World Events: Shooting War in Guatemala

Abstract

Secretary Dulles declared war on Guatemala during the Caracas meeting of American States in March, 1954. In April and May, the war passed through its cold phases. The Guatemalan Government, reporting political exiles stirring trouble in Honduras and Nicaragua, proposed to buy arms in the United States. Washington refused permission. Guatemala then purchased the desired equipment in Europe —some from Eastern Europe and some from Switzerland. An arms shipment from Poland was protested by the State Department and denounced by the United States press, which proclaimed the establishment of a "Communist bridgehead" in the Americas, separated by only a few miles from the Panama Canal. Tension mounted until June 18th, when armed forces, led by Guatemalan exiles, attacked by land from Honduras, by sea, and from the air.

This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website, where most recent articles are published in full.

Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.