I belong to the army, and I love it very much. But for Mexico, the era of the generals is over now. I am sure that the civilians will successfully do their duty.
President Avila Camacho, 194661
By the end of 1940, the danger of the military staging a coup in support of Almazan had passed. As a result, during his first week in office, Avila Camacho disbanded the military sector within the official party. Military men were allowed to continue in politics, but had to do so as members of the popular sector. Most military men accepted this willingly, since they had never been sure exactly what their role within the party had been. At the same time, Avila Camacho ordered the retirement of 550 generals and 550 colonels, most of the revolutionary commanders still on active duty, thus wresting additional political influence from the army.62
During the Second World War, the main role assigned to the Mexican military was to contain a Japanese invasion until U. S. troops could arrive. In 1940, Cardenas decided the Mexican military should defend its own territory without the United States establishing bases on Mexican soil. Avila Camacho maintained this policy through the end of the war.
Given its new role, the Mexican army’s state of readiness became a matter of national concern to the United States. To increase Mexican military capabilities, the United States provided Mexico with arms, including coastal artillery and 305 aircraft, and sent officers to teach in Mexican military schools. Select military officers came to the United States for advanced training.63
Squadron 201 of the Mexican air force did see combat in the Pacific theater. This unit, which flew P-47 Thunderbolts, trained in the United States, flew fifty-nine combat mission in Luzon and Formosa (Taiwan), and won General Douglas MacArthur’s thanks. After the war, the unit, which suffered five casualties, returned to a hero’s welcome in Mexico.64
The ties established between the Mexican military and the U. S. military during the Second World War remained after the war. These ties were, however, quite weak compared with the ties between the United States and other Latin American militaries. Between 1950 and 1972, 427 Mexican military men, 1.7 percent of the Latin American total, trained in the United States. Between 1946 and 1971, U. S. military aid to Mexico totaled $17.6 million, less than 1 percent of the Latin American total.65
As the economic and social role of the Mexican government increased, the percentage of the budget devoted to the military declined. Under Avila Camacho (1940—1946) military spending accounted for 18.85 percent of the federal budget. By the time of Diaz Ordaz’s term (1964—1970), it had declined to 2.63 percent.66
Between 1940 and 1970, the Mexican military steadily expanded, from 50,000 to 67,100 troops. However, this expansion was slower than population growth. As a result, the ratio of soldiers per Mexican shifted from 1 to 393 in 1940 to 1 to 718 in 1970. Mexico spent less for the military as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and had a lower percentage of its population under arms than any other major Latin American nation.67
After the Second World War, the number of military officers holding important civilian positions declined. Beginning in 1946, each president was a civilian. Military men regularly headed the PRI until 1964, when civilian Carlos Madrazo assumed that position. In 1940, fifteen governors were military men, while between 1964 and 1985 only one was. Similarly, with the exceptions of the secretaries of defense and navy, civilians held all cabinet positions. By 1970, the control of politics had definitively shifted to civilians.68
World History
