Geopolitical Economy Report
How CIA overthrew Guatemala's elected president for United Fruit Company (with historian Aaron Good)
Jan 22, 2023
Historian Aaron Good discusses the CIA's coup against Guatemala's President to support United Fruit Company, US imperialism in Latin America, the CIA's assassination manual and techniques, US overthrowing Latin American governments, consequences of Guatemala's coup, and US involvement in third world operations.
50:07
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Quick takeaways
- The CIA orchestrated a coup in Guatemala to protect the interests of the United Fruit Company.
- The US actively worked to prevent free elections in Vietnam and installed a puppet leader.
Deep dives
French Indo-China War and US Influence
The United States provided significant financial support to the French war efforts in French Indo-China, with the aim of maintaining Western domination in the region. The US even considered using nuclear weapons during the conflict. In the Geneva Accords of 1954, which aimed to end the war, it was agreed that Vietnam would be divided into North and South, with free elections scheduled for 1956 to determine the country's unified future. However, the US refused to sign the agreement and scuttled the elections, as they estimated that Ho Chi Minh would have won resoundingly. Instead, the US installed a Catholic puppet leader, Ngo Dinh Diem, in South Vietnam.
