7 notable US-backed regime changes since WWII
2. Jacobo Árbenz (Guatemala) — 1954
A former military officer, Jacobo Árbenz was elected president of Guatemala in 1950, vowing to continue pursuing various socio-economic reforms that put him at odds with U.S. interests.
His efforts at agrarian reform had made him an adversary of the U.S.-based United Fruit Company, with growing concerns that he would lead Guatemala to communism.
In response, the Eisenhower administration authorized the CIA to launch Operation PBSUCCESS, which sought to eventually remove Árbenz and his allies from power.
“Working in Honduras and El Salvador, the CIA helped to organize a counterrevolutionary army of exiles led by Col. Carlos Castillo Armas,” noted Britannica.
“Exaggerations of the size of the invading force panicked the capital; the Guatemalan army refused to fight for Arbenz, and he was forced to resign (June 27, 1954) and go into exile. He traveled to Mexico, Switzerland, and Paris and was offered asylum in the Soviet-bloc countries for a time.”
