Tuesday, May 08, 2007 - 04:53 PM UTC
The U.S. Intervention in Panama in 1989 is, unfortunately, not the most-covered of subjects. This is a pity as many of the vehicles and equipment are very attractive subjects for modelers. However, this new book from Concord Publications may awken some interest in the subject...
6503 JUST CAUSE: Intervention in Panama 1989-90 (ISBN 962-361-633-3)
is the latest in Concord Publications' 'Warrior Series'. Following the usual format, the book consists of 52 pages, 4 color plates and148 b/w photos. The book is written by Gordon Rottman with illustrations by Dmitriy Zgonnik.

Launched (primarily) to protect the strategically vital Panama canal and to remove the increasingly belligerent President Noriega the subject was well-covered in the press of the day but has not made it into many books specifically aimed at modelers.

The book will be available from June 2007, meanwhile, we've included as a 'taster' some of the images of the book...
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Comments

I totally agree with Harry. Jim, the info you put in the book synopsis is about Operation Urgent Fury...the invasion of Grenada in 1983. It would be great if there was a book like this one on Urgent Fury. Harry...Manuel Noriega is the loser they captured in Panama. There were no Cuban troops in Panama...only about 16,000 PDF...Panamanian Defense Forces. Here is the info from the Concord site on the book: http://www.concord-publications.com/6503/6503.htm
MAY 09, 2007 - 05:47 AM
My apologies I was rushing to get it posted and trying to do three other things at the same time - I'll amend it later. Thnaks for pointing it out...
MAY 09, 2007 - 01:26 PM
I beg to differ, gentlemen, but there were Cuban troops in Panama, in small numbers, beginning in 1988, and extending on into 1989. There were a number of Cuban special forces troops assigned as "advisors" to the PDF's "Machos de Montes" (literally, "Men of the Mountains", the PDF SF troops that our 7th SFG had trained in previous years.) I can attest to this personally.
MAY 14, 2007 - 03:15 PM
Ron - thanks for clarifying that. Maybe my mind was playing tricks (and I certainly managed to mix-in Grenada ), but yes, I do remember some references at the time to a Cuban presence. Maybe you'd like to expand further?
MAY 14, 2007 - 03:20 PM
I was working with SOCSOUTH at that time, and had occasion to meet up with them every now and again. RonC
MAY 14, 2007 - 06:22 PM
Thanks Ron, Learn something new every day. I had never heard of Cuban troops in combat in Panama during the invasion...surely by the invasion on December 20, 1989 there couldn't have been too many left in country. What kind of numbers are you talking about and would they have had any effect against the invasion troops? They must have bugged out pretty quick as the PDF was getting whipped and then abolished when the Panamanian Public Forces were formed in February, 1990.
MAY 15, 2007 - 06:39 AM
Hi guys I don't want to sound like some kind of compiracy theory nut, but could the presents of Cuban advisors even in limited numbers be another reason for the invasion ? With Cuban forces in country that's a real clear sign of Panama's goverment moving closer into a communist sphere of influence. This was something the US goverment could never allow. Jim I apologize for questioning you on the presences of Cuban forces. I would have never thought that even in the ending stages of the cold war our goverment would have knowing allowed somthing like that to happen. Harry
MAY 16, 2007 - 02:00 AM
Manuel Noriega had become a loose cannon and was cozy with Colombian narcoterrorists and could certainly have forged an alliance with Castro, given time. He was making militant speeches against the USA even while American troops were stationed in his country. It all came to a head when a US sailor was murdered while driving his car to work, and Noriega made a speech "declaring war" against the USA. Much to his surprise, George H. W. Bush decided to take him up on it. Noriega's been in a US prison since.
MAY 16, 2007 - 11:52 AM
The presence of Cuban forces, in the limited nhumbers there were, was not a reason for "Operation Just Cause" to take place. I have not seen the Concord publication yet, obviously, but the armed conflict began in the February-March timeframe in 1988, almost 2 years prior to the actual invasion. An incursion at the Arraijan Tank Farm from the direction of Sr. Paredes' farm to the west was the initial action. It was an interesting counter-insurgency operation up until "Just Cause" took place. RonC
MAY 16, 2007 - 03:07 PM
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