Caribbean
5 conflicts · $13.4B total cost · 800 troops stationed
$13.4B
Total Cost
3,027
US Deaths
3,200
Civilian Deaths
5
Conflicts
1
Authorized
4
Unauthorized
800
Current Troops
1
Military Bases
📖 Pattern of US Intervention in Caribbean
From the Spanish-American War through the occupations of Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and Grenada, the Caribbean has been treated as an American lake. The Monroe Doctrine and its Roosevelt Corollary established U.S. dominance over the region. Interventions have installed and removed governments, supported dictators, and imposed economic policies — all while claiming to promote democracy. The pattern of intervention creating instability that justifies more intervention is clearly visible.
Cost by Conflict (Billions, 2023 $)
Deaths by Conflict
🗺️ Countries
⚔️ Conflicts in Caribbean
Spanish-American War
VictoryImperial Era1898–1898 · $9.6B · 2,446 US deaths
War triggered by the sinking of USS Maine and yellow journalism. Resulted in US acquisition of Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico, and effective control of Cuba.
Dominican Republic Intervention
Regime installedCold War1965–1966 · $2.8B · 44 US deaths
Military intervention to prevent "another Cuba." 22,000 troops deployed to suppress a popular uprising seeking to restore elected president.
Bay of Pigs Invasion
DefeatCold War1961–1961 · $460M · 4 US deaths
CIA-organized invasion of Cuba using Cuban exiles. Complete failure — all invaders killed or captured within 3 days.
Invasion of Grenada
VictoryCold War1983–1983 · $400M · 19 US deaths
Invasion of tiny Caribbean island (population 91,000) after a Marxist coup. Justified as protecting American medical students.
Quasi-War with France
Treaty / InconclusiveEarly Republic1798–1800 · $160M · 514 US deaths
Undeclared naval war with France over trade disputes and French seizure of American merchant ships.
🏗️ Current US Military Presence
🗣️ Voices from Caribbean
“Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!”
— Robert Goodloe Harper, Federalist congressman (1798), responding to French bribery demands (Quasi-War)
“You furnish the pictures and I'll furnish the war.”
— William Randolph Hearst (attributed), to artist Frederic Remington in Cuba (1897) — disputed but emblematic of media's role in starting wars (Spanish-American War)
“Victory has a hundred fathers, but defeat is an orphan.”
— President John F. Kennedy, after the Bay of Pigs disaster (April 1961) (Bay of Pigs)