What was Trujillo's relationship like with the United States

Explanation:

Documentation on relations between the United States and the Dominican Republic is presented in an accompanying microform publication. A narrative summary, based upon that documentation, is provided below, along with a purport list of the documents published in the microform supplement. The document numbers cited in the summary correspond to the document numbers in the purport list and the microform supplement.

Generalissimo Rafael Trujillo had ruled the Dominican Republic since 1930. While promoting himself as “the Benefactor,” Trujillo’s rule had become increasingly harsh and dictatorial. His attempts to strike at exiled dissidents in the United States had caused serious strain in relations with Washington. The Eisenhower administration faced one overwhelming problem in the Dominican Republic: how to ease Trujillo out of power without allowing pro-Fidel Castro/anti-American elements to take over.

In late January 1958, the Director of the Office of Middle American Affairs surveyed U.S.-Dominican relations and highlighted the principal U.S. interests in the Dominican Republic: its strategic position in relation to the Panama Canal, a U.S. guided missile tracking station on the northeast coast, and general Dominican support for U.S. policies. The Director recommended that U.S. Ambassador Joseph S. Farland meet with Trujillo in an attempt to normalize relations. Farland was encouraged by his discussion with the Generalissimo in early February to believe that a better relationship was possible. (DR–1) Trujillo, however, proved sensitive to U.S. congressional criticism and supposed slights against his family so that relations did not improve markedly. (DR–2, 3)

On June 14, 1959, a small group of insurgents invaded the Dominican Republic by air. The Dominican Army eventually defeated the invasion. (DR–8) Notwithstanding the fact that invasion did not generate popular support, the Department of State became increasingly concerned that the Trujillo regime was about to fall. In January 1960, Department officials raised the issue at the National Security Council. [Page 807]Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Livingston Merchant told the Council that the U.S. objective was to ensure that a successor regime would be friendly to the United States and not sympathetic to Castro or communism. The problem was, according to Merchant, that Trujillo had so stifled moderate opposition that most dissident groups were either Communist or Communist-infiltrated. The Department recommended that U.S. policy during the coming months should be to coalesce non-Communist business, professional, and academic groups into an opposition. (DR–10)

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