Back Channel to Cuba

Back Channel to Cuba — Full Chapter Overview

• Chapter 1: Recommendation

• Chapter 2: Modern U.S.–Cuban ties began with the revolution in 1959.

• Chapter 3: By Eisenhower’s end, formal diplomatic negotiations were no longer considered a viable option in Washington.

• Chapter 4: Despite ramping up covert efforts against Castro, John F. Kennedy sustained ongoing peaceful talks.

• Chapter 5: Prospects for normalization stalled during the Cuban Missile Crisis, but prisoner negotiations left the door open afterward.

• Chapter 6: James Donovan and a determined reporter kept the possibility of ongoing negotiations alive.

• Chapter 7: John F. Kennedy’s assassination, and the ensuing Johnson administration, hampered ongoing negotiating efforts badly.

• Chapter 8: Richard Nixon rejected talks with Cuba; Henry Kissinger harbored different ideas entirely.

• Chapter 9: Henry Kissinger worked to sustain back-channel talks throughout the turbulent period of Gerald R. Ford’s presidency.

• Chapter 10: President Jimmy Carter pursued talks with Cuba, but a crisis ultimately ended his term on a sour note.

• Chapter 11: Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush negotiated with Cuba only when compelled.

• Chapter 12: For Bill Clinton, politics drove dealings with Cuba.

• Chapter 13: Following a deadly incident, Clinton concluded his presidency with improved ties between the United States and Cuba.

• Chapter 14: George W. Bush maintained pressure on Cuba, while Obama advanced a different approach entirely.

• Chapter 15: Though Obama’s first term fell short on progress, his second term opened with encouraging signs indeed.