Fifty years ago today, President John F. Kennedy learned that
the Soviet Union had deployed nuclear missiles to Cuba, thereby
beginning the most dangerous nuclear standoff the world has ever
known. Popularly known as the "13 days in October," Oct. 16
marked the beginning of some of the most tense diplomacy in U.S.
history. To mark the event, Foreign Policy and award-winning
journalist Michael Dobbs, author of One Minute to Midnight, have
created the Cuban missile crisis + 50 project, looking at what
happened then -- and what we know now. To keep track of events,
follow Dobbs as he live-tweets the crisis. For a detailed look
at what's coming next, you can also see our comprehensive blow-
by-blow of the events of those days. And want to know how these
dramatic events changed America forever? Leslie Gelb explains
the myth that ruined 50 years of foreign policy -- and Stephen
Sestanovich explains why he's wrong. You can also get a sense
for what was in the nuclear arsenal at that time, as well as
read secret docum