Assignment 4 – United States invaded the nation of Panama

Written Assignment 4

For Written Assignment 4, write a 750- 1000 word paper on the following topic.

In December of 1989, the United States invaded the nation of Panama to depose and arrest its dictator Manuel Noriega. Noriega had been an ally of the United States and a paid employee of the CIA for several decades prior to this. He was an advocate of U.S. strategic interests in the region during the Cold War. (Panama is the host nation of the Panama Canal—which is vital to U.S. shipping and trade.) He was also paid large sums from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration for assistance with drug trafficking interdiction, although he was a known supporter to drug traffickers loyal to U.S. interests.

Relations between Noriega and the United States began to deteriorate during the Reagan Administration in the mid-1980s when his increasingly open ties to both the CIA and illegal drug trafficking became more widely known (and in conflict with the new U.S. drug policies). He then began openly opposing and sometimes intimidating U.S. sponsored political rivals in Panama.

In 1989, four U.S. servicemen were shot and killed by Panamanian troops in the Panama Canal Zone, then under U.S. jurisdiction. Several days later, President George H.W. Bush ordered the invasion of Panama and the capture, arrest, and the U.S. incarceration of Noriega. The justification for this was:

1. The necessity of protecting U.S. citizens living in the Canal Zone.
2. Defending democracy.
3. To stop drug trafficking that was coming from Latin America.

The war lasted several weeks, with 25 U.S. soldiers and as many as 3,000 Panamanian civilians killed. Much of the international community objected strongly to this invasion because of the apparent lack of legitimate provocation or need, the arbitrary overthrow and incarceration of a national sovereign, and the civilian casualties caused in accomplishing this.

• Does this example fit Cohen’s definition for military necessity? Why or why not?
• Do you think this act was an ethically justifiable action? Why or why not?

Explanation & Answer

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