Operation Just Cause

Operation Just Cause was the U.S. military invasion of Panama that deposed Manuel Noriega in December 1989, during the administration of U.S. President George H. W. Bush.

International reaction

On December 22 the Organization of American States passed a resolution deploring the invasion and calling for withdrawal of U.S. troops. A similar resolution was passed on December 29 by the United Nations General Assembly. Earlier, a Security Council resolution condemning the invasion had been vetoed by the United States, United Kingdom and France (See Facts on File, December 31, 1989 reference).

Related Topics:
Organization of American States - United Nations - General Assembly - Security Council - United Kingdom - France

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After the invasion, governments throughout Latin America — including the government of Chile under Augusto Pinochet, which was generally supportive of United States policies — issued statements condemning the invasion and calling for the immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops. One of the reasons Bush gave for the invasion, the reestablishment of democracy in Panama, was widely viewed with suspicion, since the United States was perceived throughout Latin America as serving its own strategic interests, often at the expense of democratic principles. The United States had shown little concern for the establishment of military dictatorships in countries such as Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and El Salvador, as these new regimes proved valuable in stemming the tide of Soviet influence in the region. Noriega himself was considered to be a former puppet of the United States who had cooperated with American efforts to destabilize the Sandinista regime in Nicaragua. It is generally believed that during that time the United States did little to curtail his involvement in drug trafficking.

Related Topics:
Latin America - Chile - Augusto Pinochet - Argentina - Uruguay - El Salvador - Sandinista - Nicaragua

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The various reasons supplied by the United States to justify the invasion were widely regarded in Latin America as a thin veneer to disguise other intentions, such as the reestablishment of military bases in Panama or even the overturning the Torrijos-Carter treaties themselves. These fears had some credibility, justified by the opposition within the United States Congress to handing the canal over to Panama by the year 2000 as required by the treaties, although in the end the United States fulfilled its treaty obligations and turned over the canal and military bases to Panama.

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It was also believed that the United States wanted to retain its influence in the administration of the canal. According to the timetable stipulated by the Torrijos-Carter treaties, the United States was scheduled to hand over the administration of the canal to Panama on January 1, 1990. The Panamanian government under Noriega had said it intended to appoint Tomás Altamirano Duque, widely known as a Noriega loyalist to the top administrator post. This choice was unacceptable to the United States, which had expressed fears he would excessively politicize canal operation.

Related Topics:
January 1 - 1990

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