’s willingness to support a strike against Castro. The diplomatic fallout from the failed Bay of Pigs invasion was considerable and led to an increase of cold war tensions.

Background Since the Cuban Revolution of 1959, Fidel Castro had grown increasingly antagonistic towards the United States and their interests. The Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations authorized the CIA to come up with ways to remove him: attempts were made to poison him, anticommunist groups inside Cuba were actively supported, and a radio station beamed slanted news at the island from Florida. continue reading below our video Overview of The Bay of Pigs The CIA even contacted the mafia about working together to assassinate Castro. Nothing worked. Meanwhile, thousands of Cubans were fleeing the island, legally at first, then clandestinely. These Cubans were mostly upper and middle class who had lost properties and investments when the communist government took over. Most of the exiles settled in Miami, where they seethed with hatred for Castro and his regime. It didn’t take the CIA long to decide to make use of these Cubans and give them the chance to overthrow Castro. Preparation When word spread in the Cuban exile community of an attempt to re-take the island, hundreds volunteered.

Many of the volunteers were former professional soldiers under Batista, but the CIA took care to keep Batista cronies out of the top ranks, not wanting the movement to be associated with the old dictator. The CIA also had its hands full keeping the exiles in line, as they had already formed several groups whose leaders often disagreed with one another. The recruits were sent to 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. In April, 1961, the 2506 Brigade was ready to go. They were moved to the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua, where they made their final preparations. They received a visit from Luís Somoza, dictator of Nicaragua, who laughingly asked them to bring him some hairs from Castro’s beard. They boarded different ships and set sail on April 13. Bombardment The US Air Force sent bombers to soften up Cuba’s defenses and take out the small Cuban Air Force. Eight B-26 Bombers left from Nicaragua on the night of April 14-15: they were painted to look like Cuban Air Force planes.

The official story would be that Castro’s own pilots had rebelled against him. The bombers hit airfields and runways and did manage to destroy or damage several Cuban aircraft. Several people working at the airfields were killed. The bombing raids did not destroy all of Cuba’s airplanes, however, as some had been hidden. The bombers then “defected” to Florida. Air strikes continued against Cuban airfields and ground forces. Assault On April 17, the 2506 Brigade (also called the “Cuban Expeditionary Force”) landed on Cuban soil. The brigade consisted of over 1,400 well-organized and armed soldiers. Rebel groups within Cuba had been notified of the date of the assault and small-scale attacks broke out all over Cuba, although these had little lasting effect. The landing site which had been selected was the “Bahía de los Cochinos” or “Bay of Pigs” on the southern coast of Cuba, about a third of the way from the westernmost point. It is a part of the island that is sparsely populated and far from major military installations: it was hoped that the attackers would gain a beachhead and set up defenses before running into major opposition.

It was an unfortunate choice, as the area selected is swampy and difficult to cross: the exiles would eventually become bogged down. The forces landed with difficulty and quickly did away with the small local militia that resisted them. Castro, in Havana, heard of the attack and ordered units to respond. There were still a few serviceable aircraft remaining to the Cubans, and Castro ordered them to attack the small fleet that had brought the invaders. At first light, the airplanes attacked, sinking one ship and driving off the rest. This was crucial, because although the men had been unloaded, the ships were still full of supplies including food, weapons and ammunition. Part of the plan had been to secure an airstrip near Playa Girón. 15 B-26 bombers were part of the invading force, and they were to land there to carry out attacks on military installations all over the island. Although the airstrip was captured, the lost supplies meant that it could not be put into use. The bombers could only operate for forty minutes or so before being forced to return to Central America to refuel. They were also easy targets for the Cuban Air force, as they had no fighter escorts. Prev The Bay of Pigs - John F.

Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum The Bay of Pigs The Bay of Pigs On April 17, 1961, 1400 Cuban exiles launched what became a botched invasion at the Bay of Pigs on the south coast of Cuba. In 1959, Fidel Castro came to power in an armed revolt that overthrew Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista. The US government distrusted Castro and was wary of his relationship with Nikita Khrushchev, the leader of the Soviet Union. Before his inauguration, John F. Kennedy was briefed on a plan by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) developed during the Eisenhower administration to train Cuban exiles for an invasion of their homeland. The plan anticipated that the Cuban people and elements of the Cuban military would support the invasion. The ultimate goal was the overthrow of Castro and the establishment of a non-communist government friendly to the United States. Training President Eisenhower approved the program in March 1960. The CIA set up training camps in Guatemala, and by November the operation had trained a small army for an assault landing and guerilla warfare.

José Miró Cardona led the anti-Castro Cuban exiles in the United States. A former member of Castro's government, he was the head of the Cuban Revolutionary Council, an exile committee. Cardona was poised to take over the provisional presidency of Cuba if the invasion succeeded. Despite efforts of the government to keep the invasion plans covert, it became common knowledge among Cuban exiles in Miami. Through Cuban intelligence, Castro learned of the guerilla training camps in Guatemala as early as October 1960, and the press reported widely on events as they unfolded. Shortly after his inauguration, in February 1961, President Kennedy authorized the invasion plan. But he was determined to disguise U.S. support. The landing point at the Bay of Pigs was part of the deception. The site was a remote swampy area on the southern coast of Cuba, where a night landing might bring a force ashore against little resistance and help to hide any U.S. involvement. Unfortunately, the landing site also left the invading force more than 80 miles from refuge in Cuba's Escambray Mountains, if anything went wrong. The Plan The original invasion plan called for two air strikes against Cuban air bases.

A 1,400-man invasion force would disembark under cover of darkness and launch a surprise attack. Paratroopers dropped in advance of the invasion would disrupt transportation and repel Cuban forces. Simultaneously, a smaller force would land on the east coast of Cuba to create confusion. The main force would advance across the island to Matanzas and set up a defensive position. The United Revolutionary Front would send leaders from South Florida and establish a provisional government. The success of the plan depended on the Cuban population joining the invaders. The Invasion The first mishap occurred on April 15, 1961, when eight bombers left Nicaragua to bomb Cuban airfields. The CIA had used obsolete World War II B-26 bombers, and painted them to look like Cuban air force planes. The bombers missed many of their targets and left most of Castro's air force intact. As news broke of the attack, photos of the repainted U.S. planes became public and revealed American support for the invasion. President Kennedy cancelled a second air strike. On April 17, the Cuban-exile invasion force, known as Brigade 2506, landed at beaches along the Bay of Pigs and immediately came under heavy fire.

Cuban planes strafed the invaders, sank two escort ships, and destroyed half of the exile's air support. Bad weather hampered the ground force, which had to work with soggy equipment and insufficient ammunition. The Counterattack Over the next 24 hours, Castro ordered roughly 20,000 troops to advance toward the beach, and the Cuban air force continued to control the skies. As the situation grew increasingly grim, President Kennedy authorized an "air-umbrella" at dawn on April 19—six unmarked American fighter planes took off to help defend the brigade's B-26 aircraft flying. But the B-26s arrived an hour late, most likely confused by the change in time zones between Nicaragua and Cuba. They were shot down by the Cubans, and the invasion was crushed later that day. Some exiles escaped to the sea, while the rest were killed or rounded up and imprisoned by Castro's forces. Almost 1,200 members of Brigade 2056 surrendered, and more than 100 were killed. The Aftermath The brigade prisoners remained in captivity for 20 months, as the United States negotiated a deal with Fidel Castro.

Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy made personal pleas for contributions from pharmaceutical companies and baby food manufacturers, and Castro eventually settled on $53 million worth of baby food and medicine in exchange for the prisoners. On December 23, 1962, just two months after the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a plane containing the first group of freed prisoners landed in the United States. A week later, on Saturday, December 29, surviving brigade members gathered for a ceremony in Miami's Orange Bowl, where the brigade's flag was handed over to President Kennedy. "I can assure you," the president promised, "that this flag will be returned to this brigade in a free Havana." The disaster at the Bay of Pigs had a lasting impact on the Kennedy administration. Determined to make up for the failed invasion, the administration initiated Operation Mongoose—a plan to sabotage and destabilize the Cuban government and economy. The plan included the possibility of assassinating Castro. More than 50 years later, relations between Castro's Cuba and the United States remain strained and tenuous. Letter from President Kennedy to Chairman Khrushchev.

April 18, 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion Blog Bay of Pigs Invasion The Bay of Pigs invasion was intended to provoke popularity for an uprising against Fidel Castro , who had overthrown American-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista . Instead, it gave Castro a military victory and a permanent symbol of Cuban resistance to American aggression. The Bay of Pigs was not originally John F. Kennedy 's idea. As the communist nature of Fidel Castro 's regime became apparent, the urge to topple his government grew. Dwight D. Eisenhower 's administration planned the invasion, which would be handled by the CIA . By the time of Kennedy's inauguration, the order to invade was the only remaining piece of the plan to put into place. Planning for the invasion began in 1960, before diplomatic ties with Cuba had been broken. The situation was delicate, since the plan was to overthrow a government with which the United States was not at war. Various aspects, including propaganda and military strategies, were included in the plan, along with the directive that the U.S. should not appear to be involved. During the presidential campaign, Kennedy had accused Eisenhower of not doing enough about Castro.

In fact, Eisenhower might have launched an invasion himself, had a proper excuse presented itself. Instead, he bequeathed an advanced plan to Kennedy, who was strongly inclined to pursue it. Others in the government were not convinced. The Cubans had presented evidence to the United Nations as early as October that the United States was hiring and training mercenaries. American involvement was not likely to remain much of a secret. Senator J. William Fulbright told Kennedy that this sort of hypocrisy was just the sort of thing of which the United States accused the Soviets. Under Secretary of State Chester Bowles advised Secretary of State Dean Rusk that the plan was wrong on both moral and legal grounds. Those in favor of the plan also included former Vice President Richard Nixon, John's brother Robert F. Kennedy , and Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara . On April 12, 1961, Kennedy told a press conference that the United States unequivocally had no intention of intervening in Cuban affairs. Five days later, the invasion took place. The invasion force had been assembled in Guatemala. It departed in six ships from a port in Nicaragua on April 14.

On April 15, the American-backed Cuban exiles began to bomb airfields near two points in the Bay of Pigs and the Zapata swamps in Cuba. In a clumsy effort to make the attacks appear to have been made by defectors, the attacking B-26 airplanes were disguised to look like Cuban aircraft. An actual defector named Mario Zï¿½ï¿½iga was presented to the press along with his airplane, but so many important details were missing and the press had uncovered so much of the truth, that the cover-up effort had little success. Within the first few hours of the operation, it began to appear that the invasion would fail because it had not garnered the support from locals on which they were counting. Much to the CIAï¿½s surprise, locals firmly supported Castro and the Revolution. Adlai E. Stevenson , the American ambassador to the U.N., flatly denied the Cuban ambassador's charges about the attack and showed the official photographs to support the defectorï¿½s story. Unfortunately, the truth came out within a few hours and Stevenson was humiliated.

He also learned that Kennedy had referred to him as ï¿½my official liar." The attack began shortly after midnight on April 16. Coral reefs, misidentified by U-2 spy planes as seaweed, held up landings. Two ships were stranded 80 yards from shore and some heavy equipment was lost. With the invasion plainly underway, Rusk announced on Monday, April 17, that the U.S. would not intervene in Cuba nor would it in the future. Because world opinion was against the U.S., Kennedy decided not to provide further air cover until it could be launched from a landing strip somewhere in Cuba. This never happened, and Cuban forces had complete control of the air. A final desperate attempt at air support resulted in the loss of four American airmen on April 19, but the outcome was already sealed. The invaders surrendered on the afternoon of April 19. More than 200 people been killed; another 1,197 were taken captive. On April 20, Kennedy told the American Society of Newspaper Editors that the episode was Cubans fighting Cubans and that the U.S. had not been involved.

A few months later, the three responsible for planning the invasion ï¿½ Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) Allen Dulles , Deputy Director of Operations Richard Bissell, and Air Force General Charles Cabell ï¿½ were fired. Mass trials of the captured men were held and nearly all were sentenced to 30 years imprisonment. After 20 months of negotiations, they were released in exchange for $53 million in food and medicine. The failure of the Bay of Pigs Invasion set the stage for further aggressions against Castro from his northern aggressor. President Kennedy made little effort to conceal his continued desire to see Castro deposed. Castroï¿½s insecurity about the future of his rule over Cuba led to the installation of Soviet nuclear missiles there, prior to the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. - - - Books You May Like Include: ---- The Bay of Pigs Invasion | History Today The Bay of Pigs Invasion Cold War USA , Cuba Communism , Military John F. Kennedy Michael Dunne remembers the US-backed invasion of Fidel Castro's Cuba.

On the night of April 16th and 17th, 1961, 1,400 armed men on board a flotilla of small boats and landing-craft approached Bahía de Cochinos (Bay of Pigs) on the southern coast of Cuba. ‘Brigade 2506’ was mainly Cuban, with a handful of ‘North Americans’ (US citizens in Cuba-speak), refugees from the regime headed by Fidel Castro, which had overthrown the pro-US caudillo Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar 27 months earlier. The brigade’s goal was to oust Castro and the Fidelistas. Within three days, more than three quarters of them had been captured and more than 100 killed. Seaborne invasions were not new in Cuban history. Castro, having gone into exile from the Batista regime, had launched his own successful invasion in December 1956 with just 80 armed companions. In 1895 the forces of the ‘father of Cuban nationalism’, José Martí, invaded and three years of bloody warfare against the Spanish colonial authorities ensued.

This second War of Independence, following the Ten Years’ War of 1868-78, led, in 1898, to the US placing Cuba under its control for the next 60 years. In the first three decades of the 20th century, US Marines intervened on a number of occasions in the Caribbean and Central America, usually to ‘restore order’. The promotion of US interests was more subtle under President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his ‘good neighbor’ policy. After the Second World War, came the more familiar Cold War form of US intervention: backing rebels more or less openly as anti-Communist patriots against pro-Soviet regimes. The favoured rebels would be those promising to protect US interests; the allegedly traitorous Communists would be those attempting reforms such as land redistribution, mass education, health programmes and defending the interests of indigenous (Amerindian) peoples often neglected by criollo elites. For Fidel Castro, his compañeros, the wider Cuban public and the US, the point of historical reference was Guatemala in 1954.

Then, the freely-elected reforming government of Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán had been overthrown in a golpe launched from Honduras by dissident Guatemalan army and air force officers, backed by the Central Intelligence Agency and the US Air Force. Historians have disagreed about the respective responsibilities of the Fidelistas and the US government, both Congress and President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961), for the deterioration of US-Cuban relations following Castro’s golpe. Yet the worsening of relations was predictable and Eisenhower and Vice-President Richard M. Nixon concluded by mid-1959 that Castro should be overthrown. Castro’s expropriation of large landholdings (latifundios) and private companies to fund the revolution and wrest political power from the economic overlords hit US property owners as well as wealthy Cubans – not to mention gangsters based in Chicago, Las Vegas and Miami.

($1bn of US property had been expropriated within a year of the Revolution.) US threats, later realised, to limit and eventually end the favourable terms for the import of Cuban sugar, the major source of export earnings, were just one of the reasons the Cuban government sought trade and credit deals with the Soviet bloc. Before the end of 1959, Cuban opponents of the revolution were flying both propaganda and bombing raids from Florida. Throughout 1960, diplomatic and economic relations between the US and Cuba worsened, with Democrats such as former President Harry Truman and presidential candidate John F. Kennedy accusing Eisenhower and Nixon (by now the Republican presidential candidate) of being soft on Communism. But whatever the heat generated by the public friction, the key decision in the history of the Bay of Pigs invasion was made secretly in March 1960, when Eisenhower authorised the CIA to train and equip Cuban refugees for a counter-coup, while also planning Castro’s assassination with help from the US underworld. The Director of the CIA during Eisenhower’s presidency was Allen Dulles; Eisenhower’s first Secretary of State was Allen’s brother, John Foster Dulles, who died shortly after Castro’s triumph.

The brothers had successfully collaborated on the 1954 Guatemalan counter-coup. (Both had links to the Boston-based United Fruit company, whose huge plantations were targeted for expropriation.) Perhaps the Bay of Pigs invasion, initially code-named Operation Pluto, might have succeeded had the two brothers presided over the attack. But this speculation implicitly minimises its difficulties. What was clear even in April 1961, and comes out strikingly from the archives after 50 years, are Pluto’s uncertain goals, the constraints placed upon the participants and the failures at the bureaucratic, political and military levels. It is easy to think of Cuba and the US as David and Goliath: Florida, the new and would-be temporary home (Miami especially) for tens of thousands of anti-Castro refugees, is one-third bigger than the island. In the 19th century, US advocates of Cuba’s detachment from the Spanish empire described the ‘Pearl of the Antilles’ as topographically and therefore politically part of the North American continent, just 90 miles from the Florida peninsula. Yet in the iconic struggle, it is David who defeats Goliath.

How, then, in April 1961 did David triumph? Cuba had a strong history of nationalism, defined for decades against the US. Moreover, Castro’s forces had fought their way to power against great odds and numbered an estimated 250,000 militia-members and a highly trained and politically conscious army of over 30,000 men, with most of the Batistiano officer-class purged or exiled. Planners in Washington underestimated the difficulties facing a counter-coup, sharing and repeating the rhetoric of the golpistas about lack of support for the Castro regime, especially in the armed forces; British intelligence services tried to disabuse their US counterparts. A full-scale invasion would have incurred huge US casualties: 40-50,000 according to Department of Defense estimates. There was also public opinion to be considered. Since the introduction of the ‘good neighbor’ policy, US armed intervention was of potential political harm and had been formally ruled out under such commitments as the Charter of the Organisation of American States. The US had made political capital during 1956 out of Soviet armed intervention in Hungary and the British-French-Israeli action in Suez.

Any involvement in Cuba must be subject to ‘plausible deniability’, with the White House especially untainted by any knowledge or involvement. Such requirements left Pluto in operational limbo. In the first place, air cover was deemed essential for the invading force to secure the beach-heads; yet control of the skies could not be achieved by the rebels alone. To solve this problem the original landing-site was changed from a point close to the Escambray mountains (good guerrilla territory) to the Bay of Pigs, more difficult terrain for an amphibious operation. Three main groups of rebels existed: insurgents in Cuba killing and sabotaging, but ignored by the CIA; the invasion forces being trained by the CIA mainly in Guatemala, but also within the United States; and the anti-Castro leadership, which divided into two antagonistic groups: the original Batistianos and those who began as Fidelistas, but lost faith in the revolution. The most influential of this disparate trio was the divided leadership, but precisely because of these divisions, their susceptibility to leaks and the unsavoury backgrounds of many, such men were cut out of CIA decision-making.

Before JFK’s inauguration in late January 1961, the New York Times leaked information about Pluto, some two months after Kennedy had been briefed on the operation (later renamed Operation Zapata after the swamps near its new landing-site). For months the Cuban government had been warning of the invasion, so making ‘plausible deniability’ even more politically necessary for Kennedy and even more implausible. Just weeks after Kennedy proposed his ten-year, $20bn. western hemispheric Alliance for Progress (Alianza para el Progreso), ostensibly to address the social, economic and governance problems which had inspired the Cuban revolution, the president gave the go-ahead for Zapata. The prelude to Zapata (April 15th, 1961) involved sorties flown from Nicaragua by US-supplied B-26 bombers falsely marked as the Cuban FAR (Fuerza Aérea Revolucionaria). Their task was to destroy three major airbases. The raids damaged but did not eliminate Cuban air-power; and US complicity was exposed when two B-26s landed near Miami, supposedly crewed by Cuban defectors.

Unwilling to highlight further US involvement, Kennedy cancelled effective air cover on D-Day (April 17th) for the invaders, who were strafed by the remnants of the FAR. (US naval vessels convoyed the exiles’ flotilla until it reached Cuban waters but along with a huge task-force in the Caribbean took no active part in Zapata.) With supply vessels being sunk and reinforcements being hampered in treacherous reefs, those who reached Playa Girón and Playa Larga to the east and north of Bahía de Cochinos were initially pinned down by militias who were later reinforced by 20,000 heavily armoured regular troops under the personal command of the Lider Máximo himself. By D-Day + 3 (April 20th) it was all over for Brigade 2506, though they sustained fewer casualties than the defending forces. The initial consequences of the Bay of Pigs were predictable: along with increased support for Castro, both in Cuba and throughout Latin America, came the round-up of thousands of suspects by the Cuban authorities and the trial and execution of some 20 participants (including four US citizens), usually for offences committed under Batista.

Paradoxically, President Kennedy emerged with some credit, publicly taking responsibility for a flawed operation planned by his predecessor. Less surprisingly, JFK privately blamed ‘CIA bastards’ and the Joint Chiefs of Staff ‘sons-of-bitches’, the latter for being lukewarm towards the project. For the future he placed his trust in counter-insurgency Special Forces to wage his war against Third World nationalism and international communism – the two being presented as synonymous. In what now became a vendetta, Kennedy intensified mob-aided assassination efforts against Castro in Operation Mongoose, while broadcasting the option of outright US support for a further invasion and the recognition of a provisional, anti-Castro government – the political goal of Zapata. By the year’s end, Castro formally embraced Marxism-Leninism (having disclaimed Communism in the past) and came closer to accepting the Soviet Union’s 1960 offer of nuclear missiles to deter US attacks. The scene was being set for a confrontation of global rather than hemispheric proportions: the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962. Michael Dunne is Visiting Professor at St Cross College, Oxford, and a Research Associate at Cambridge’s Centre of Latin American Studies.

Milestones: 1961–1968 - Office of the Historian Milestones: 1961–1968 The Bay of Pigs Invasion and its Aftermath, April 1961–October 1962 A left-wing revolution in Cuba had ended in 1959 with the ouster of President Fulgencia Batista and the establishment of a new government under Premier Fidel Castro. The Castro regime quickly severed the country’s formerly strong ties with the United States by expropriating U.S. economic assets in Cuba and developing close links with the Soviet Union. Skyhawks from the USS Essex fly sorties over combat areas during the Bay of Pigs. (Robert L. Lawson Photograph Collection) These developments proved a source of grave concern to the United States given Cuba’s geographical proximity to the United States and brought Cuba into play as a new and significant factor in the Cold War. In March 1960, President Dwight D. Eisenhower directed the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to develop a plan for the invasion of Cuba and overthrow of the Castro regime.

The CIA organized an operation in which it trained and funded a force of exiled counter-revolutionary Cubans serving as the armed wing of the Democratic Revolutionary Front, known as Brigade 2506. Following his election in November 1960, President John F. Kennedy learned of the invasion plan, concluded that Fidel Castro was a Soviet client posing a threat to all of Latin America and, after consultations with his advisors, gave his consent for the CIA-planned clandestine invasion of Cuba to proceed. Launched from Guatemala, the attack went wrong almost from the start. Components of Brigade 2506 landed at the Bay of Pigs on April 17, 1961 and were defeated within 2 days by Cuban armed forces under the direct command of Castro. The failed invasion strengthened the position of Castro’s administration, which proceeded to openly proclaim its intention to adopt socialism and pursue closer ties with the Soviet Union. It also led to a reassessment of Cuba policy by the Kennedy administration. The President established a committee under former Army Chief of Staff General Maxwell Taylor and Attorney General Robert Kennedy to examine the causes of the defeat suffered at the Bay of Pigs.

This examination and policy assessment, initiated in May 1961, led in November of that year to a decision to implement a new covert program in Cuba, with the codename of Operation Mongoose. Oversight for Operation Mongoose was provided by the 5412/2 Special Group, under the auspices of the National Security Council, expanded to include General Taylor and Attorney General Kennedy. Operation Mongoose was designed to do what the Bay of Pigs invasion failed to do: remove the Communist Castro regime from power in Cuba. Orchestrated by the CIA and Department of Defense under the direction of Edward Lansdale, Operation Mongoose constituted a multiplicity of plans with wide-ranging purpose and scope. Lansdale presented the Project’s six-phase schedule to Attorney General Kennedy on February 20, 1962, and President Kennedy received a briefing on the operation’s components on March 16, 1962. Lansdale outlined the coordinated program of political, psychological, military, sabotage, and intelligence operations, as well as proposed assassination attempts on key political leaders, including Castro.

Monthly components of the operation were to be set in place to destabilize the communist regime, including the publication of Anti-Castro propaganda, provision of armaments for militant opposition groups, and establishment of guerilla bases throughout the country, all leading up to preparations for an October 1962 military intervention in Cuba. Some (though not all) of the planned Operation Mongoose actions were deployed during 1962, but the military intervention did not occur, and the Castro regime remained in power. Although not considered as significant a U.S. foreign policy failure and embarrassment as the Bay of Pigs invasion, Operation Mongoose failed to achieve its most important goals. Meanwhile, throughout the spring and summer of 1962, U.S. intelligence reports indicated expanded arms shipments from the Soviet Union to Cuba. Amidst growing concern in Washington over whether the Soviet weapons being introduced into Cuba included ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads, in October 1962 the Kennedy administration suspended Operation Mongoose in the face of this far more serious threat—one that resulted in the most dangerous confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Bay of Pigs: The 'perfect failure' of Cuba invasion - BBC News BBC News Bay of Pigs: The 'perfect failure' of Cuba invasion By Michael Voss BBC News, Cuba 14 April 2011 Close share panel Image caption Fidel Castro's forces outnumbered the invaders by about 10 to one Fifty years ago, shortly before midnight on 16 April 1961, a group of some 1,500 Cuban exiles trained and financed by the CIA launched an ill-fated invasion of Cuba from the sea in the Bay of Pigs. The plan was to overthrow Fidel Castro and his revolution. Instead, it turned into a humiliating defeat which pushed Cuba firmly into the arms of the Soviet Union and has soured US-Cuban relations to this day. The Bay of Pigs is a large isolated inlet on Cuba's southern coast. There is little here apart from mosquitoes and a crocodile-infested swamp. The beach at Playa Giron, a village with a small airstrip at the mouth of the Bay of Pigs, was the invaders' primary target.

(To this day, it is referred to in Cuba as the Playa Giron invasion.) A simultaneous landing was planned near the village of Playa Larga, 35km away at the far end of the bay. Flawed plans "We thought, 'This is the invasion boys, be careful! They are trying to invade' Domingo Rodriguez An old, fortified concrete trench dug into the coconut palm-fringed beach is one of the only visible reminders of the historic battle. Fidel Castro had ordered defences like these to be built at key points throughout the island - an invasion was widely expected, but no-one had any idea where it was going to land. The American plan was to sneak ashore virtually unopposed, secure the area, take the airfield and fly in a government-in-exile who would then call for direct US support. Image caption Domingo Rodriguez believes the attempted invasion was a turning point for Cuba At the same time, they were relying on a mass uprising in Cuba against the revolutionaries. It could not have gone more wrong: when an advance frogman lit a beacon to show the exiles where to land, it also alerted the Cuban militia to their presence.

Local fisherman Gregorio Moreira, who still lives in the same house beside the beach, was one of the first to raise the alarm. "I went out of the house and saw a flare, like a candle, in the sky. So I headed to the trench with my father and my brothers," 74-year-old Mr Moreira recalls. He was joined on the beach by one of his neighbours, another fisherman, Domingo Rodriguez. "We thought, 'This is the invasion boys, be careful! They are trying to invade.' "We had 11 rifles between us and at about 0400 they started the landing so we opened fire." Media captionMichael Voss revisits the site of the Bay of Pigs invasion, and meets some of those who remember what happened on 16 April 1961 Reinforcements, including Cuban air force planes, quickly arrived. The exiles had some air support, but US President John F Kennedy was determined to keep the US involvement a secret and as the initiative turned against the invading force, he backed away from providing further critically needed air cover. At the same time, Fidel Castro took personal charge of the operation, and within only three days the battle was over.

Mr Rodriguez is now 70 years old and losing his eyesight but his memories are as clear as ever. "It was like a great school for the Cuban people, we finally learnt that we don't have to be afraid of the enemy," he said. "As Fidel said afterwards, the people of Latin America have become a little freer." More than 1,000 of the anti-Castro fighters, known as Brigade 2506, were taken prisoner. About a year-and-a-half later, they were sent back to Miami in exchange for $50m worth of food and medicine. 'Yankee defeat' There is a small museum in Playa Giron. In the forecourt are two of Fidel Castro's tanks, along with a British-built Sea Fury fighter bomber, one of the Cuban air force planes used against the invaders. The secret to the Cuban victory was the ideal for which we were fighting The museum's director, Barbara Sierra, says the exhibits are testimony to the "first great defeat of Yankee Imperialism" in the Latin America. The US, she believes, completely underestimated the degree of support for Fidel Castro's revolution inside Cuba. "The secret to the Cuban victory was the ideal for which we were fighting.

Our lives were very difficult before the revolution. That's why everyone came here to fight." Among the visitors to the museum when I visited was American author Peter Kornbluh, who has written extensively on the Bay of Pigs, drawing heavily on declassified CIA documents. Image caption Gregorio Moreira still lives by the beach where the US-backed troops landed He describes the Bay of Pigs as a "perfect failure" for the US, which the rest of the world quickly realised was behind the operation. "It was supposed to rid the hemisphere of a potential Soviet base, but it pushed Fidel Castro into the waiting arms of the Soviet Union. It was meant to undermine his revolution but it truly helped him to consolidate it." Half a century after the failed invasion, this Caribbean island remains the only communist-run country in the Western hemisphere. Despite countless attempts by the CIA to assassinate Fidel Castro, it was ill health which finally forced him to hand over power in 2006 - to his brother, Raul. It is no coincidence that the authorities have chosen this weekend to hold the long-delayed Communist Party Congress, which will kick off with a military parade through Revolution Square.

With the US trade embargo still in place, Cuba insists that it remains in a state of siege. While it is set to ratify a series of market reforms, the Congress is also set to reaffirm the "socialist character of the revolution". Political change remains no nearer now than it did following Cuba's victory at the Bay of Pigs. Cuba profile - Timeline - BBC News Cuba profile - Timeline A chronology of key events 1492 - The navigator Christopher Columbus claims Cuba for Spain. Guerrillas on the go Image copyright Getty Images Revolutionaries led by Fidel Castro staged a successful revolt against dictator Fulgencio Batista 1511 - Spanish conquest begins under the leadership of Diego de Velazquez, who establishes Baracoa and other settlements. 1526 - Importing of slaves from Africa begins. 1762 - Havana captured by a British force led by Admiral George Pocock and Lord Albemarle. 1763 - Havana returned to Spain by the Treaty of Paris. Wars of independence 1868-78 - Ten Years War of independence ends in a truce with Spain promising reforms and greater autonomy - promises that were mostly never met.

1886 - Slavery abolished. 1895-98 - Jose Marti leads a second war of independence; US declares war on Spain. 1898 - US defeats Spain, which gives up all claims to Cuba and cedes it to the US. US tutelage 1902 - Cuba becomes independent with Tomas Estrada Palma as its president; however, the Platt Amendment keeps the island under US protection and gives the US the right to intervene in Cuban affairs. 1906-09 - Estrada resigns and the US occupies Cuba following a rebellion led by Jose Miguel Gomez. Fulgencio Batista 1909 - Jose Miguel Gomez becomes president following elections supervised by the US, but is soon tarred by corruption. 1912 - US forces return to Cuba to help put down black protests against discrimination. 1924 - Gerado Machado institutes vigorous measures, forwarding mining, agriculture and public works, but subsequently establishing a brutal dictatorship. 1925 - Socialist Party founded, forming the basis of the Communist Party. 1933 - Machado overthrown in a coup led by Sergeant Fulgencio Batista.

1934 - The US abandons its right to intervene in Cuba's internal affairs, revises Cuba's sugar quota and changes tariffs to favour Cuba. 1944 - Batista retires and is succeeded by the civilian Ramon Gray San Martin. 1952 - Batista seizes power again and presides over an oppressive and corrupt regime. 1953 - Fidel Castro leads an unsuccessful revolt against the Batista regime. 1956 - Castro lands in eastern Cuba from Mexico and takes to the Sierra Maestra mountains where, aided by Ernesto "Che" Guevara, he wages a guerrilla war. Cuban missile crisis Image copyright Getty Images US accusations - backed up by aerial pictures - that Russia was installing missiles on Cuba brought the superpowers to the brink of war 1958 - The US withdraws military aid to Batista. Triumph of the revolution 1959 - Castro leads a 9,000-strong guerrilla army into Havana, forcing Batista to flee. Castro becomes prime minister, his brother, Raul, becomes his deputy and Guevara becomes third in command.

1960 - All US businesses in Cuba are nationalised without compensation. 1961 - Washington breaks off all diplomatic relations with Havana. The US sponsors an abortive invasion by Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs; Castro proclaims Cuba a communist state and begins to ally it with the USSR. 1962 - Cuban missile crisis ignites when, fearing a US invasion, Castro agrees to allow the USSR to deploy nuclear missiles on the island. The crisis was subsequently resolved when the USSR agreed to remove the missiles in return for the withdrawal of US nuclear missiles from Turkey. Organisation of American States (OAS) suspends Cuba over its "incompatible" adherence to Marxism-Leninism. 1965 - Cuba's sole political party renamed the Cuban Communist Party. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A group of exiled counter-revolutionaries are held under arrest after their failed, US-backed invasion at the Bay of Pigs in 1961 1972 - Cuba becomes a full member of the Soviet-based Council for Mutual Economic Assistance. Interventions in Africa 1976 - Cuban Communist Party approves a new socialist constitution; Castro elected president.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A military parade in Havana in 1976 marks the anniversary of the revoluton 1976-81 - Cuba sends troops first to help Angola's left-wing MPLA withstand a joint onslaught by South Africa, Unita and the FNLA and, later, to help the Ethiopian regime defeat the Eritreans and Somalis. 1980 - Around 125,000 Cubans, many of them released convicts, flee to the US. 1982 - Cuba, together with other Latin American states, gives Argentina moral support in its dispute with Britain over the Falkland islands. 1988 - Cuba agrees to withdraw its troops from Angola following an agreement with South Africa. Surviving without the USSR 1991 - Soviet military advisers leave Cuba following the collapse of the USSR. 1993 - The US tightens its embargo on Cuba, which introduces some market reforms in order to stem the deterioration of its economy. These include the legalisation of the US dollar, the transformation of many state farms into semi-autonomous cooperatives, and the legalisation of limited individual private enterprise.

1994 - Cuba signs an agreement with the US according to which the US agrees to admit 20,000 Cubans a year in return for Cuba halting the exodus of refugees. Fidel Castro 1996 - US trade embargo made permanent in response to Cuba's shooting down of two US aircraft operated by Miami-based Cuban exiles. 1998 - Pope John Paul II visits Cuba. 1998 - The US eases restrictions on the sending of money to relatives by Cuban Americans. 1999 November - Cuban child Elian Gonzalez is picked up off the Florida coast after the boat in which his mother, stepfather and others had tried to escape to the US capsized. A huge campaign by Miami-based Cuban exiles begins with the aim of preventing Elian from rejoining his father in Cuba and of making him stay with relatives in Miami. 2000 June - Elian allowed to rejoin his father in Cuba after prolonged court battles. 2000 October - US House of Representatives approves the sale of food and medicines to Cuba.

Poster boy for revolution Image copyright Getty Images Argentina-born Che Guevara was a close aide to Fidel Castro and became an icon of revolutionary spirit 2000 December - Russian President Vladimir Putin visits Cuba and signs accords aimed at boosting bilateral ties. 2001 October - Cuba angrily criticises Russia's decision to shut down the Lourdes radio-electronic centre on the island, saying President Putin took the decision as "a special gift" to US President George W Bush ahead of a meeting between the two. 2001 November - US exports food to Cuba for the first time in more than 40 years after a request from the Cuban government to help it cope with the aftermath of Hurricane Michelle. Spotlight on Guantanamo 2002 January - Prisoners taken during US-led action in Afghanistan are flown into Guantanamo Bay for interrogation as al-Qaeda suspects. 2002 January - Russia's last military base in Cuba, at Lourdes, closes down. 2002 April - Diplomatic crisis after UN Human Rights Commission again criticises Cuba's rights record. The resolution is sponsored by Uruguay and supported by many of Cuba's former allies including Mexico.

Uruguay breaks off ties with Cuba after Castro says it is a US lackey. 2002 May - US Under Secretary of State John Bolton accuses Cuba of trying to develop biological weapons, adding the country to Washington's list of "axis of evil" countries. Musical legend BBC Music: Compay Segundo 2002 May - Former US president Jimmy Carter makes a goodwill visit which includes a tour of scientific centres, in response to US allegations about biological weapons. Carter is the first former or serving US president to visit Cuba since the 1959 revolution. 2002 June - National Assembly amends the constitution to make socialist system of government permanent and untouchable. Castro called for the vote following criticisms from US President George W Bush. Dissidents jailed 2003 March-April - ''Black Spring'' crackdown on dissidents draws international condemnation. 75 people are jailed for terms of up to 28 years; three men who hijacked a ferry to try reach the US are executed. 2003 June - EU halts high-level official visits to Cuba in protest at the country's recent human rights record.

2004 April - UN Human Rights Commission censures Cuba over its rights record. Cuban foreign minister describes resolution - which passed by single vote - as "ridiculous". 2004 May - US sanctions restrict US-Cuba family visits and cash remittances from expatriates. 2004 October - President Castro announces ban on transactions in US dollars, and imposes 10% tax on dollar-peso conversions. Dissident writer Cuba frees dissident 2005 January - Havana says it is resuming diplomatic contacts with the EU, frozen in 2003 following a crackdown on dissidents. 2005 May - Around 200 dissidents hold a public meeting, said by organisers to be the first such gathering since the 1959 revolution. 2005 July - Hurricane Dennis causes widespread destruction and leaves 16 people dead. 2006 February - Propaganda war in Havana as President Castro unveils a monument which blocks the view of illuminated messages - some of them about human rights - displayed on the US mission building.

Castro hospitalised 2006 July - President Fidel Castro undergoes gastric surgery and temporarily hands over control of the government to his brother, Raul. 2006 December - Fidel Castro's failure to appear at a parade to mark the 50th anniversary of his return to Cuba from exile prompts renewed speculation about his future. 2007 April - A lawyer and a journalist are given lengthy jail terms after secret trials, which rights activists see as a sign of a crackdown on opposition activity. 2007 May - Castro fails to appear at Havana's annual May Day parade. Days later he says he has had several operations. Anger as the US drops charges against veteran anti-Castro militant Luis Posada Carriles, who is a former CIA operative and Cuba's "Public Enemy No. 1" accused of downing a Cuban airliner. 2007 July - First time since 1959 that Revolution Day is celebrated without Castro present. 2007 December - Castro says in a letter read on Cuban TV that he does not intend to cling to power indefinitely. Fidel steps down 2008 February - Raul Castro takes over as president, days after Fidel announces his retirement.

2008 May - Bans on private ownership of mobile phones and computers lifted. Anger as US frees militant Image copyright Getty Images 2008 June - Plans are announced to abandon salary equality. The move is seen as a radical departure from the orthodox Marxist economic principles observed since the 1959 revolution. EU lifts diplomatic sanctions imposed on Cuba in 2003 over crackdown on dissidents. 2008 July - In an effort to boost Cuba's lagging food production and reduce dependence on food imports, the government relaxes restrictions on the amount of land available to private farmers. 2008 September - Hurricanes Gustav and Ike inflict worst storm damage in Cuba's recorded history, with 200,000 left homeless and their crops destroyed. 2008 October - State oil company says estimated 20bn barrels in offshore fields, being double previous estimates. European Union restores ties. Ties with Russia revitalised 2008 November - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visits. Two countries concude new trade and economic accords in sign of strengthening relations. Raul Castro pays reciprocal visit to Russia in January 2009.

Chinese President Hu Jintao visits to sign trade and investment accords, including agreements to continue buying Cuban nickel and sugar. 2008 December - Russian warships visit Havana for first time since end of Cold War. Government says 2008 most difficult year for economy since collapse of Soviet Union. Growth nearly halved to 4.3%. Capital: Havana Founded in 1519 Became capital in 1607 2009 March - Two leading figures from Fidel era, Cabinet Secretary Carlos Lage and Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque, resign after admitting "errors". First government reshuffle since resignation of Fidel Castro. US Congress votes to lift Bush Administration restrictions on Cuban-Americans visiting Havana and sending back money. 2009 April - US President Barack Obama says he wants a new beginning with Cuba. Crisis measures 2009 May - Government unveils austerity programme to try to cut energy use and offset impact of global financial crisis. 2009 June - Organisation of American States (OAS) votes to lift ban on Cuban membership imposed in 1962. Cuba welcomes decision, but says it has no plans to rejoin.

2009 July - Cuba signs agreement with Russia allowing oil exploration in Cuban waters of Gulf of Mexico. 2010 February - Political prisoner Orlando Zapata Tamayo dies after 85 days on hunger strike. 2010 May - Wives and mothers of political prisoners are allowed to hold demonstration after archbishop of Havana, Jaime Ortega, intervenes on their behalf. 2010 July - President Castro agrees to free 52 dissidents under a deal brokered by the Church and Spain. Several go into exile. 2010 September - Radical plans for massive government job cuts to revive the economy. Analysts see proposals as biggest private sector shift since the 1959 revolution. 2011 January - US President Barack Obama relaxes restrictions on travel to Cuba. Havana says the measures don't go far enough. 2011 March - Last two political prisoners detained during 2003 crackdown are released. Reforms gather pace 2011 April - Communist Party Congress says it will look into possibility of allowing Cuban citizens to travel abroad as tourists. 2011 August - National Assembly approves economic reforms aimed at encouraging private enterprise and reducing state bureaucracy.

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Pope Benedict - pictured with Raul Castro - criticized both the US and Cuba during his visit 2011 November - Cuba passes law allowing individuals to buy and sell private property for first time in 50 years. 2011 December - The authorities release 2,500 prisoners, including some convicted of political crimes, as part of an amnesty ahead of a papal visit. 2012 March - Pope Benedict visits, criticising the US trade embargo on Cuba and calling for greater rights on the island. 2012 April - Cuba marks Good Friday with a public holiday for the first time since recognition of religious holidays stopped in 1959. 2012 June - Cuba re-imposes customs duty on all food imports in effort to curb selling of food aid sent by Cubans abroad on the commercial market. Import duties had been liberalised in 2008 after series of hurricanes caused severe shortages. 2012 October - Spanish politican Angel Carromero is jailed for manslaughter over the death of high-profile Catholic dissident Oswaldo Paya. Mr Carromero was driving the car when, according to the authorities, it crashed into a tree.

Mr Paya's family say the car was rammed off the road after he had received death threats. The government abolishes the requirement for citizens to buy expensive exit permits when seeking to travel abroad. Highly-qualified professionals such as doctors. engineers and scientists will still require permission to travel, in order to prevent a brain drain. 2012 November - President Raul Castro says the eastern province of Santiago was hard hit by Hurricane Sandy, with 11 people dead and more than 188,000 homes damaged. A United Nations report says Sandy destroyed almost 100,000 hectares of crops. Raul's second term 2013 February - The National Assembly re-elects Raul Castro as president. He says he will stand down at the end of his second term in 2018, by which time he will be 86. 2013 July - Five prominent veteran politicians, including Fidel Castro ally and former parliament leader Ricardo Alarcon, are removed from the Communist Party's Central Committee in what President Raul Castro calls a routine change of personnel.

2014 January - First phase of a deepwater sea port is inaugurated by Brazil and Cuba at Mariel, a rare large foreign investment project on the island. 2014 March - Cuba agrees to a European Union invitation to begin talks to restore relations and boost economic ties, on condition of progress on human rights. The EU suspended ties in 1996. 2014 July - Russian President Vladimir Putin visits during a tour of Latin America, says Moscow will cancel billions of dollars of Cuban debt from Soviet times. Chinese President Xi Jinping visits, signs bilateral accords. 2014 September/October - Cuba sends hundreds of frontline medical staff to West African countries hit by the Ebola epidemic. Rapprochement with USA 2014 December - In a surprise development, US President Barack Obama and Cuba's President Raul Castro announce moves to normalise diplomatic relations between the two countries, severed for more than 50 years. 2015 January - Washington eases some travel and trade restrictions on Cuba. Two days of historic talks between the US and Cuba take place in Havana, with both sides agreeing to meet again.

The discussions focus on restoring diplomatic relations but no date is set for the reopening of embassies in both countries. President Raul Castro calls on President Obama to use his executive powers to bypass Congress and lift the US economic embargo on Cuba. 2015 February - Cuban and US diplomats say they have made progress in talks in Washington to restore full relations. 2015 May - Cuba establishes banking ties with US, which drops country from list of states that sponsor terrorism. 2015 July - Cuba and US reopen embassies and exchange charges d'affaires. 2015 December - Cuban and US officials hold preliminary talks on mutual compensation. 2016 January - US eases a number of trade restrictions with Cuba. 2016 March - Cuba and the European Union agree to normalise relations. US President Barack Obama visits Cuba in the first US presidential visit there in 88 years. 2016 May - Cuba takes steps to legalise small and medium-sized businesses as part of economic reforms. Fidel Castro's death 2016 November - Fidel Castro, former president and leader of the Cuban revolution, dies at the age of 90. Cuba declares nine days of national mourning.

2017 January - Washington ends a long-standing policy which grants Cuban immigrants the right to remain in the US without a visa.

Question: Where did the failed US backed landing in Cuba take place in 1961?
Answer: The Bay of Pigs