Cuban Embargo Case Study

1. Why did the United States impose an embargo on Cuba in 1960?

By October 1960, the United States imposed a trade embargo on Cuba as a result of the increasing tension between the two nations. The tensions began when the Soviet Union decided to provide $100 million in credits and buy Cuban sugar, which would boost Cuba’s economy shortly after Castro’s revolutionaries overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. As a result, the United States feared that the Soviet influence of communism would spread in Cuba and then other neighboring countries in the Americas. Furthermore, the United States believed that the Soviets were attempting to establish Communist government that would threaten its power and influence in Latin America. In response, the United States took action as a precaution by organizing the training of Cuban exiles and cutting purchases of Cuban sugar. However, Cuba responded back by nationalizing U.S. banks and companies that made lots of profits from exploiting Cuba’s resources. In a way, the trade embargo served as a method to

For instance, one positive result was that people received medical servies that would affect the Cuban population to improve its health drastically. In addition, providing education to the public by establishing new schools and teacher-training institutes ended up wiping out illiteracy. Moreover, rights for women were expanded due to the gender equality ideology of Marxism. This was represented by the new law of family code that saw wives and husbands were equally responsible in child care and economic support of the household and family. However, there were negative results as well, such as the rapid industrialization caused Cuba’s economy to be heavily dependent on the sale and production of sugar. With sugar being an unstable export, Cuba also became dependent on the Soviets’ purchases of Cuban sugar and