Lessons from El Salvador
Abstract
How effective was US military assistance in improving the Salvadoran armed forces (ESAF)? The answer depends on the level of assistance being assessed. At the basic level, US military assistance vastly improved the ability of the ESAF to use their equipment and perform combat operations: zero M-16s, conduct patrols, and command battalion-sized units. The US contribution clearly resulted in putting an improved Salvadoran military on the battlefield. In turn, ESAF combat and civic action performance improved sufficiently to undercut FMLN combat capabilities and popular support. The greater contribution of the US military advisory effort, however, must be measured by a different set of standards. A case can be made that it was the ESAF's institutional conversion to a professional military and the dramatic improvement of its human rights record that constitute the most dramatic success story of this conflict. These two radical changes affected how the populace, the international community, and even the FMLN ultimately viewed changes in Salvadoran political conditions. The ESAF's professionalization served to legitimize the gains made by the Salvadoran government in its creation of a climate in which the political left could voice opposition without fear of military reprisals or death-squad murders.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1993
- Accession Number
- ADA515732
Entities
People
- Victor M. Rosello
Organizations
- United States Army War College