Honduras: Obama Administration Lacked Backbone
A Step Backward: Obama Administration Lacked
Backbone in Response to Honduras Coup
d’État
During the first
months of President Obama’s term, it looked as though
U.S.-Latin American relations would turn a new page. An
initial sign was the United States’ participation in
several conferences pertaining to the Americas, most
importantly those held by the Organization of American
States (OAS) soon after Obama’s inauguration. The June
2009 coup in Honduras was one of the first major tests in
Latin America for the Obama administration. It was one of
the first opportunities to change foreign policy within the
region and unfortunately, the United States’ efforts in
Honduras ultimately ended in failure. While the Obama
administration was initially resolute in its condemnation of
the coup, calling resonantly for Zelaya’s reinstatement,
it later altered its demands, in practice abandoning hope of
restoring Manuel Zelaya to his place as the legitimate
president of Honduras. Indeed, in the case of Honduras,
President Obama largely failed to provide sufficient support
for a democracy in peril.
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ENDS