720.001/9–452
Memorandum by the Officer in Charge of Central America and Panama Affairs (Siracusa) to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs (Mann)
Subject:
- Indications of Apprehension Over Communism in the Middle American Area.
In addition to previous thoughts, I have brought to your attention about a growing awareness in Central America of the threat of communist penetration from Guatemala, I want to point out the following related matter:
You will recall that in a recent memorandum I informed you that our Embassy in Nicaragua reported a belief in Nicaragua that Somoza, while in the Dominican Republic, would attempt to negotiate some form of a Middle American anti-communist alliance. A certain degree of substantiation of this report came from El Salvador when the Chief of Protocol indicated that he had been assigned to the Salvadoran Delegation to the Dominican Republic because of President Osorio’s belief that something of this nature, an anti-communist bloc, might be in the making.
Also as you will recall, Foreign Minister Canessa advised Ambassador Duke of the plan of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Panama to help finance the Echandi campaign in Costa Rica in opposition to Jose Figueres. The amount of money being spent by Echandi for newspaper ads alone certainly seems to suggest that he has adequate funds available to cover the costs of his protracted campaign.
More recently a despatch from Venezuela spoke of such an anti-communist bloc and also of the related intent to defeat Figueres.
In a despatch received from Costa Rica, No. 210 of August 28,2 some information is given as to the purpose of the Colombian Mission [Page 366] to Central America headed by Eduardo Zuleta Angel. The Embassy comments that through a completely reliable source it has learned with Dr. Zuleta’s permission that his real purpose of visiting these countries is the preoccupation of his government and of the Government of Venezuela with the activities of the communists and other political exile groups such as the Accion Democratica in this area. In Costa Rica he said he was particularly worried about the activities of Figueres and Betancourt. He also said that just as the communists around the world worked and organized together, his mission, at the personal request of President Urdaneta, “was to sound out the free governments of the Caribbean area to see if they could not also organize against communism and against revolutionary activities in this area which the communists support and foment openly or under cover.”
Piecing the articles together from our various sources of information, it would seem that something definitely is under way in the area which is primarily concerned with the threat of communism and with doing something about people such as Figueres and the various politically exiled groups which may be used by the communists.
- Despatch 210 from San José, not printed, stated that the Colombian mission visited other Central American countries ostensibly to work out an agreement to regulate the flow of coffee to the American market (720.00/8–2852).↩