Documents / FOIA release

Official History of the Bay of Pigs Operation- Volume 2- Part 1

Central Intelligence Agency · 179 pages · text from the file's own layer

This is Volume II, Part 1 of the CIA History Staff's Official History of the Bay of Pigs Operation, a Top Secret history dated October 1979 and approved for release in July 2011. It looks at how the Agency took part in shaping US foreign policy toward Guatemala and Nicaragua during the anti-Castro program. It covers dealings with President Ydigoras Fuentes and Roberto Alejos, training sites such as Retalhuleu, cover stories, and negotiations with the Somoza brothers for an air base and port. It contains no UFO material.

  • p. 16 …According to Esterline's report of the meeting "it was never said in so many words…
  • p. 31 …DPD planned to have the SALA representa- tive, who had never been cleared by the Agency…
  • p. 34 …The communications officer whom Alejos had declared to be "under arrest" was never technically arrested and…
  • p. 53 …We never were informed of KIA or wounded counts. We did hear that a couple of…
  • p. 55 …round Guatemala for years and we have never seen Guatemalan pilots fly or shoot with the…
  • p. 64 …emphatically * Delivery of the ~ight B-26's was never made to the Government of Guatemala.
  • p. 75 …Ydigoras said, "that piece of paper will never be exposed," and it hasn't to my…
  • p. 76 …young man I said, "Well, we're never going to get this thing going unless somebody…
  • p. 106 …Venezuela, have made many friendly noises but never once have made a firm offer of real…
  • p. 138 …the project "until Castro's defeat" was never officially made to either President Somoza or President…
  • p. 147 …they were on the ships they would never return to Nicaragua. With reference to the air…
  • p. 153 …68/* * The Agency's relations with Nicaragua also became \ somewhat strained because Miro Cardona was never…
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at Retalhuleu, the principal political opponent of
Ydigoras Fuente, Jose Cruz Salazar, who was scheduled
to testify before the Congress about the air base,
was briefed by Alejos and Ydigoras concerning their
support for Project JMATE. Upon completion of this
briefing, Guatemala cabled Headquarters that Cruz
enthusiastically endorses effort and will
assist provide cover for project before
Congress. Also feels it advisable to have
picked Guat in project. In turn, he said
in two days he can easily raise an extra
hundred who would be willing to fight
against Castro and communism. 20/
By way of showing some appreciation to the GOG
for its support, the Agency provided numerous name
traces at the request of Alejos or Ydigoras -- name
traces which turned up Castro agents in Guatemala or
indicated legitimate Cuban defectors who wished to
enter Guatemala. 21/ CIA assisted in having reported
sightings of submarines of unknown origin off the
west coast of Guatemala checked out -- submarines sus-
peeted of carrying arms or bringing pro-Castro guer-
rillas to Guatemala. In one instance I--------
suggested that Headquarters fabricate a photo of a
Soviet submarine supposedly off the Guatemalan coast.
c==Jsaid the~hoto could "be placed in the Guatemalan
- 16 -
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About this file

FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 179 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.