OPERATION 'JUST CAUSE' > U.S. invasion of Panama (1989-90)

  

An intervention carried out with the aim to maintain Washington's dominance in Latin America.

Cold War US Tactics

United States of America vs Republic of Panama

The construction of a short cut from the Pacific to the Atlantic Oceans was a pipe dream for much of the 19th century for both the British and Americans. If a canal existed, then trade would be substantially easier and the United States would be the prime beneficiary. Thus, the US took a keen political, economic, and military interest in the isthmus of Panama, with construction of the canal finally taking place before the First World War.

To protect its vital national interests, the United States maintained a large military presence there throughout the 20th century and should anything threaten that, they would be primed to respond. 

When, in the 1980s, with political arguments about the future control over the canal at their zenith and a new political leader in Panama in the form of Manuel Noriega, the scene was set for a confrontation between Panama and the USA. 

This culminated in an invasion of Panama by the US at the end of 1989 – an invasion which deposed Noriega and ensured US control over the canal until 1999, when it was handed over to the people of Panama. 

The invasion would see a series of combined aerial assaults on key facilities and special forces operations. Other than a few BTRs encountered during the invasion of Grenada 1983, the US potentially faced the prospect of using armored vehicles against enemy armored vehicles in combat for the first time since Vietnam.

Aftermath

Noriega was finally captured 14 days after the mission, after taking refuge in the Vatican City’s embassy for 10 days. 

After that, the somewhat ironically named ‘Operation Promote Liberty’ began by the occupying force which had just invaded the country..

 

Overall, this was a cheap operation in military terms and casualties had been light. There had also been a good display on the whole of restraint by US forces and this is shown in the relatively low civilian casualty figures, despite the density of population in the areas in which much of the operations took place. That is not to say that there were no incidents of excess by US forces because there were. US Army records show that 19 US personnel were court-martialed for offenses committed during Operation Just Cause and 17 of them convicted:

 

The USA finally transferred control of the canal to Panama, as had been originally agreed, on 31st December 1999..

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Article Video:

American Colonialism | 1989 US Invasion of Panama Part 1

The Canal

The construction of the Panama Canal was a political minefield too dangerous to cross for decades, but it was the dream of both the nascent United States and also British financial trading interests in the 19th century.In 1850, Great Britain and the US agreed in principle to a canal, albeit through the isthmus in Nicaragua, in what was known as the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. The project never got further than the treaty but it did at least allay a rivalry between the two countries over who would build a canal and control trade between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Such a canal would potentially shorten the route between the east and west coasts of the USA by 15,000 km.

• In 1880, the French, led by Ferdinand de Lesseps, the man behind the construction of the Suez Canal, began excavation through what is now Panama. 
• At the time, it was a province of Colombia. 
• After 9 years of failure, Jessops’ program went bankrupt and, a decade later, in 1901, a new treaty was made. 
• This Hay-Pauncefote Treaty replaced the earlier Clayton-Bulwer Treaty and, 
• in 1902, the US Senate agreed to the plan for a canal. 
• The site of the proposed canal was, however, the problem, with it being on Colombian territory and the financial offer made by the US to Colombia was rejected.

The result was a shameless act of imperialism from the allegedly anti-imperialist United States...