ent little time to exploit Noriega, and soon became the number one informant for US intelligence in Latin America. That same year, Noriega became part of the CIA payroll, earning "$185,000 per year." (Flanagan 7). The idea behind this scheme was simple. The United States, for several reasons, could not afford to get involved in another scandal, especially not after the Iran Contra scandal. So they used Noriega for several different purposes. First of all, he was able to inform US intelligence on Cuba, "he informed the United States in 1979 about a two-thousand-man Soviet combat brigade in Cuba" (Flanagan 11). He began to assist the Reagan administration with the contra war against the Sandinistas. In fact, he "permitted the Israelis to use Panama to funnel weapons to the contras." (Flanagan 11). And he also helped both Reagan's and Bush's administration in the war against drugs by "turning in small time Colombian traffickers" (Flanagan 12). It was clear that Noriega was a big asset to the United
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