The Obama administration has not had many foreign policy victories. But it just consummated a long hoped-for victory in Honduras with the return of former President Manuel Zelaya, a close ally of Hugo Chavez.
Zelaya was forced into exile after Zelaya tried to extend his term as President in violation of the Honduran constitution. Zelaya was deposed by the military acting on orders of the Honduran Supreme Court and the Honduran Congress.
Throughout 2009 the U.S. orchestrated intense pressure on Honduras, including facilitating the exclusion of Honduras from the Organization of American States, threatened sanctions, and disruption of the ability of Honduran officials to travel to the United States. The fact that Honduras was acting in accordance with its own law as interpreted by its own Supreme Court in order to prevent a Chavez-style President-for-Life debacle meant nothing to the Obama administration.
For those of you who want some history, see my prior posts:
In order to ease the pressure, Honduras finally agreed that Zelaya could return, and he did so this weekend, as reported at Fausta’s Blog and La Gringa’s Blogicito.
Zelaya returned on a Venezuelan plane accompanied by Daniel Ortega and a top Chavez assistant, and has pledged to reenter politics:
Expect trouble, as Zelaya will waste no time in spiking the football with anti-American and pro-Chavez agitation.
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