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Cuba crisis 'sparked UK
war plan'
BBC,
UK, February 1, 2006.
UK officials worked to halve the time it
would take the country to go to war after
the Cuban missile crisis, according to newly
released documents.
Prime Minister Harold Macmillan ordered
a review of war preparedness plans following
the stand-off, say official documents from
the National Archives.
The US-Soviet row over Russian missiles
based in Cuba brought the world to the brink
of nuclear conflict.
As a result the UK decided to ensure it
could be war-ready within two days.
Urgent work
The National Archives published records
of a Cabinet meeting which took place in
November 1962, a month after the crisis
ended.
They reveal urgent work by ministers to
make certain war procedures were up to date.
A secret simulation exercise, Operation
Felstead, had previously shown that under
existing Government powers it would take
four days to mobilise forces.
Nuclear threat
But after the Cuban crisis, there were
fears that such arrangements did not offer
enough flexibility to counter the threat
of a nuclear strike, or to cope quickly
with the aftermath.
Minutes of a Cabinet office home defence
committe meeting show that officials therefore
resolved to halve the preparation time.
The Government decided to rewrite part
of the War Book, its guidelines for the
countdown to conflict.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/4668168.stm
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