Modern Panama: From Occupation to Crossroads of the Americas examines Panama's political and economic changes after the US military intervention of December 1989. Michael L. Conniff and Gene E. Bigler bring to bear their extensive knowledge of the country from years of scholarly work and, in the case of Bigler, diplomatic and policy experience. The book focuses particular attention on the Panama Canal's management after the waterway's return to Panamanian control in 2000. The book describes election outcomes throughout the postinvasion period and chronologically examines each of the presidential administrations, beginning with Guillermo Endara (1989–94), the first postinvasion president, and proceeding through the term of Juan Carlos Varela (2014–19).
Modern Panama is a welcome addition to the limited bibliography on postinvasion Panamanian politics. While substantial efforts have been expended in analyzing the run-up to the US military intervention, mostly from the perspective of US international and defense policy, there are...
