Chile: the balanced view : a recopilation of articles about the Allende years and after

collective security in the case 01 external agression without the United Natioris system being able to help in any way due to its total ineffectiveness. In this way the country would remain at tne mercy 01 its own lorces, which under the past economic and moral conditions were null, and at the mercy 01 how the bilateral relations with neighboring countries would develop, which, as it will be seen, were not very promising either. Curiously the Peronist government of Argentina and the Popul ist government 01 Peru agreed upon the necessity of changing the Treaty 01 Rio. In such an eventuality, the government would have no other alternative other than recurring to the military aid 01 the Soviet Union, thus achieving a complete alignment to which its global international policies had aspired until it assured its consolídation in power; it could thus be observed that the strategy at a regional level coincided with the objectives on a world level. Perhaps the pressure which the government exercised to buy Soviet arms, the declarations by leaders of the Popular Unity that Chile was a new Viet Nam and the declaration by the Secretary General 01 the former Communist party to the extent that Chile was threatened Irom the outside, were the lirst weavings 01 a sinister scheme. TOO DETERIORATION OF BILATERAL RELATIONS The forming of bilateral relations on the regional level requires special consideration lor all 01 the tendencies gradually led to Chile's isolation on a diplomatic and eConomic level. At the beginning the Popúlar Unity government achieved in Latin American circles a political image which in general can be considered as lavorable. The design developed by the government, which pretended the compatibility of Socialism with democracy and economic development in a pluralist administration, was quite attractive to public opinion and government circles. However, to the extent in which the government began revealin'g totalitarian intentions and, above all, to the extent in which total economic crisis became evident, this image began to suffer a progressive deterioration. RELATIONS WITH BRAZIL The Popular Unity conducted relations with Brazil with a tone 01 permanent hostility, not on a lormal government level but rather on the level 01 the press and through polítical groups which most delinitely determined the orientation 01 the government; this was a part Irom the action 01 exiled extremists who stirred up tevolution in Chile without having the courage to bring it about in theirown country, which they delamed assiduously. Occasiona– lIy this poi icy 01 hostility developed into lormal diplomatic encounters. The clumsiness 01 this tacUc was evident, not only lor the reason that Brazil had historically been a point of equili brium with respect to Chile's pOlicies towards her neighbors, but also lor the reason that Brazil is today a power 01 major proportions within a regional context and outside 01 it. The Popular Unity,s tactic in this realm is the most concrete demonstration 01 the unilateral interpretation which it gave to the principie 01 the breakin¡;¡ down 01 ídeological Irontiers. Despite the above mentioned, Brazil's policies towards Chile were cautious. One ofthe . reasons which inspired this cautiousness was the lact that Chile was contributing towards creating the lavorable conditions whích Brazil needed to make its weight lelt ín Latin America. In ellect, the permanent policíes 01 the Popular Unity were designed to brake the lies between Latin America and the United Stales, which was clear in Ihe attempt lo undermine the institution olthe inter-American system and the Trealy of Río, and this coLild only favor the country which was in condition to lill the political vacuum created by the absence 01 the United States, which in this case was Brazil. For this reason, among others, Brazil did nol wish to respond to Chile with policies equally hostile. In Ihe meanwhile, the exlend 01 its economic expansion was being lelt in al! circles, including Ihe technological lield, with which she increased her inlluence in countriessuch as Bolivia and Paraguay and which was being projected towards Ecuador, Peru. and Uruguay; these are lactors which 79