New Study Ranks Democracy in Latin America
Only two countries in Latin America—Costa Rica and Uruguay—can be considered “full democracies,” according to an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) study commissioned by BBC for Democracy Day on January 20. The report says that a majority of Latin American countries hold “free and fair” elections and are better ranked than their counterparts in the Middle … Read more
Russo-Latin American Arms Sales
Photo: courtesy of Flickr user Andrewy Korchagin. Russia is pursuing a military buildup in the Americas to consolidate commercial deals and develop closer military and inter-governmental ties. The push also brings collateral benefits: Russia has placed contractors and advisers in local defense ministries and military headquarters who can influence doctrine, tactics and purchasing decisions. In … Read more
Endnotes: Russo-Latin American Arms Sales
Below are the endnotes from “Russo-Latin American Arms Sales” by Diana Negroponte (Winter 2015 AQ.) Elizabeth Romero, “”Negocian” base rusa en Nicaragua,” La Prensa, February 27, 2014, www.laprensa.com.ni/2014/02/27/politica/184445-negocian-base-rusa-en-nicaragua. “Costa Rica’s foreign minister accuses Russia of helping militarize Nicaragua,” The Tico Times, May 4, 2014, www.ticotimes.net/2014/05/04/costa-ricas-foreign-minister-accuses-russia-of-helping-militarize-nicaragua. Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Arms Transfers Database, www.sipri.org/databases/armstransfers … Read more
Incumbents Aren’t Latin America’s Problem
It’s been an exceptionally good year for incumbents in Latin America. Since June, Colombia’s Juan Manuel Santos, Bolivia’s Evo Morales and Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff each won their respective presidential contests. Rousseff’s late October re-election will give her center-left Partido dos Trabalhadores (Workers’ Party—PT) a fourth consecutive term in office. As it turns out, it’s been an exceptionally … Read more
Monday Memo: Cuba’s Ebola Response – Petrobras Scandal – Morales’ Third Term – Federal Police in Guerrero – Hurricane Gonzalo
Cuba to ramp up Ebola response: Cuba is expected to host the leaders of the Alianza Bolivariana para los Pueblos de Nuestra América (Bolivarian Alliance for Americas—ALBA) countries today to strategize an increased response to the Ebola crisis. Cuba, which was among the first to respond to the crisis in West Africa with human resources, … Read more
Mesoamerica’s Infrastructure Projects and Reducing Climate Change
This week, New York City hosted the Climate Summit 2014, an event aimed at shaping the world’s future developmental policies. Just one month earlier in Nicaragua, delegates from the Mesoamerican region met to analyze the social, environmental and economic impacts of severe droughts this year. Proyecto Mesoamérica (Mesoamerican Project), launched in 2008 by heads … Read more
Behind the Numbers: Insecurity and Marginalization in Central America
With 11 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2012, Nicaragua stands out as a relatively fortunate exception in a region whose homicide rates rank among the world’s highest. Its northern neighbors all recorded rates at least three times greater: with Guatemala at 34.3 murders per 100,000 citizens; El Salvador at 41.5; and—at the top of this … Read more
World Cup 2014: The “Zebras” of the Americas
When a soccer match ends in a surprising or unpredictable way, Brazilians often use the popular expression “deu zebra” (“it was a zebra”). The term applies to games where supposedly weaker teams beat stronger ones, or when key players are outperformed on the field. Like the animal, “zebras” are fairly rare. But in this World Cup, … Read more
Dangerous Liaisons: Organized Crime and Political Finance in Latin America and Beyond by Kevin Casas-Zamora (editor)
What happens when a government is unwilling or unable to protect its citizens from organized crime? The proposition was tested recently in Michoacán, when “citizen self-defense forces” took up arms against the Knights Templar cartel in the absence of the state’s ability to protect them. Ultimately, federal troops and police joined the citizen militias to … Read more
Speaking a Common Language with Latin America: Economics
United States-Latin American relations have often suffered from a disconnect. While we stress security issues, the region’s leaders speak of poverty reduction and trade. They resent being seen as afterthoughts to U.S. policies focused elsewhere. As a result, the region is sporadically open to new suitors, such as Spanish investors 15 years ago, or the … Read more
Leaders of the Americas Address UN General Assembly
Leaders from throughout the hemisphere will convene in New York City today for the opening of the sixty-eight session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). For the third year in a row, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff will deliver the first address. In her speech, she is expected to propose global measures against cyber-espionage—a practice … Read more
Venezuela y la Corte Interamericana: ¿Un adiós, o un largo hasta luego?
El quinto piso del edificio de la Organización de Estados Americanos (OEA) alberga la biblioteca Rómulo Gallegos, designada de esta manera para hacer un homenaje al primer presidente de la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH). Este es un significativo reconocimiento del rol que asumió Venezuela en el sistema hemisférico de derechos humanos, incluso décadas antes … Read more
Japanese Diplomacy in Latin America and the Caribbean
Japan’s relationship with our neighbors across the Pacific has been, and remains, very close. Our first encounter stretches back more than 400 years. Since then—from the signing of Japan’s first diplomatic treaty on equal terms in 1888 with Mexico to the thriving Japanese immigrant community of approximately 1.65 million across Latin America and the Caribbean—the … Read more
Canadian Foreign Minister Concludes Two-Week Tour of Latin America
Globe-trotting John Baird, Canada’s foreign affairs minister, returned to Canada recently after a 13-day trip to Latin America that began on July 28. The trip—his second to the region this year—took him to Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Brazil with a focus in each country of promoting business opportunities and exploring new … Read more
Latin Americans’ Perceptions of the United States and China
U.S. and Chinese leaders recently have each dedicated considerable time to visiting with their Latin American counterparts. In May, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden separately visited five countries: Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, and Trinidad & Tobago. In June, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Costa Rica, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago as … Read more
