While the invasion forces gathered in Florida, Kennedy ordered the U.S. State Department to develop a plan for civil governance in Cuba.
Former Secretary of State Dean Acheson and the Joint Chiefs of Staff favored an invasion, but U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy vehemently opposed that plan and instead advocated a blockade.
The President listened to his brother, and on 22 October 1962, appeared on television to explain to America and the world that the United States was imposing a strict quarantine on offensive military equipment being shipped to Cuba.
Kennedy also warned Khrushchev that the United States would regard any missile attack from Cuba as an attack from the Soviet Union and would retaliate against the Soviet Union.

The quarantine began on 24 October and tensions mounted as the Soviets continued to work on the missile sites and their ships continued moving toward Cuba.
Then on 26 October, Khrushchev sent another message in which he offered to withdraw or destroy the weapons in Cuba, provided the United States would lift the blockade and promise not to invade the island.
The increasing tempo in the military, however, continued unabated.
SAC ordered over sixty B-52 bombers to continue on airborne alert, while TAC forces in Florida assumed a one-hour alert and prepared to go to a fifteen-minute alert, which involved pilots waiting in aircraft for launch orders.

After a heated debate Robert Kennedy met with the Soviet Ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Dobrynin, and in effect, promised to remove obsolete American PGM-19 Jupiter MRBMs from Turkey.
This promise was sufficient and the next day the Soviet Union informed the United States that the missiles in Cuba would be withdrawn.
The Soviets began turning their ships around, packing up the missiles in Cuba, and dismantling the launch pads.
As the work progressed, the Air Force started to redeploy aircraft back to home bases and lower the alert status.
 The United States and Soviet Union stepped back from the brink, and the crisis was resolved without armed conflict.
Never in the history of the Cold War had the United States and the Soviet Union come so very close to mutual nuclear destruction.
While the invasion forces gathered in Florida, Kennedy ordered the U.S. State Department to develop a plan for civil governance in Cuba. Former Secretary of State Dean Acheson and the Joint Chiefs of Staff favored an invasion, but U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy vehemently opposed that plan and instead advocated a blockade. The President listened to his brother, and on 22 October 1962, appeared on television to explain to America and the world that the United States was imposing a strict quarantine on offensive military equipment being shipped to Cuba. Kennedy also warned Khrushchev that the United States would regard any missile attack from Cuba as an attack from the Soviet Union and would retaliate against the Soviet Union.
The quarantine began on 24 October and tensions mounted as the Soviets continued to work on the missile sites and their ships continued moving toward Cuba. Then on 26 October, Khrushchev sent another message in which he offered to withdraw or destroy the weapons in Cuba, provided the United States would lift the blockade and promise not to invade the island. The increasing tempo in the military, however, continued unabated. SAC ordered over sixty B-52 bombers to continue on airborne alert, while TAC forces in Florida assumed a one-hour alert and prepared to go to a fifteen-minute alert, which involved pilots waiting in aircraft for launch orders.
After a heated debate Robert Kennedy met with the Soviet Ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Dobrynin, and in effect, promised to remove obsolete American PGM-19 Jupiter MRBMs from Turkey. This promise was sufficient and the next day the Soviet Union informed the United States that the missiles in Cuba would be withdrawn. The Soviets began turning their ships around, packing up the missiles in Cuba, and dismantling the launch pads. As the work progressed, the Air Force started to redeploy aircraft back to home bases and lower the alert status.  The United States and Soviet Union stepped back from the brink, and the crisis was resolved without armed conflict. Never in the history of the Cold War had the United States and the Soviet Union come so very close to mutual nuclear destruction.
Tactical Air Command