Manuel Noriega - United States Invasion of Panama

United States Invasion of Panama

The U.S. imposed economic sanctions, and in the months that followed, a tense standoff occurred between the U.S. military forces (stationed in the canal area) and Noriega's troops. On December 15, 1989, the PRD-dominated legislature spoke of "a state of war" between the United States and Panama. It also declared Noriega "chief executive officer" of the government, formalizing a state of affairs that had existed for six years. Noriega subsequently claimed that this statement referred to U.S. actions against Panama, and did not represent a declaration of hostilities by Panama. The U.S. forces conducted regular "freedom of movement" maneuvers and operations, such as Operation Sand Flea and Operation Purple Storm. Psychological warfare designed to harass the enemy, the U.S. military contended that the exercises were justified by the Panama Canal Treaty of 1980 (the Torrijos-Carter Treaties), which guaranteed U.S. forces freedom of movement in the country in defense of the canal. Panama considered the exercises a violation of the treaties, and Noriega called them acts of war.

On the other hand, Noriega's forces are said to have engaged in routine harassment of U.S. troops and civilians. Three incidents in particular occurred very near the time of the invasion, and were mentioned by U.S. President George H. W. Bush as a reason for invasion. In a December 16 incident, four U.S. personnel were stopped at a roadblock outside PDF headquarters in the El Chorrillo neighborhood of Panama City. The United States Department of Defense said that the servicemen were unarmed and in a private vehicle and that they attempted to flee the scene only after their vehicle was surrounded by a crowd of civilians and PDF troops. Second Lieutenant Robert Paz of the United States Marine Corps was shot and killed in the incident. The LA Times claims that sources state Paz was a member of the Hard Chargers, a group not sanctioned by the military whose goal was to agitate members of the PDF. The PDF claimed that the Americans were armed and on a reconnaissance mission. Major General Marc A. Cisneros, deputy commander of the Southern Command at the time of the invasion, said in a recent interview, "The story you've got from somebody that these guys were a vigilante group trying to provoke an incident—that is absolutely false". According to an official U.S. military report, a U.S. naval officer and his wife who were witnesses to the incident were assaulted by Panamanian Defense Force soldiers while in police custody. A week before the U.S. invasion, a cable from an American diplomat to Washington described Noriega as a "master of survival" and, according to the New York Times, the diplomat did not have an inkling of the coming invasion one week later.

The U.S. invasion of Panama was launched on December 20, 1989. Losses on the U.S. side were 24 troops and 3 civilian casualties. On December 29, the General Assembly of the United Nations voted 75–20 with 40 abstentions to condemn the invasion as a flagrant violation of international law. According to a CBS poll, 92% of Panamanian adults supported the U.S. incursion, and 76% wished that U.S. forces had invaded in October during the coup. However, left-wing activist Barbara Trent disputed this finding, claiming in a 1992 documentary that the Panamanian surveys were completed in wealthy, English-speaking neighborhoods in Panama City, among Panamanians most likely to support U.S. actions.