The Cubans Wanted to Remove Nukes and Missiles From Cuba

Khrushchev used vague language in describing what he would be willing to remove from Cuba. Kennedy administration could name anything as an offensive system, and the Soviets would either have to pull it out or be accused of going back on the deal. Both sides knew verifying that all of the Soviet hardware had been removed would require inspections; Cubans were very unlikely to agree without some kind of quid pro quo.