Abstract

CASTRILLON, Javier. THE COLD WAR IN COLOMBIA: COLOMBIAN DEFENCE POLICY AND THE ROLE OF THE UNITED STATES, 1966-1970. rev.relac.int.estrateg.segur. [online]. 2013, vol.8, n.1, pp.85-112. ISSN 1909-3063.

Despite the great importance and implications of the Cold War in Latin America, our understanding about its effects in Colombia is scarce. Certainly, little is known in regard to it and the middle 1960s, turning point in which external trends affected in a definitive manner the discourse and means of the Colombian conflict. Thus, the main objective of this dissertation is uncovering the consequences that the Cold War had over Colombian defence policy, as well as the internal motivations that made Lleras Restrepo's government to require American military aid. This is done by assessing primary sources, specifically, governmental documents, intelligence reports, diaries, speeches, and congressional memories. The final results show how Colombian elites represented in the National Front (FN) used consciously defence policy in order to maintain a convenient status quo, all this, amid social uneasiness and the growing presence of both Cuban and American influence.

Keywords : Colombia; United States; Lleras Restrepo; Defence Policy; Comunism.

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