In the past 7 decades, which country experienced an American military intervention but did not have active American military presence on its territory once hostilities ceased?

Answer 1

The answer depends upon the definitions of “military intervention” and “active military presence.” The question appears to regard military involvement in an ongoing conflict rather than a quick response to an event. Here are some cases in which the US deployed military ground forces for at least 30 days that subsequently departed.

• Southeast Asia Conflict (1965-1975): US forces withdrew from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos as American-supported regimes were defeated.

• Lebanon (1982-1983): US forces were deployed as peacekeepers but were withdrawn after becoming the targets of attacks.

• Kuwait (1991): after leading an international contingent that forced out the Iraqi invasion, US military forces withdrew.

• Balkans (1990s): The US military participated in international efforts to restore peace in Bosnia, Albania, and Serbia and departed afterwards.

• Somalia (1993): US peacekeeping forces withdrew after coming under attack.

There have been numerous incidents in which military forces were engaged but there was no ongoing US presence afterwards. Examples include the Mayaguez Incident of 1975 and the Gulf of Sidra Incident in 1981. There have also been temporary deployments that did not result in a permanent presence. Examples include the Dominican Republic in 1965, Grenada in 1983 and Panama in 1989. There have also been instances in which American military advisors had an ongoing presence but regular ground troops were not introduced. An example is El Salvador in the 1980s.