ABSTRACT
Turmoil of subsequent centuries extended and solidified these cleavages, and today we continue to see Middle America disunited, exposed to outsiders' interventions, and consequently without an independent or neutral voice in international affairs. This chapter suggests that Middle America is a natural buffer system, permanently existing because of the Basin's rugged terrain and its central location. In fact, two unique buffer dimensions occur a series of internal buffers within Middle America and a Caribbean-wide buffer which affects political happenings in adjacent territories. The lessening of United States influence has tended to make buffer systems within Middle America more noticeable and to augment their political impact. From a United States foreign and security policy perspective, the buffer system of Middle American poses a variety of very serious difficulties. For convenience, the terms "Middle America," "Caribbean," "Caribbean Basin and "Basin" will be used interchangeably.
