Fifty years ago, the US and Soviet Union were on the verge of nuclear conflict over Soviet missiles in Cuba.

This week marks the 50th anniversary of the Cuban missile crisis.

For two weeks in 1962, during the Cold War, the world was on the verge of a nuclear conflict as the United States imposed a blockade on Cuba due to the presence of Soviet nuclear missiles in the Caribbean country.

The confrontation ended on October 28, 1962, after the US and the Soviet Union reached an agreement. The Soviets dismantled the missiles in Cuba and returned them home, in exchange for a US public declaration to never invade Cuba.

Tom Ackerman reports from Washington DC.