Posted on 03/15/2006 11:25:26 AM PST by JZelle
China is stepping up military training in Latin America because of a law that limits U.S. military support to nations in the region, the general in charge of the U.S. Southern Command told Congress yesterday. Gen. Bantz J. Craddock, who oversees U.S. military activities in the region, said a lack of engagement on the part of the United States has benefited China. "If we are not there and we can't provide this opportunity, someone else will," Gen. Craddock told the Senate Armed Services Committee. "Other nations are moving in. The People's Republic of China has made many offers, and now we are seeing those who formerly would come to the United States going to China." The growing Chinese role comes amid numerous high-level visits by its leaders and other activities aimed at building military and economic ties to leftist governments and other states in a strategic region long-considered within the U.S. sphere of influence.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
I take it this vacuum was created when we shut down our Jungle Warfare school in Panama back in '99?
This nation's leaders act as if they had a death wish at times. For crying out loud, how tough was this to fugure out up front?
"This nation's leaders act as if they had a death wish at times."
Yeah, but not for themselves...
I thought it was the "School of the Americas" (Ft. Benning) that the lefties, including Martin Sheen, were after. This was the school which has its share of infamous graduates.
You can thank those stupid b!tches at Mothers Against Military Madness for shutting down the School for the Americas. Their lunacy is a major factor in the rise of communism in Latin America.
Ping
Leaders? We have leaders? Crap! I'm always the last one to get the memos...
For God's sake - have we forgotten the Monroe Doctrine of 18 twenty something (I think) in which we asserted that we will not condone colonialism in our backyard (Western Hemisphere) by foreign powers.
Consequently, this freed the region of meddling Europeans so that we could impose our own form of colonialism on the region. And, it has remained so ever since. Between the Chineese and Chavez, we had better focus a little attention down south.
Oh yeah, The School of the Americas, thanks. I knew the Jungle Warfare school wasn't it, or all of it - just couldn't jar that piece of info out of my noggin.
Which is why we need to keep an eye on governments like Chavez's. China is using the same stregy as Russia did with Castro.
Bet the PLA doesn't have to put up with protesters outside its version of the School of the Americas (or whatever it is called these days).
thanks
Interesting.
So we moved it and renamed it. You don't think we would really let a few liberal soccer moms kill such a valuable tool of our foreign policy do you?
The chicoms intend to protect their oil interests. The word "fungible" will cease to exist as regards oil.
In 2001 the SOA changed it's name to "Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation" (WHISC). It's methods and techniques remain largely unchanged.
It had indeed been located in Panama (under a different name) until '84 I think, when it was relo'd to Ft. Benning, as a consequence of the Panama Canal Treaty.
That's true.
I checked the date on my memo, and the date was 1986. I don't think you missed any pertinent memos.
ping
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