United States involvement in regime change
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
United States involvement in regime change encompasses both overt and covert actions aimed at altering, replacing, or preserving foreign governments.
Contents
Overt involvements
Many interventions have included overt support or opposition to specific regimes.
Prior to 1895
American forces occupied
New Mexico and
California, then invaded parts of
Northeastern Mexico and
Northwestern Mexico; Another American army captured Mexico City, and the war ended in victory of the U.S.
The
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo specified the major consequence of the war: the forced
Mexican Cession of the territories of
Alta California and
New Mexico to the U.S. in exchange for $18 million. In addition, the United States forgave debt owed by the Mexican government to U.S. citizens. Mexico accepted the loss of Texas and thereafter cited the
Rio Grande as its national border.
- 1893 Hawaii. The overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii refers to an event of January 17, 1893, in which anti-monarchial elements within the Kingdom of Hawaii, composed largely of American citizens, engineered the overthrow of its native monarch, Queen Lili'uokalani. Hawaii was initially reconstituted as an independent republic, but the ultimate goal of the revolutionaries was the annexation of the islands to the United States, which was finally accomplished in 1898.
1895–1917
See also:
Banana Wars
- 1898 Cuba and Puerto Rico, as part of the Spanish–American War, U.S. intervention in Cuba and invasion of Puerto Rico in 1898. Cuba was occupied by the U.S. from 1898–1902 under military governor Leonard Wood, and again from 1906–1909, 1912 and 1917–1922; governed by the terms of the Platt Amendment through 1934.
The
Puerto Rican Campaign was an American military sea and land operation on the island of
Puerto Rico during the
Spanish–American War. The
United States Navy attacked the
archipelago's capital,
San Juan. Though the damage inflicted on the city was minimal, the Americans were able to establish a
blockade in the city’s harbor,
San Juan Bay. The land offensive began on July 25 with 1,300 infantry soldiers.
All military actions in Puerto Rico were suspended on August 13, after U.S. President
William McKinley and French Ambassador
Jules Cambon, acting on behalf of the Spanish government, signed an
armistice whereby Spain relinquished its sovereignty over the territories of Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Philippines and Guam.
- 1899 Philippines, the Philippine–American War was part of a series of conflicts in the Philippine struggle for independence. Fighting erupted between U.S. and Filipino revolutionary forces on February 4, 1899, and quickly escalated into the 1899 Battle of Manila. On June 2, 1899, the First Philippine Republic officially declared war against the United States.[4] The war officially ended on July 4, 1902.[5]
- 1912 Nicaragua, which, after intermittent landings and naval bombardments in the previous decades, was occupied by the U.S. almost continuously from 1912 through 1933.
- 1915 Haiti. Haiti was occupied by the U.S. from 1915–1934, which led to the creation of a new Haitian constitution in 1917 that instituted changes that included an end to the prior ban on land ownership by non-Haitians. Including the First and Second Caco Wars.[9]
Since World War I
The
Aftermath of World War I saw drastic political, cultural, and social change across Europe, Asia, Africa, and even in areas outside those that were directly involved in the war. Four empires collapsed due to the war, old countries were abolished, new ones formed, boundaries were redrawn. The Great War saw
changes of government in Russia, Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire, China, Mexico, Greece, Ireland, and Egypt.
- 1958 Lebanon crisis. The President of the United States, Eisenhower authorized Operation Blue Bat on July 15, 1958. This was the first application of the Eisenhower Doctrine under which the U.S. announced that it would intervene to protect regimes it considered threatened by international communism. The goal of the operation was to bolster the pro-Western Lebanese government of President Camille Chamoun against internal opposition and threats from Syria and Egypt.
- 1965 Dominican Republic. U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson, convinced of the defeat of the Loyalist forces and fearing the creation of "a second Cuba"[14] on America's doorstep, ordered U.S. forces to restore order. The decision to intervene militarily in the Dominican Republic was Lyndon Johnson's personal decision. All civilian advisers had recommended against immediate intervention hoping that the Loyalist side could bring an end to the civil war.
President Johnson took the advice of his Ambassador in Santo Domingo, W. Tapley Bennett, who suggested that the US interpose its forces between the rebels and those of the junta, thereby effecting a cease-fire. Chief of Staff General Wheeler told a subordinate: "Your unannounced mission is to prevent the Dominican Republic from going Communist."
[15] A fleet of 41 vessels was sent to blockade the island, and an invasion was launched. Ultimately, 42,000 soldiers and marines were ordered to the Dominican Republic.
- 1989 Panama The United States Invasion of Panama, code-named Operation Just Cause, was the invasion of Panama by the United States in December 1989. It occurred during the administration of George H. W. Bush, and ten years after the Torrijos–Carter Treaties were ratified to transfer control of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama by the year 2000.
During the invasion,
de facto Panamanian leader, general, and dictator
Manuel Noriega was deposed, president-elect
Guillermo Endara sworn into office, and the
Panamanian Defense Force dissolved.
- 1991 Kuwait - The Persian Gulf War (2 August 1990 – 28 February 1991), codenamed Operation Desert Storm (17 January 1991 – 28 February 1991) commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a UN-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.
Covert involvements
During the modern area, Americans were involved in numerous covert actions to support international regime change. During the Cold War era, American influence helped support change of regime in
Syria in 1949,
Iran in 1953,
Guatemala in 1954,
Brazil in 1964.
