Military dictatorship of Chile (1973–1990) themselves by trying to burn and destroy incriminating evidence. Such actions had the effect of justifying the existence of heavily armed forces in Chile. And by extension, justified the dictatorship's conduct against such "violent" offenders. In the 1970s junta members Gustavo Leigh and Augusto Pinochet clashed on several occasions beginning in the day of the 1973 Chilean coup d'état. Leigh criticized Pinochet for having joined the coup very late and then pretending to keep all power for himself. In December 1974 Leigh opposed the proposal to name Pinochet president of Chile. Leigh recalls about that moment that, "Pinochet was furious,
Chile–Italy relations Chile–Italy relations Chile–Italy relations are the bilateral relations between Chile and Italy. The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1864 after Chilean President José Joaquín Pérez recognized the new Italian state. Chile broke relations with Italy (as well as Germany and Japan) on January 20, 1943 but they were reestablished following the end of World War II. Chile currently has an embassy in Rome and a general consulate in Milan. In late 2010 a bomb exploded at the Chilean embassy, wounding the employee who opened the package in which the bomb was hidden. An employee of the Swiss embassy in