October 30, 1962
Chinese Embassy in Cuba, A Report on a Conversation with Two Deputy Department Heads of Cuban General Staff
This document was made possible with support from Leon Levy Foundation
Foreign Ministry and the 2nd Department of the General Staff,
On the 30th [of October], two deputy department heads of the Cuban General Staff, respectively from the revolutionary education department and the film department, talked to our military attaché. They said that [Cuban] troops were in a high spirit and on constant alarm, and that [Cuban troops] would not believe the so-called guarantee from American imperialism; instead, they believe in their own strength, the strength of the people and the support of socialist countries and all people of the world. We enquired about the response of the troops towards Fidel [Castro]’s statement, letters from [Nikita] Khrushchev and [John F.] Kennedy, and [UN Secretary-General] U Thant’s visit to Cuba. The deputy director of revolutionary education said that the general response is that [the troops] believe Fidel’s statement, believe our leader’s words. The troops were discussing Fidel’s statement, during which they did not mention Khrushchev or the Soviet Union alone, [they] instead only spoke of socialist countries; [Cuban troops] paid close heed to our country’s [China’s] statement, popular assemblies in Beijing and Tianjin metropolises.
Besides, [we] heard that on the 28th [of October] [sic] an American airplane was shot down by anti-aircraft rockets, exploded immediately with the wreckage spreading across an area of 12 square kilometers.[1]
Embassy in Cuba
30 October 1962
[1] Ed. Note: The US U-2 plan was actually downed over Cuba on the afternoon of Saturday, 27 October, not 28 October.
Two department heads of the Cuban general staff (revolutionary education and film departments) spoke with the military attache to the Chinese embassy in Cuba. They discussed morale of the Cuban troops, relations with other socialist countries and the American airplane shot down over Cuba.
Author(s):
Associated Topics
Document Information
Source
Original Archive
Rights
The History and Public Policy Program welcomes reuse of Digital Archive materials for research and educational purposes. Some documents may be subject to copyright, which is retained by the rights holders in accordance with US and international copyright laws. When possible, rights holders have been contacted for permission to reproduce their materials.
To enquire about this document's rights status or request permission for commercial use, please contact the History and Public Policy Program at HAPP@wilsoncenter.org.