PETER BALLANTINE,
Sir, - John C. Cotter (April 2nd) strongly supports America's policy of self-interest and I agree with him that every country should act in the best interests of its citizens.
However, I disagree with his assertion that the US people and government have the "best possible intentions towards everyone outside their borders."
When Salvador Allende, the democratically elected president of Chile, announced health and land reforms in an effort to reduce widespread poverty, alarm bells rang in Washington. With unlimited dollars at its disposal, the CIA paid off the country's truck owners, thereby bringing the country to a standstill, the result of which was severe food shortage. This covert action resulted in the rise to power of the brutal dictator Augusto Pinochet, whose British-built planes bombed the presidential palace on September 11th 1973, killing Allende and many more.
Similar atrocities occurred in Cuba with the burning of the sugar cane crops and the blowing up of a merchant ship in Havana harbour killing more than 100 people, not to mention the many CIA assassination attempts on the Cuban president, Fidel Castro.
The Reagan administration sold arms to Iran to fund and train a terrorist organisation in Nicaragua, the Contras, in an effort to topple another democratically elected government. Sounds very much like US-sponsored terrorism.
No, Mr Cotter, America's involvement in other, usually poor countries is for two reasons; military strategy and to safeguard the interests of multi-million dollar corporations. - Yours , etc.,
PETER BALLANTINE,
Grange Downs,
Rathfarnham,
Dublin 14.