The Cold War was a dangerous time where tensions were high. Spies were used to try and make sure that one country always had the edge it thought it did, or what it needed to do to have the edge. Because they were so important, the capture of spies became a very important aspect of the Cold War for all involved. This is exactly what lead to the U-2 incident in May of 1960. The U.S. spy plane U-2 was shot down in soviet territory with pilot Francis Gary Powers being captured as a result. Despite have a poison needle in case of capture, Powers did not use it, and was used as leverage by the Russians for the U.S. to openly admit its espionage after trying to deny the true purpose of the flight. Despite being convicted in the USSR for ten years, Powers was let go in less than two years, as the United States was offering the trade of Russian spy. This event added tensions onto an already stressful scenario, and even caused USSR leaders to leave a summit set in Paris after president Eisenhower's confession.