Covert Action in the Cold War

US Policy, Intelligence and CIA Operations

James Callanan

• Publisher: I.B. Tauris
• Year: 2009
• ISBN:
  9780857711663
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politica e relazioni internazionali
• Subtopic: Intelligence e spionaggio

Born out of the ashes of World War II, the covert action arm of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was created to counter the challenge posed by the Soviet Union and its allies and bolster American interests worldwide. It evolved rapidly into an eclectic, well-resourced organization whose activities provided a substitute for overt military action and afforded essential backup when the Cold War turned hot in Korea and Vietnam. This comprehensive examination of a still controversial subject sheds valuable new light on the undercover operations mounted by the CIA during the Cold War. Using a wide range of unpublished government records and documents, James Callanan traces the growth of the agency chronologically as it forged a covert action mission that sought to advance US foreign and defense policy in all corners of the globe. Offering a powerful perspective on a pivotal period in American history, "Covert Action in the Cold War" makes a crucial contribution to our understanding of global politics during the Cold War.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Series Page
• Series Page
• Title page
• Copyrights
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of Charts and Tables
• List of Abbreviations
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• 1 The Arrival of an Imperfect Peace and the Rise of the Silent Option
• 2 Italy 1947–1948: Securing a European Strongpoint
• 3 On to the Offensive
• 4 OPC Intervention in Albania: An Experiment in Offensive Covert Action
• 5 Erring on the Side of Activism: Eisenhower and the Era of Preventive Covert Warfare
• 6 A Tale of Three Campaigns: Landmarks in the Heyday of Covert Action
• 7 Fluctuating Fortunes
• 8 A Banquet of Consequences: Covert Action in Cuba and the Caribbean 1960–1963
• Conclusion
• Appendices
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index