How Did The Cold War Affect Latin America

In the 1960s and 1970 the Cold war began to truly influence the political and social climate in Latin America. The great battle for power between the United States and the USSR was a global conflict and ended up raising tension between the United States and Latin American Nations. An excellent example of this is Cuba who began to follow many Marxist tendencies and utilize the communist agenda to bring in a new Cuban future. With the practically self appointed Castro at the helm and the Russians eager to get an upper hand we get the Cuban Missile crisis that distress US Latin American relations for years to come.

Interestingly enough however the US Military and many Latin American Militaries had great working relationships. This was due to the fact that America provided weapons and training for many leaders of Latin American Armies. There was a method to this madness and that was the Americans could handle the larger global threat while the Local Latin American Armies could focus inward on uprisings from the inside. Also this gave the militaries of each respective Latin American Country more time and influence over the day-to-day political activities instead of dealing with outside threats.

In Brazil there were many members of the military who had aided America During World War II. These military leaders preferred to stay in close relation …show more content…
For example after the failed Falklands war between Great Britain and Argentina the military defeat ushered in Civilian elections and civilian governments throughout the region. This similar scene played out in many countries throughout Latin America. The upswing in Capitalist ventures ended up leading to many entrepreneurs taking their venture capital and placing it on Narcotics. With limited exports from many nations this was a fast way to the top. It also was a fast way to get attention from the United States and their “War on