U.S. Policy in Central America
In response to the article on Noriega by Thomas Powers (Opinion, Feb. 28): I think it’s important to put the CIA’s support of Noriega in historical perspective.
That the American government, through the CIA, supports men like Noriega, the Shah of Iran and the Somozas in Nicaragua is a manifestation of a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy since World War II. Every American President since Harry Truman has supported, to one extent or another, the so-called Truman Doctrine. That is, communism is an evil ideology and we must oppose it wherever it appears.
Men like Noriega (and Marcos, Somoza, etc.) may not be our first choice as heads of state, but at least they are staunchly anti-communists. As long as stopping the spread of communism is a pillar of U.S. foreign policy, we will continue to find ourselves in the awkward position of supporting the Noriegas of the world.
JIM NEMMERT
Long Beach
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