Study this source. Use sources from this period to inform your answer. Source D 'Mr President, if the United States does not remove its missiles from Turkey...

This is a "what is the message" question worth [7 marks]. You must identify the overall message the source is trying to convey, then support your interpretation using specific details from the source and your own historical knowledge.

Identifying the message [up to 3 marks]:

The message of this source is that the United States was being hypocritical in its response to Soviet missiles in Cuba. Khrushchev argues that America had already placed its own missiles on Soviet borders in Turkey, so the Soviet Union was merely responding in kind. He portrays Soviet actions as defensive while accusing the US naval blockade of being the true act of aggression.

Supporting with source details and own knowledge [up to 4 marks]:

Several specific details in the source support this reading:

• Khrushchev calls the Cuban weapons "defensive weapons," deliberately reframing what the US saw as offensive nuclear missiles. This language was intended to justify the Soviet position to the international community.
• He directly compares US Jupiter missiles in Turkey to Soviet missiles in Cuba: "We are not the ones who placed missiles on the borders of the United States. You placed yours on our borders in Turkey." This comparison forces Kennedy to confront the symmetry of the two deployments.
• The accusation that "your naval blockade is an act of aggression" refers to Kennedy's announcement on 22 October 1962 of a naval "quarantine" around Cuba, which Khrushchev characterises as illegal under international law.
• The reference to "hostile actions against Cuba" alludes to the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of April 1961, when CIA-trained Cuban exiles attempted to overthrow Fidel Castro's government. This gave Khrushchev a factual basis for claiming Cuba needed protection.

Using own knowledge, the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 was the closest the Cold War came to nuclear conflict. While Khrushchev's comparison of the Turkish and Cuban missiles had some factual basis, the secret deployment of missiles 90 miles from the US mainland represented a significant escalation. The crisis was eventually resolved when Khrushchev agreed to remove the missiles in exchange for a US pledge not to invade Cuba and a secret agreement to remove the Jupiter missiles from Turkey.

Exam technique: For "message" questions, do not simply paraphrase what the source says. Identify the purpose behind the words - what the author is trying to make the reader believe or feel. Then prove your interpretation by quoting specific phrases and explaining what they reveal, supported by your own knowledge of the historical context.