Rolling Back the Iron Curtain

This chapter explores the causes, conduct, and consequences of the understudied American covert operations in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. It first explains why these cases were selected. Next, the chapter describes the collective context and objectives of these missions. Third, it asks why the Truman and Eisenhower administrations opted for covert — rather than overt — conduct. The chapter then offers a comparative historical analysis of three cases: Albania, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, and Yugoslavia. It considers why the United States intervened in the first two cases, but not in Yugoslavia, even though all were communist regimes. The case studies also address the reasons the missions in Albania and Ukraine failed, and discusses the pros and cons of covert conduct. Finally, the chapter concludes by drawing out the theoretical lessons of these cases.