the elimination of American economic interests, represented in Guatemala by the United Fruit Company, the International Railways of Central America, and the Guatemalan Electric Company. The loss of these enterprises would be damaging to American interests and prestige throughout Central America.” While it seemed that “the Communists are not seeking open and direct control of the Guatemalan Government,” their tactics served a nefarious purpose: “to convert [Guatemala] into an indirectly controlled instrument of Communism.”
