Spy Wars

Catalog description

This course will examine the role of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the use of covert operations during the Cold War. We will explore key moments in the CIA’s history, from the overthrow of the Iranian and Guatemalan regimes in the 1950s, and the epic disaster of the Bay of Pigs, through a series of little-known or under-explored covert activities including Operation Mongoose against Cuba, actions in British Guiana, Guatemala, Bolivia, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Dominican Republic, Afghanistan, and Iraq. The course will explore both the successes and failures of the CIA, as well as examine the role of intelligence agencies in formulating U.S. foreign policy.