Nixon, Kissinger, and Allende
U.S. Involvement in the 1973 Coup in Chile
By (author) Lubna Z. Qureshi
Publication date:
16 December 2008Length of book:
192 pagesPublisher
Lexington BooksDimensions:
240x161mm6x9"
ISBN-13: 9780739126554
In the thirty-five years since the violent overthrow of Chilean President Salvador Allende, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has vehemently denied U.S. involvement. Almost with the same breath, Kissinger suggests that the democratically elected Allende represented Soviet aggression in Latin America, therefore posing a threat to the United States' physical security.
Newly released documents reveal the Nixon administration's efforts to undermine Allende, while indicating that Nixon and Kissinger did not believe the socialist regime in Santiago endangered the United States or even had close ties to Moscow. The White House feared that the Chilean experiment would encourage other Latin American countries to challenge U.S. hegemony. Nixon, Kissinger, and Allende explores the president's cultural and intellectual prejudices against Latin America and the economic pressures that induced action against Allende.
Newly released documents reveal the Nixon administration's efforts to undermine Allende, while indicating that Nixon and Kissinger did not believe the socialist regime in Santiago endangered the United States or even had close ties to Moscow. The White House feared that the Chilean experiment would encourage other Latin American countries to challenge U.S. hegemony. Nixon, Kissinger, and Allende explores the president's cultural and intellectual prejudices against Latin America and the economic pressures that induced action against Allende.
Qureshi's elegantly written study offers a fresh and well-researched interpretation of U.S. foreign policy toward Chile during the Allende presidency. This book explains U.S. opposition to the Allende government by highlighting Nixon and Kissinger's imperial disdain for Latin America in general and Chile in particular, their fundamental ignorance of the region, and the influence of the U.S. business community. Qureshi draws on an array of sources, including the Nixon tapes, U.S. and Chilean government documents, and secondary sources to shed new light on a pivotal moment in U.S. history. She also discusses the history and importance of Charles Horman and Frank Teruggi, two North Americans killed by the Chilean military (with possible U.S. government complicity) following the September 11, 1973, coup that overthrew Allende. For anyone who wants a clearer understanding of U.S. foreign policy toward Chile during the Nixon presidency, this book is essential reading.