WASHINGTON - OCTOBER 22, 1962:  (EDITORIAL USE ONLY)  (FILE PHOTO)  U.S. President John F. Kennedy speaks during a televised speech to the nation about the strategic blockade of Cuba and his warning to the Soviet Union about missile sanctions during the Cuban missile crisis October 24, 1962 in Washington, DC. Former Russian and U.S. officials attending a conference commemorating the 40th anniversary of the missile crisis October 2002 in Cuba said that the world was closer to a nuclear conflict during the 1962 standoff between Cuba and the U.S., than governments were aware of.  (Photo by Getty Images)