This article is adapted from AQ’s special report on the 2024 U.S. presidential election and its impact on Latin America | Leer en español | Ler em português
NOTE: TIMELINE COVERS EVENTS FROM 2017 TO JUNE 2024, WHEN THIS ISSUE WENT TO PRINT.
TRUMP Jan 2017–Jan 2021
JAN 2017
U.S. WITHDRAWS FROM THE TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP (TPP)
In his first week in office, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the 12-nation TPP trade deal that included Mexico, Peru and Chile.
FEB 2017
SANCTIONS AGAINST VENEZUELA
New U.S. sanctions on the Nicolás Maduro regime designated then-Vice President Tareck El Aissami under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. Many more sanctions would follow.
JUNE 2017
TRUMP REVERSES OBAMA POLICY ON CUBA
The U.S. reinstated some travel and commercial restrictions that the Obama administration had loosened. Later, in Trump’s final weeks in office, the U.S. tightened sanctions on Cuba and put it on the State Department’s four-country list of state sponsors of terrorism.
MAY-OCT 2018
U.S. INTRODUCES “ZERO TOLERANCE” BORDER POLICY
The U.S. cracked down on illegal border crossings with a deterrence-first approach. After Trump threatened tariffs on all Mexican goods, Mexico agreed to increase enforcement and detentions on its soil. The U.S. expanded controversial policies, including family separation.
JUNE 2018
U.S. BACKS HISTORIC IMF ARGENTINA BAILOUT
Argentina became the IMF’s biggest debtor after receiving an emergency $57 billion loan, in a deal sought by then-President Mauricio Macri and supported by the U.S.
JAN 2019
U.S. RECOGNIZES
GUAIDÓ
The U.S., Canada, many Latin American and some European governments recognized Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president.
JAN-FEB 2019
BORDER WALL DISPUTE CAUSES U.S. GOVT. SHUTDOWN, REMAIN IN MEXICO PROGRAM TAKES EFFECT
Trump and Congress failed to pass a budget after the White House demanded $5 billion for a border wall. The ensuing 35-day government shutdown, the longest in U.S. history, slowed federal agencies until Trump dropped the demand. The Remain in Mexico program took effect, immediately sending tens of thousands of migrants to Mexico to await U.S. court hearings.
JULY-SEP 2019
SAFE THIRD COUNTRY AGREEMENTS SIGNED
The U.S. signed deals with El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras that required these nations to receive asylum applicants who would have to first seek protection in these countries. The U.S. began immediately to deport asylum seekers to the so-called Northern Triangle countries.
SEP 2019
GUATEMALA EXPELS ANTI-CORRUPTION COMMISSION
The White House did not contest President Jimmy Morales’ campaign to oust the Commission Against Corruption and Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG), which was funded in part by the U.S., after striking deals on migration and international policy.
BIDEN Jan 2021–Present
MAY 2021
U.S. STARTS DONATING COVID-19 VACCINES TO LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
Between 2021 and 2024 the U.S. donated approximately 75 million COVID-19 vaccine doses to 30 nations in LAC, although many countries were frustrated with the amount and timing.
JULY 2021
U.S. RELEASES ROOT CAUSES STRATEGY
The initiative committed to investing $4 billion in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras over four years to improve conditions and stem migration from the Northern Triangle.
APR 2022
JUAN ORLANDO HERNÁNDEZ IS EXTRADITED TO THE U.S.
Hernández, Honduras’ former president and a U.S. ally while in office from 2014-22, was extradited on drug and weapons trafficking charges. He was found guilty in a U.S. court in March 2024.
JUNE 2022
SUMMIT OF THE AMERICAS HELD IN LOS ANGELES
While the summit saw several absences, the U.S. and 20 other countries in the hemisphere endorsed the Los Angeles Declaration for Migration and Protection. Biden announced the Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity, a 12-country initiative aimed at bolstering investment and growth.
OCT 2022
U.S. DEFENDS BRAZIL ELECTION RESULTS
The Biden administration played a key role in dissuading former President Jair Bolsonaro and parts of the Brazilian military from trying to overturn President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s presidential election victory.
JAN 2024
U.S. SUPPORTS BERNARDO ARÉVALO IN GUATEMALA
The U.S. took potentially decisive diplomatic action to support the transfer of power as the president-elect’s opponents attempted to derail his inauguration.
JUNE 2024
BIDEN CRACKS
DOWN ON BORDER
Biden signed an executive action that deports asylum seekers when 2,500 or more people illegally cross the U.S.-Mexico border per day, with some exceptions. The move came after encounters neared 180,000 in April. This represented a dramatic decline from December 2023, when they topped 300,000 and Mexico agreed to increase migrant detentions.
Photos: Getty Images
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Brown is an editor and production manager at AQ.
Sweigart is an editor at AQ and a policy manager at the Americas Society/Council of the Americas.
NEW AQ: What the U.S. Election Means for Latin America
In AQ’s new special report, former advisers from the Trump and Biden administrations write on the impact another term for their onetime boss would have on the region.
In the Americas, Biden’s “Soft Power Matters”
A continuation of Biden's policies would promote democracy while addressing hotspots like Haiti and Venezuela, two former national security officials write.
Trump’s Vision: “Make the Americas Grow Again”
A second Trump term would focus on reviving hemispheric economic growth through nearshoring and other policies, writes a former adviser.
Susan Segal: The Next U.S. President Should Pay More Attention to Latin America
Regardless of the election’s victor, the U.S. should seize the ample economic opportunities of closer ties with the rest of the hemisphere, writes AS/COA’s CEO.
