Deck 10: The Armed Forces: Bridging the Civil-Military Divide

Question 1

What is puzzling about the historic levels of military expenditures in Latin America?

A)They have been low, even while military influence in politics has been high.
B)They have never been used to fund an air force.
C)They are higher than in the wealthy countries of Europe and North America.
D)They ceased to exist after the transition to democracy.

Answer 1

They have been low, even while military influence in politics has been high.

Question 2

How does military spending in Latin America compare with other regions of the world?

A)It is the highest in the world.
B)It is above average.
C)It is about average.
D)It is below average.

Answer 2

It is below average.

Question 3

Which two countries have higher levels of military spending?

A)Mexico and Venezuela
B)Brazil and Colombia
C)Argentina and El Salvador
D)Costa Rica and Nicaragua

Answer 3

Brazil and Colombia

Question 4

The "Costa Rica Consensus" asks developed countries to provide incentives so that less developed countries:

A)shift spending from military to social expenditures
B)abolish their militaries
C)contribute more to peacekeeping missions
D)prosecute soldiers that support military intervention

Question 5

What is the goal of the Costa Rica Consensus?

A)increase free trade
B)bring human rights violators to trial
C)support decreases in military spending
D)unify Central America

Question 6

Which two countries have abolished their militaries?

A)Argentina and Chile
B)Paraguay and Uruguay
C)Costa Rica and Panama
D)Honduras and Guatemala

Question 7

Under which period did militaries in Latin America professionalize?

A)the caudillo period
B)the export economy period
C)the populist period
D)the Cold War period

Question 8

Under the export economy, militaries in Latin America tended to align with which interests?

A)conservative interests
B)populist interests
C)religious interests
D)working-class interests

Question 9

In Latin America, how did military interventions in the 1960s differ from military interventions in the 1930s?

A)In the 1960s, militaries allied with business interests.
B)In the 1960s, militaries placed officers in government.
C)In the 1960s, militaries rejected repressive measures.
D)In the 1960s, militaries committed themselves the short-term rule.

Question 10

In Brazil, President Lula da Silva's support for the military can be linked to his support for:

A)labor union interests
B)economic interests
C)regional power interests
D)the United States

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT a component of military professionalization?

A)expertise
B)corporateness
C)communication
D)responsibility

Question 12

Which of the following disrupted the relationship between military professionalism and civilian control in Latin America?

A)growing expertise in the military
B)antipolitics in military instruction
C)decreased military expenditures
D)allowing soldiers to vote

Question 13

Which of the following did NOT contribute to military intervention in Latin America?

A)antipolitics
B)National Security Doctrine
C)cooperative security
D)weak civilian institutions

Question 14

Antipolitics holds that:

A)civilians are self-centered
B)civilians are uneducated
C)soldiers are ignorant
D)soldiers should remain outside politics

Question 15

Which value is most closely associated with National Security Doctrine?

A)populism
B)human security
C)anticommunism
D)economic growth

Question 16

Which era is most closely associated with National Security Doctrine?

A)the caudillo period
B)the export economy
C)the Great Depression
D)the Cold War

Question 17

Which of the following contributed most to military intervention in Latin America?

A)reductions in military spending by civilians
B)defeat in war under a civilian government
C)a lack of communication between civilians and soldiers
D)the promotion of cooperative security by civilians

Question 18

Political management approaches to the military argue that civilians need not concentrate on:

A)communication with the military
B)developing military expertise
C)the impact of peacekeeping
D)electoral politics

Question 19

Confidence building measures contribute to:

A)human security
B)democratic security
C)cooperative security
D)economic security

Question 20

What explains the lack of military oversight by legislators in Latin America?

A)Legislators have the capability, but lack the motivation.
B)Legislators have the motivation, but lack the capability.
C)Legislators lack capability and lack motivation.
D)Legislators have capability and motivation, but face powerful militaries.

Question 21

The fuero reduced oversight of the military by which political institution?

A)the courts
B)political parties
C)municipal councils
D)the legislature

Question 22

To best support democratic consolidation, where should the ministry of defense sit in the chain of command?

A)between the executive and the legislature
B)between the executive and the service commanders
C)under the service commanders
D)under the legislature

Question 23

Which of the following military missions is most controversial?

A)peacekeeping
B)civic action
C)actions against crime
D)confidence-building measures

Question 24

Which military service had the greatest impact on El Salvadoran society throughout the twentieth century?

A)the air force
B)the army
C)the paramilitary forces
D)the navy

Question 25

Which of the following was lacking in the 1992 peace accords signed in El Salvador?

A)military reform
B)a change in the size of the military
C)socioeconomic reform
D)human rights investigations

Question 26

In democratic Latin America, civilians have lost all interest in military expenditures.

Question 27

In Latin America, a higher level of military spending is directly associated with lower levels of human development.

Question 28

Some military governments embraced populist policies and attempted to ally with working class groups.

Question 29

Independence allowed Latin American countries to reduce military influence in politics.

Question 30

The emergence of the export economy led to stronger and more professional militaries in Latin America.

Question 31

At the time of independence, in many countries the armed forces represented the only real national institution.

Question 32

Investigations into human rights abuses have progressed further in Argentina than in Brazil.

Question 33

National Security Doctrine placed Third-World countries at the forefront of the battle lines in the Cold War.

Question 34

Political management of the military requires civilians to develop expertise in military affairs.

Question 35

Democratic security is closely tied to liberal thought.

Question 36

Countries in Latin America have seen more progress in cooperative security than in democratic security or human security.

Question 37

Throughout Latin America, the legislature has been at the forefront of moves to increase civilian control in Latin America.

Question 38

Military expertise does not appeal to the electoral interests of most Latin American politicians.

Question 39

The new security challenges facing the militaries of Latin America have drawn them further into domestic political issues.

Question 40

A small, elite group of coffee producers still controls politics in El Salvador.

Question 41

Evaluate the impact of military spending on politics in Latin America.

Question 42

Evaluate the role of the military in Latin America as nation and state builders.

Question 43

How can a ministry of defense be designed to best ensure civilian control?

Question 44

Evaluate the impact of new military missions on democracy in Latin America.

Question 45

Can the countries of Latin America do without the military? Does the military serve any beneficial function?