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Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from World War II Through the Persian Gulf War (Elephant Paperbacks)
 
 
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Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from World War II Through the Persian Gulf War (Elephant Paperbacks) [Paperback]

John Prados (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Prados delivers a warning which all governments should heed...powerful and poignant. -- A.G. Noorani, Frontline

Product Description

A newly revised and updated study of CIA and Pentagon covert operations from World War II through the Persian Gulf--a landmark book about U.S. intelligence agencies in the postwar era.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 576 pages
  • Publisher: Ivan R. Dee, Publisher; Rev Sub edition (February 25, 1996)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1566631084
  • ISBN-13: 978-1566631082
  • Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #553,178 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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More About the Author

John Prados
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Look Inside This Book
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

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22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars New insight on the continued insurgency struggles in Europe, August 26, 1997
By wynnycjd@acq.osd.mil (Falls Church, VA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from World War II Through the Persian Gulf War (Elephant Paperbacks) (Paperback)
John Prados begins the book with seldom related histories, particular are the accounts of Baltic and Ukrainian insurgents in post WWII. This is the first time I have run into modern cold war accounts were the planning of covert operations in Central and Eastern Europe ran so close to the end of WWII. Prados underlines that the "youth" of Central Intelligence Agency and the treachery of Philby severly undermined any attempts to support these insurrectionist movements behind Soviet lines. Further declassfication of past interogation reports throw new light on the extent of these movements and how unstable Central Europe actually was. Prados contines into the Cold War up to the 80's and 90's where the bilateral covert conflict no longer seemed to have the raw personal nature of covert action in post WWII and the fifties. Author has obviously had a very generous access to herby unpublished documents. A must for those concerned with Cold War history
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars excellent overview, June 22, 2003
By J. head (littlteton, nh USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from World War II Through the Persian Gulf War (Elephant Paperbacks) (Paperback)
Every voter should read this book. This is perhaps the best book to give an overview on the major covert activities of the CIA and its ancestor agencies. A very well researched book. The author appears to have done an immense amount of research to write this book. Very informative and an easy read. The author appears to be unbiased and without an agenda. Every tidbit of covert CIA activity that I read about in past years was discussed in this book, plus many more activities new to me were discussed. Drawing upon this text I believe the average American can get a better feel for the sucess and failure rate of covert activities, risks v.s. advantages.
These covert activities ofter are the first steps that leads the U.S. into succeedingly hostile overt activities. The process is complicated by the fact that a covert operation has some loose oversight within our democracy. The author gives the reader a good feel for the past endeavors of the agency and analyzes the results.
I would recommend this book to any American because wherever the CIA is most active will generally be a place where crucial and influential American foreign policy decisions will follow. It is beneficial to have the past record of covert activity available. Covert activity is as the author states probably the most convenient and easiest way to accomplish a short term foreign policy objective and always a temptation to every U.S. administration, but it often comes with the price of a longterm political backlash from the populace involved.
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5.0 out of 5 stars An Enduring Intelligence Reference, August 17, 2010
This review is from: Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from World War II Through the Persian Gulf War (Elephant Paperbacks) (Paperback)
In the current era of asymmetric warfare, accurate and timely intelligence is of increasing significance. Likewise, the nation's leaders often employ non-kinetic methods or irregular forces to achieve national security objectives. John Prados introduces this world in Presidents' Secret Wars: CIA and Pentagon Covert Operations from World War II through the Persian Gulf.

The view Prados provides spans from the strategic, such as making plans and policy in the Oval Office, to the tactical, such as describing special operations forces' action in the U.S. invasion of Grenada. The book covers the subject thoroughly, providing insight and details into many U.S. covert operations. It highlights how each presidential administration employs intelligence and particularly the relationship between the president and the director of central intelligence. Also notable are Prados' descriptions of the Bay of Pigs invasion and operations in Laos in the chapter entitled, "The High Plateau."

This book should be in the hand of any student who is delving into the world of covert operations for the first time and on the shelf of anyone who studies intelligence as an enduring reference.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book
This is a well-written book describing the list of covert operations mostly undertaken by the CIA (a few by the Pentagon ) during the Cold War. Read more
Published 3 months ago by H. Williams

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but not that good
Some research was definetly put into writing this book. And at times, the author just throughs out some abstract, needless information. Read more
Published on June 14, 2000

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