While President Allende enjoyed the support of labor unions and much of the working and middle classes in Chile, he lacked the support of the wealthy upper-class and the military, led by Augusto Pinochet. Some professional unions opposed Allende’s presidency and staged strikes during his presidency. Several wealthy Western nations that depended on Chile for trade also opposed the Allende presidency out of fear that the communist leader would improve relations with the Soviet Union. Cold War politics shaped U.S and European attitudes towards the Allende presidency Fearing that Allende would place Chile in the Castroite and Soviet spheres of influences, the United States government, working through the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), engaged in covert activities designed to support right-wing political organizations in Chile.
Throughout the Cold War, the CIA worked with the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) to support moderate labor movements around the globe. This practice began shortly after the Second World War in Europe. The CIA viewed working with unions as a valuable means of supporting and encouraging the growth of western democracy in Europe and preventing the spread of Soviet influence and authoritarianism in the region. Following its success in Europe, the CIA began to support AFL-CIO’s operations in Latin America and encouraged American unions to support anti-socialist unions and organizations in South America.
La Oposición
Augusto Pinochet