The Three Amigos and the Lure of Bilateralism
As the North American leaders Stephen Harper, Barack Obama and Enrique Peña Nieto meet in Mexico City this week, we can expect smiles and all the rhetoric about intensifying the relationship between the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners. While the trade numbers justify applauding and celebrating the NAFTA agreement 20 years after its … Read more
Venezuelan Government Crisis Unfolds in the Streets
Support AQ! “Like” our Fall 2013 issue cover here: http://on.fb.me/1kNso1z The Bolivarian Revolution of Venezuela, currently led by Hugo Chávez’s handpicked successor, Nicolás Maduro, is facing the most significant wave of social discontent with its policies in more than a decade. Over the past six days, daily spontaneous protests across the country have diluted the … Read more
Venezuelan Protests Intensify
Student protests in Venezuela intensified as they entered their fifth straight day on Monday. Thousands of anti-government protestors flooded the streets of Caracas denouncing the nation’s deteriorating economy, inflation, shortages of staple supplies, and security issues. Pro-government protestors are expected to counter-protest today. Three protestors—two anti-government and one pro-government—were killed and hundreds were injured last … Read more
Challenging CELAC’s Sovereignty Doctrine
As the two-day CELAC Summit closed in Havana at the end of January, leaders of the 33 Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) nations that compose this body adopted a triumphant pose for the assembled photographers. Why the celebratory atmosphere? One might be forgiven for thinking it was connected to the various grand ambitions articulated at … Read more
Vice President Biden to Visit Latin America in March
U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden is set to visit Chile and the Dominican Republic with his wife Jill in mid-March. The visits will mark his third trip to the region. Biden will attend Chilean President-Elect Michelle Bachelet’s inauguration before traveling to the Dominican Republic to discuss bilateral relations and regional cooperation with President Danilo Medina. The vice … Read more
Cuba: Wait, Wait, Let Me Guess What Comes Next
I’m not a betting man, but if I were, this is what I’d bet. With a series of statements by leading Cuban-Americans, stories of change inside the island, and growing public pressure and attention to liberalize the U.S. embargo toward Cuba, I’d wager that soon the Cuban government will do something to halt the process. … Read more
Argentina Struggles with Soaring Inflation
As surging inflation takes a toll on Argentine consumers, the Argentine government affirmed on Tuesday that it would levy fines against supermarkets who fail to respect voluntary price controls that many stores and wholesalers agreed to in December. On Tuesday, Chief of Cabinet Jorge Capitanich said that the details of the new sanctions would be … Read more
Violence Erupts During Protests in Venezuela
Student-organized protests against the Nicolás Maduro Administration turned violent yesterday when pro-government groups began shooting into the crowd in Caracas. Several thousand students and protesters took to the street with more protests cropping up throughout the country as the day went on. Anti-government groups denounced the administration for current economic and widespread crime, demanding the constitutional … Read more
Guatemala’s Attorney General Faces Legal Fight to Stay in Office
Last week’s decision by Guatemala’s Corte de Constitucionalidad (Constitutional Court—CC) to reduce Attorney General Claudia Paz y Paz’s term in office has been met by a wave of criticism and legal challenges. The internationally-recognized Paz y Paz, who was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2013, is credited with improving the investigative work of … Read more
Postponed: Americas Quarterly Launch: NAFTA at 20 and in 20
Americas Quarterly‘s Nafta @20 and in 20 event on Thursday, February 13 has been postponed due to inclement weather and will be rescheduled at a later date. We apologize for the inconvenience. Click here for updates and to read the full event description. Welcome and Introduction: Susan Segal, President and CEO, Americas Society/Council of the … Read more
Most Americans Support Normalizing Cuba Relations
A new poll by the Atlantic Council released yesterday found that a majority of Americans are now in favor of stabilizing U.S.-Cuba relations. Of those sampled nationwide, six out of 10 said they favor policy changes that would allow more business transactions between the two countries, as well as the lifting of restrictions that don’t … Read more
Brazil’s Diplomatic Retreat
When world leaders recently gathered in Switzerland to discuss the future of Syria last week, Brazil’s foreign minister, Luiz Alberto Figueiredo, was in the northeastern city of Natal to participate in the inauguration ceremony of a soccer stadium. He had rejected an invitation to join the peace conference. A day later, one of Brazil’s major … Read more
Members of U.S. Congress Demand Redskins Name Change
Two members of the U.S. Congress sent a letter yesterday to Roger Goodell, commissioner of the National Football League (NFL), asking that the league change the Washington Redskins’ controversial name and logo. Senator Maria Cantwell, a Democrat from Washington State and chairwoman of the Indian Affairs Committee, and Representative Tom Cole, a Republican from Oklahoma … Read more
Colombia: Las ‘Chuzadas’ de la era Santos
Que en Colombia hay enemigos del proceso de paz que adelanta el Gobierno con las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) en la Habana no es nuevo ni sorprende. Hay fuerzas partidarias que le apuestan a las conversaciones de paz, tanto como aquellas que nunca estuvieron de acuerdo con que se comenzaran, el uribismo en … Read more
Monday Memo: Turf Battle in Michoacán — Venezuelan Media — Manaus Stadium Death — Keystone Pipeline — Guatemala Massacre
Knights Templar and Vigilante Groups Clash in Apatzingan, Michoacán: Vigilante self-defense groups drove into the town of Apatzingan, Michoacán on Saturday, bolstered by support from local police and army personnel. The town, previously a command center for the Knights Templar drug cartel, has been caught in a bloody battle since the self-defense groups launched an … Read more
