3: Cuba, hot spot close to home
For most of the 20th Century, the U.S. used bases in Cuba and Puerto Rico to maintain a constant force in an area that was critical to the country's security and shipping

When Fidel Castro's communist regime developed an alliance with the Soviet Union after taking control of the island in 1959, Atlantic Command suddenly had one of the Cold War's hottest spots within its geographical area. In 1961, the command found itself involved in the failed, CIA-sponsored Bay of Pigs invasion.

Not informed of the invasion until the last moment, Atlantic Command leaders made what they considered to be the best possible decisions for a mission they felt was flawed. The command shifted naval forces and a battalion of Marines to an area that might influence the invasion, but did not participate. In the end, forces from the command helped evacuate remaining rebel Cubans who hadn't been captured
by Castro's government.

Just over a year later, the Cuban Missile Crisis drew Atlantic Command forces into one of the Cold War's most dangerous episodes. After the CIA confirmed the presence of Soviet nuclear missiles on the island, President John F. Kennedy ordered Atlantic Command to form a 500-mile "quarantine" to interdict all ships
entering Cuban waters.

Concurrently the command prepared amphibious forces for a possible invasion. From Oct. 22 to 28, 1962, Atlantic Command naval forces engaged the Soviets in a tense confrontation at sea, backed by land and air forces of each nation.

After Soviet withdrawal of its missiles from Cuba, tensions diminished and both sides stood down. Although the problem of a communist nation in the Caribbean was never solved, tensions in the region have not reached the same confrontational level since then.

4: Intervention in the Dominican Republic
To ensure the 1965 civil war in the Dominican Republic would not lead to another communist-ruled Soviet satellite in the Caribbean, President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered Atlantic Command forces to intervene

Once established in the capital city of Santo Domingo, U.S. forces separated the two warring factions and then consolidated control over the city. Separating the left and the right wing groups was successful, but not easy.

Until order was restored, U.S. forces were frequently caught in the middle of fighting that claimed 27 Americans lives. After about a week, U.S. presence proved effective. A cease-fire was declared. Over the next year, U.S. forces remained in the Dominican Republic to maintain stability.

The election of a new president in June 1966 ensured the Dominican Republic completed the transition to a democratic government. After the election, all U.S. forces withdrew from Santo Domingo.

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