Final answer:
The Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961 was a failed CIA-led effort to overthrow Fidel Castro's government in Cuba. The operation, authorized by President Kennedy, resulted in a significant political embarrassment for the US as Castro's forces quickly suppressed the invasion, leading to increased Soviet influence in Cuba.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was a significant event in the Cold War history where the CIA orchestrated a covert operation to overthrow the communist government of Fidel Castro in Cuba. In 1961, the United States, under the administration of President Kennedy, armed and trained Cuban exiles to initiate a coup. The operation was initially conceived during the Eisenhower administration and aimed to promote the creation of a Cuban government more aligned with US interests. However, the invasion failed disastrously due to several factors, including the lack of local uprising against Castro's regime, the absence of promised US air support, and Castro's quick mobilization of Cuban forces supported by Soviet military aid.
In the wake of the invasion's failure, Castro grew stronger and it drove him closer to the Soviet Union, leading to further events such as the Cuban Missile Crisis. Kennedy eventually accepted responsibility for the fiasco and worked on damage control, including negotiation for the release of the captured invaders. The incident has since been analyzed as a misjudgment by the US, which overestimated the support for the invasion among the Cuban populace, and underestimated Castro's popular support and military capability.