Central America is the oldest region of U.S. external influence. It also remains one of the most important for U.S. interests. The history of American involvement in the region is a mixed one, with great successes, but also tragic failures and crimes. In recent decades, American supremacy has been maintained, the Communist threat in the region defeated, and forms of democracy established. But the cost to the peoples of the region, and to the international reputation of the U.S., has often been very high; and even today, many of the countries in the region remain extremely poor, with weak, corrupt and unstable democratic systems.

Strangely, however, the history of the U.S. in this region is only rarely referred to when it comes to reflecting on U.S. strategies elsewhere. This panel aims to help remedy that defect by examining the history of U.S. anti-guerrilla and democracy-building efforts in Central America, and comparing them to our present-day strategy in the Middle East.