During my combat days and nights in South & Central America in the 1970s "cordinated by the CIA" I was a squad leader of 45 men "all US Army AirBorne Rangers." While we were doing a routine search and destroy mission "ordered by The Green Beret." I was the lead "pointman" that morning in the deep dark rotted jungles of Panama "Hill 500" Before our climb up the 500 foot high quicksand & mud covered Hill near the Atlantic Ocean side of Fort Sherman Panama Canal Zone, we were walking in a 10 meter spread wedge shape patrol down into a very muddy and slippery almost empty flashflood river bed when suddenly I saw the pointman of the Cubain /Soviet controlled Federal Army soldier with his patrol team behind him almost in the same fashion as we Army Rangers were in "The Wedge Patrol Position,' I knelt down into the deep mud atfer giving the hand signal for my Alpha team leader to alert the others in our patrol "by using hand signals" to spread out away from the muddy river bed at least a 10 meter distance from one another and position themselves in a flanking position in line of fire arrangement. I looked intot he face of the Latio / Cuban Army Solider "who had not yet seen me or my team of 45 maned patrol. I aimed by M-16/M-203 directly at his head/chest area. We werew ALL covered in this smelly rotten mud, us and the Cuban Army patrol. Suddenly the Cuban pointman saw me aiming my M-16 - M-203 right at him and we stared right into each orthers eyes. He and his patrol were carrying AK-47's as well as M-16's. The other men in his patrol had not yet seen me or my 45 man patrol. My men surrounded the Cuban patrol in a flanking style position for not to shot other American Airborne Rangers in a crossfire if a firefight began. I pointed my index finger my middle finger toward my eyes and back into the Cuban point man's position "letting him know I SEE YOU" hIs ak-47 WASN'T AIMED AT ME, it was in a carrying position aimed more away from my position. We both knelt there looking at one another for what seemed to be 10 minutes "I'm sure it was only maybe a minute or two," Then I lite up a cigarette and threw the pack to the enemy soldier. He too lite up a cigarette, I slowly low crawled over to his position "being as quick as I could" he saw me doing this and he too made his way towards me in a non threatening manner." Once we got betweena few metters from one another, he spoke a little english and said he and his men had no ill feelings towards us, but was following orders in order to keep their familes alive from the federallies. I understaood but was still on high alert. I hand signaled for my Bravo Team leader to join me. He spoke Spanish. He and the Cuban soldier spoke and soon the Cuban pointman reached out his hand to me, I shook his hand and we agreed to change positions and pass one another and to not engadge in a firefight.
This is a true event that i will never forget, and I'm hoping the Cuban soldier has never forgotten either. We never did see one another again. And not one soldier of each patrol were wounded or killed that dark morning in the jungles, not one shot was fired.