Which Soviet leader served during the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis and authorized building of the Berlin Wall?

Which Soviet leader served during the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis and authorized building of the Berlin Wall?

• A. Stalin
• B. Khrushchev
• C. Brezhnev
• D. Gorbachev

Answer: (B)

Nikita Khrushchev was the Soviet leader guiding policy during both moments in question. He led the Soviet Union as Premier and First Secretary in the early 1960s, a period when tensions over Berlin and Cuba peaked. In 1961, he supported and oversaw the decision by East Germany to erect the Berlin Wall, a move aimed at stopping the flow of people fleeing from East to West and signaling the hard-line division of Europe. A little over a year later, during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, Khrushchev authorized placing Soviet missiles in Cuba, bringing the United States to the brink of war. The crisis ended with a deal: the missiles in Cuba were withdrawn and, in a separate understanding, U.S. missiles in Turkey were removed, reducing immediate confrontation. Stalin had already died by this time, Brezhnev came to power after Khrushchev, and Gorbachev ruled later, so Khrushchev is the leader who directly connected these two pivotal events.

Nikita Khrushchev was the Soviet leader guiding policy during both moments in question. He led the Soviet Union as Premier and First Secretary in the early 1960s, a period when tensions over Berlin and Cuba peaked. In 1961, he supported and oversaw the decision by East Germany to erect the Berlin Wall, a move aimed at stopping the flow of people fleeing from East to West and signaling the hard-line division of Europe. A little over a year later, during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, Khrushchev authorized placing Soviet missiles in Cuba, bringing the United States to the brink of war. The crisis ended with a deal: the missiles in Cuba were withdrawn and, in a separate understanding, U.S. missiles in Turkey were removed, reducing immediate confrontation.

Stalin had already died by this time, Brezhnev came to power after Khrushchev, and Gorbachev ruled later, so Khrushchev is the leader who directly connected these two pivotal events.