ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses to chronicle the various efforts to achieve a diplomatic settlement of the conflict between Nicaragua and the United States, and of the tensions between Nicaragua and its Central American neighbors. The recurrent motif in all the diplomatic efforts, bilateral and multilateral, formal and informal, has been the unwillingness of the United States to fully support them because of its own internal disagreement over its ultimate objectives in Nicaragua. Initially, Reagan’s policy toward Nicaragua was a function of the effort to win the war in El Salvador. Nicaraguan assistance to the Salvadoran rebels had expanded during the months prior to their “final offensive” of January 1981 and was seen within the administration as an essential element in the war. In November, public warnings by various US officials that the administration was considering direct military action against Nicaragua prompted Mexico to intercede in an effort to cool the crisis.
