Editing Armed Forces of El Salvador (section)

===American influence and the Cold War===
From 1947 to 1953, El Salvador held an agreement with the US whereby an American military aviation mission would be sent to El Salvador; El Salvador would seek advice from the US preferentially and purchase arms from the US.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=0USAyAqhPEEC&dq=us+el+salvador+military+agreement+1953&pg=PA416 ''United States Treaties and Other International Agreements, Volume 5''] Department of State, 1955 p419.</ref><ref>Holden R. [https://books.google.com/books?id=TH88DwAAQBAJ&dq=us+el+salvador+military+agreement+1953&pg=PA285 ''Armies Without Nations: Public Violence and State Formation in Central America''] Oxford University Press, 2006 p285 {{ISBN|0195310209}}</ref> Some Salvadoran military officers were trained in North America and the [[Panama Canal Zone]]. Nevertheless, the amount of American military aid purchased by El Salvador in the 1950s was small; just enough in [[munition]]s and light arms to suppress internal conflict such as [[communism|communist]] activity.<ref name="Williams"/>

In the 1950s, Salvadoran men underwent one year of national service before being discharged to a reserve army. They then underwent further training on a regular basis and could be called to join active provincial patrols (''patrullas cantonalles''). Regular meetings of the men were held reinforcing loyalty to the nation and opposition to communism. Men from disadvantaged circumstances were offered monetary and practical assistance and education for their children. The number of reservists grew to approximately 40,000.<ref name="Williams"/>

In the 1960s, a [[junta (governing body)|junta]] of conservative military officers and landowners took power in a coup and then organised elections. In 1961, the junta's candidate Lieutenant Colonel [[Julio Adalberto Rivera]] was elected president. In 1967, Colonel Fidel Sanchez Hernandez became president.<ref>[http://www.fsmitha.com/h2/ch24salvador.htm Civil War in El Salvador] Macro history and world timeline website. Accessed 1 March 2018</ref>