The long history of US interventions in Latin America

The recent US attack on Venezuela is yet another chapter in a long history of American military interventions and political influence in the region, which has been going on for more than 200 years, with several examples during the Cold War.

In the early hours of January 3, 2026, American forces captured controversial Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Both were transferred to the United States, where Maduro, now deposed, faces narco-terrorism charges.

The American operation – questioned by many experts in international law – broke a decades-long fast for a long history of interventions of the United States in Latin America, being the first such episode of the 21st century.

In her book Covert Regime Change: America’s Secret Cold War, Lindsey O’Rourke, professor of political science at Boston College, identified 23 cases in which the United States attempted to overthrow governments in Latin America between 1949 and 1989. They include covert support for nine of the military coups that took place during the Cold War, such as in Brazil and Chile, repeated attempts to kill Cuba’s Fidel Castro, and the invasion of Panama to overthrow dictator (and former ally) Manuel Noriega.

According to O’Rourke’s work, these actions were not exclusive to the Cold War, but part of a century-old geopolitical strategy to dominate the Western Hemisphere – and often resulted in greater political instability in target countries.

These interventions took place both directly, with the use of American military and intelligence forces, and indirectly, carried out by local actors encouraged and supported by the USA, as historian John Coatsworth, former dean of Columbia University, points out in an analysis published in a Harvard University magazine.

Direct interventions are more easily identified and widely documented, as was the recent case in Venezuela, while indirect interventions require an “exercise of historical judgment,” Coatsworth pointed out. Latin American dictatorships installed during the Cold War are some of these less obvious cases.

American authorities attributed almost all of their interventionist movements in the region to defending US security, even though the country has not faced no significant military threat in Latin America at no point in the 20th century observed Coatsworth.

Many of these interventions can be related to Monroe Doctrinea foreign policy principle that, despite its origins in the 19th century, has continued to influence U.S. foreign policy for the past 200 years.

What is the Monroe Doctrine?

The Monroe Doctrine dates back to 1823, when President James Monroe warned European powers against meddling in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere.

The doctrine was later expanded by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, in what became known as the Roosevelt Corollary. He argued that the US has the right to intervene in Latin American countries to stop what he called “chronic wrongdoing” and instability.

The U.S. national security strategy published in 2025 states: “After years of neglect, the United States will reaffirm and apply the Monroe Doctrine to restore American pre-eminence in the Western Hemisphere and protect our homeland and our access to important geographic regions throughout the region.”

Trump also referred to the doctrine shortly after American forces captured Maduro, saying: “The Monroe Doctrine is very important, but we replaced it with something much, much bigger. Now they call it the ‘Donroe Doctrine‘”.

Below are some examples of US interventions in Latin America since World War II:

1954, Guatemala: Government overthrown in a CIA-backed coup

In one of the first interventions of the Cold War in Latin America, the US supported the overthrow of the democratically elected president of Guatemala, Jacobo Arbenzwhich had introduced land reforms that would nationalize properties, including those belonging to the US-based United Fruit Company (now Chiquita Brands International).

The Eisenhower administration considered the Arbenz government a communist threatwith Secretary of State John Foster Dulles accusing Arbenz of installing a “communist-type reign of terror.”

CIA agents supported a force of Guatemalan exiles and installed Carlos Castillo Armas as president, who quickly reversed land reforms.

1961, Cuba: Bay of Pigs Invasion

After Fidel Castro’s communist revolution in 1959, the US became increasingly concerned about Cuba’s relationship with the Soviet Union. President Dwight D. Eisenhower devised a plan to overthrow the Cuban leader, which was carried out by President John F. Kennedy in 1961.

1,400 Cuban exiles trained by the CIA landed in the Bay of Pigs, about 200 km from the capital, Havana. With the expectation of triggering a revolution and overthrow Castrothe plan quickly failed. Castro sent around 20,000 soldiers to the beaches, forcing the surrender.

The failure was a major embarrassment for the US, intensifying Cold War tensions in the region.

1965, Dominican Republic: second Cuba?

The then President of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson, sent 20 thousand marines to the Dominican Republic to suppress the civil conflict that was ravaging the country, after Juan Bosch came to power after the death of dictator Leónidas Trujillo, in 1961, deposed by the military.

The intention of the United States was to prevent the country from falling into the hands of communism and create “a second Cuba” in the Caribbean.

Washington placed General Antonio Imbert Barrera at the head of the government and, in September 1966, US troops left the country, shortly before the presidential elections were held, in which Bosch was defeated by Joaquín Balaguer, who had been part of dictator Trujillo’s government and would remain in power until 1996.

1973, Chile: Covert operations and a military coup

Still alarmed by the communist regime in Cuba and the prospect of Soviet influence in the Western Hemisphere, the U.S. opposed the socialist government of President Salvador Allende in Chile since the beginning. Washington viewed Allende’s nationalization of key industries and close ties to the Soviet Union as a threat to U.S. interests.

Although the US did not directly carry out the coup, Washington sought to destabilize Chile through diplomatic pressure, financial restrictions, funding of opposition groups, and anti-Allende propaganda.

In September 1973, the Chilean armed forces, led by Augusto Pinochetoverthrew Allende. Pinochet took power after Allende’s death during the coup.

The right-wing dictator would rule Chile for 17 years, marking the end of a 46-year history of democratic rule in the country. His government was marked by disappearances and widespread torture.

1983, Grenada: Operation Urgent Fury

Following the assassination of Grenada’s Prime Minister Maurice Bishop during an internal coup, President Ronald Reagan ordered the invasion of the Caribbean island. He cited the need to protect American citizens and ensure the security of the region.

Known as Operation Urgent Fury, the invasion came at a time when the US was alarmed about Grenada’s relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba.

The invasion was heavily criticized by the United Nations General Assembly, which wrote that the intervention was “a flagrant violation of international law and the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of that State”.

1989, Panama: Operation Just Cause

In December 1989, President George HW Bush launched a full-scale invasion of Panama under Operation Just Cause, sending some 24,000 troops to dismiss general Manuel Noriega of power.

Noriega, once a US ally, was indicted and arrested in the US on charges including drug trafficking, extortion and money laundering.

After the invasion, the USA installed Guillermo Endara as president.

Unlike previous Cold War interventions, the invasion of Panama did not target a communist, but a former ally and informant.