<P> The Cuban Revolution which propelled Fidel Castro to power on January 1, 1959, initially attracted little attention in Moscow . Soviet planners, resigned to U.S. dominance over the Western hemisphere, were unprepared for the possibility of a future ally in the region . According to later testimonies from Nikita Khrushchev, neither the Soviet Communist Party Central Committee's nor KGB intelligence had any idea who Castro was or what he was fighting for . Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev advised them to consult Cuba's Communists who reported that Castro was a representative of the "haute bourgeoisie" and working for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency . </P> <P> In February 1960 Khrushchev sent his deputy Anastas Mikoyan to Cuba to discover what motivated Castro following Castro's failed trip to Washington where he was refused a meeting with President Dwight D. Eisenhower . According to reports, Khrushchev's aides had initially tried to characterize Castro as an untrustworthy American agent . Mikoyan returned from Cuba with the opinion that Castro's new administration should be helped economically and politically . Though there was no talk yet of military assistance . </P> <P> Washington's increasing economic embargo led Cuba to hurriedly seek new markets to avert economic disaster . Castro asked for help from the Soviets and in response Khrushchev approved the temporary purchase of Cuban sugar in exchange for Soviet fuel . This deal was to play a part in sustaining the Cuban economy for many years to come . Following the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion of 1961, Fidel Castro announced publicly that Cuba was to become a socialist republic . Khrushchev sent congratulations to Castro for repelling the invasion, but privately believed the Americans would soon bring the weight of their regular army to bear . The defense of Cuba became a matter of prestige for the Soviet Union, and Khruschev believed that the U.S. would block all access to the island whether by sea or air . </P> <P> Khrushchev agreed on a deployment plan in May 1962 chiefly in response to NATO positioning their nuclear missiles in Turkey in 1958, and by late July over sixty Soviet ships were en route to Cuba, some of them already carrying military material . A U.S. U-2 flight on the morning of October 14 photographed a series of SAM (surface - to - air missile) sites being constructed . In a televised address on October 22, U.S. President John F. Kennedy announced the discovery of the installations and proclaimed that any nuclear missile attack from Cuba would be regarded as an attack by the Soviet Union and would be responded to accordingly . Khrushchev sent letters to Kennedy on October 23 and 24 claiming the deterrent nature of the missiles in Cuba and the peaceful intentions of the Soviet Union . On October 26, the Soviets offered to withdraw the missiles in return for a U.S. guarantee not to invade Cuba or support any invasion and to remove all missiles set in southern Italy and in Turkey . This deal was accepted and the crisis abated . </P>

Why did cuba align itself with the soviet union
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