Word: nicaragua
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...ever loyal Marine would take the "hit" if any of the many secret operations were exposed, thus protecting higher officials -- especially the President. When the Iran-contra scam did unravel, the trail led quickly to North. A private U.S. aircraft carrying supplies to the contras was shot down over Nicaragua last Oct. 5, and the downed airmen were carrying telephone numbers that linked them with Robert Owen, North's personal courier to the contras. Two days later Casey learned that angry middlemen in the Iran arms sales were claiming they had lost millions and were threatening to expose the diversion...
North said Abrams asked him to arrange for the return of the bodies of American crewmen shot down in a contra-supply plane over Nicaragua, contradicting Abrams' testimony that he was unaware of any official U.S. connection with the plane...
...whether the U.S. is trying to influence Panama's relationship with Nicaragua. The facts speak for themselves. Journalists who seek the truth will find out sooner or later, and we trust in honest journalism...
...Panama. An ingratiating host, he has allowed U.S. operations to proceed virtually unfettered. Some 10,000 military personnel are attached to the Panama-based U.S. Southern Command, Washington's military headquarters and prime listening post for Latin America. From SOUTHCOM, the U.S. can dispatch spy planes to overfly Nicaragua, monitor sensitive communications and military movements in the region and ensure the canal's smooth operation. As Panama's former intelligence chief, Noriega has ( also worked intimately with the Central Intelligence Agency. Says a State Department official: "The general figures his work with the agency is his insurance...
Noriega's continued rule troubles the Reagan Administration for two reasons. First, the White House justifies its support for the contra rebels primarily by pointing to Nicaragua's lack of democracy. Administration credibility would suffer if the U.S. appeared to be too cozy with dictators. Second, Noriega's attempts to whip up anti-American sentiment and to court countries hostile to the U.S. raise worries about the Panama Canal's future. "Can you imagine what it would be like to have the canal in the hands of a Lebanon-like country?"asks a U.S. official. Whatever pressure the U.S. decides...