While wars, coups, and revolutions dominate headlines, a quieter form of warfare has shaped global history — one where the battlefield is economic, and the bullets are loans, debt, and corruption. At the center of this hidden war stands the United States, using economic hitmen (EHMs) — professionals trained to manipulate and destabilize foreign nations for U.S. benefit without ever firing a gun.
These shadowy operatives, exposed most famously by John Perkins in his best-selling book Confessions of an Economic Hitman, have influenced the fall of governments, the rise of puppet regimes, and the permanent poverty of once-hopeful nations. From Latin America to Africa to Asia, no region has been spared.
Who Are the Economic Hitmen?
Economic hitmen are not spies or soldiers. They are consultants, economists, bankers, and corporate executives. Their job is simple: ensnare developing nations in unsustainable debt, and then force them to surrender their sovereignty to U.S. interests.
Their tools include:
- Overestimated economic forecasts to justify huge infrastructure loans.
- Tied aid, where funds must be spent on American companies.
- Pressure for privatization, allowing U.S. corporations to buy national assets.
- Conditionality, using IMF and World Bank policies to enforce submission.
Once a country is trapped in debt, it becomes easy to extract resources, land, military cooperation, or UN votes.
Latin America: The First Laboratory
Ecuador: In the 1970s, U.S. economic advisors offered massive loans for development. When the oil profits failed to meet projections, the country plunged into debt and was forced to cut social spending, privatize industries, and open its oil reserves to American corporations.
Panama: When President Omar Torrijos resisted U.S. economic pressure and insisted on national sovereignty over the Panama Canal, he died in a mysterious plane crash. Later, Manuel Noriega, once a U.S. ally, was overthrown when he no longer served Washington’s interests.
Chile: After Salvador Allende’s democratic socialist reforms, the U.S. backed the 1973 coup by Augusto Pinochet — with the help of economic planners from the “Chicago Boys” who turned Chile into a neoliberal experiment zone.
Africa: A Continent of Broken Promises
Ghana, Zambia, Congo, and Sudan were given massive IMF loans with harsh repayment schedules. In exchange, they were told to cut education, healthcare, and food subsidies, leaving millions poorer.
Libya: Under Muammar Gaddafi, Libya had one of the highest living standards in Africa. But after he proposed a gold-
Indonesia: After Suharto came to power in 1967 with CIA backing, the country was flooded with loans and became an open market for U.S. corporations. Environmental destruction, sweatshop labor, and deforestation followed.
Iraq: After the U.S. invasion in 2003, American contractors took over reconstruction, and Iraq’s economy was privatized almost overnight. Billions vanished. National oil was auctioned to foreign firms.
Once a country is trapped in debt, it becomes easy to extract resources, land, military cooperation, or UN votes.
Asia and the Middle East: Control by Debt
Indonesia: After Suharto came to power in 1967 with CIA backing, the country was flooded with loans and became an open market for U.S. corporations. Environmental destruction, sweatshop labor, and deforestation followed.
Iraq: After the U.S. invasion in 2003, American contractors took over reconstruction, and Iraq’s economy was privatized almost overnight. Billions vanished. National oil was auctioned to foreign firms.
Afghanistan: Under the guise of aid and development, Western advisors funneled billions into corrupt networks while local infrastructure remained undeveloped.
When Economic Hitmen Fail: Enter the Jackals
If a country’s leader refuses the debt, won’t privatize, or questions U.S. motives, then comes Plan B: the jackals — covert operatives who orchestrate coups, assassinations, and regime change.
- Allende in Chile: Overthrown.
- Torrijos in Panama: Dead.
- Gaddafi in Libya: Bombed.
- Saddam Hussein in Iraq: Executed.
- Hugo Chávez in Venezuela: Survived multiple coup attempts.
The message is clear: Obey or be removed.
The Bigger Picture: Perpetual Dependency
By keeping nations trapped in debt, the U.S. ensures:
- Access to cheap labor and raw materials.
- Geopolitical obedience in global forums.
- Military bases and strategic alignment.
- Markets for American products and corporations.
It’s modern-day empire, not through occupation, but through contracts and coercion.
Conclusion: The Hidden Empire Must Be Acknowledged
The role of U.S. economic hitmen in creating and deepening crises across the globe is not conspiracy — it is documented, calculated, and ongoing. Nations once rich in culture and potential have been turned into zones of extraction, their leaders either corrupted or crushed.
If the world wants true independence, it must start by exposing and resisting the economic warfare waged in the name of progress.
