The rise and fall of the Allende administration has been and still remains a topic for intense debate. Basically there are two ideological camps: those who favor Dr. Allende and describe him as the victim of a U.S. directed putsch, and those who blame the fall of the Unidad Popular (UP) on Chilean domestic forces. Kristian Gustafson belongs to the latter group.
Beginning in 1960, the United States became more deeply interested in Chile. Believing Eduardo Frei constituted the best alternative to the Marxist Dr. Salvador Allende, the Kennedy administration helped elect the Christian Democrat to the presidency. The Frei government also received U.S. economic largesse and technical aid. Washington still favored the Christian Democrats, even when it became clear that Radomiro Tomic and the PDC’s left wing had more in common with the UP forces than Frei and his adherents. The failure of Washington to recognize this fundamental shift...
