National Interests, World Support

FOLLOWING months of escalation, Haiti's crisis seems to be nearing an end after the United States delegation led by former President Carter succeeded in reaching an agreement with Haiti's military leaders. The leaders accepted the peaceful deployment of US forces in Haiti to assure a smooth transfer to democracy.

These developments represent an extension of the US tactic of managing international crises using all available means to pressure parties to reach a settlement without resorting to armed conflict. Throughout the crisis, the US depended on mobilizing world support, especially at the United Nations Security Council, to exert maximum international pressure while also using economic boycott and threat of a military invasion.

Yet, more interesting in the way the Clinton administration managed this latest dispute was its emphasis on ``direct national US interest'' in overthrowing Haiti's military rulers, giving up the principles and slogans of spreading democracy and human rights. In the case of Haiti, the US was not ready to accept any disturbances or uncontrolled developments in its own back yard.