Originally Posted by Charlatan

The fact still remains that the elected govenment was in the process of doing the same sorts of modernization. Sadly the US seems to (historically) think that democracy is only good for them. Everyone else should have a controllable dictator in charge.

Had the US instead decided to support the elected goverment, I wonder how things might have gone.

(this isn't to say that the Russians didn't make a practice of this as well, it's just that it has proven to be a bad policy, time and again).