In September 2013, the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies conducted a Hemispheric Forum on US foreign policy in Latin America. The forum, one of a series of conferences that bring distinguished scholars together to discuss matters of urgency in the Hemisphere, addressed the dilemma faced by US policy makers in the current political environment in Latin America and the Caribbean. Panelists remarked on the political relations between the United States and Latin American nations, relations that have grown distant and contentious in the last decade. A summary of the discussion is provided for readers.
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In December 2013 as part of a series of Hemispheric Forums, the William J. Perry Center hosted a round table discussion of democracy in Latin America. In particular, the group analyzed recent and upcoming elections in the Americas, events that might reflect the political uncertainty common in the region. The panelists included a number of subject matter experts on Latin American politics and democracy: Johanna Mendelson Forman, Senior Associate, Program on Crisis, Conflict and Cooperation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Roberto Izurieta, Director of Latin American Projects for the Graduate School of Political Management (GSPM) at George Washington University; and Harold Trinkunas, Charles W. Robinson Chair and Senior Fellow and Director of the Latin America Initiative at the Brookings Institution. Luis Bitencourt, Dean of Academics at the Perry Center, moderated the panel.
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This paper proposes to contribute to our understanding of the process of democratic consolidation in Mexico. It argues that political cultural change is a necessary component of consolidation and takes the core of political culture as "symbolic narratives" the predominant stories about the nation that establish the terms of political competition. Democratic consolidation thus includes the liberalization of symbolic narratives that circumscribe the power of the state. Mexican symbolic narratives since independence, in contrast, have reserved a preponderant role for the state as an agent of positive social transformation. Considering this political cultural heritage illuminates the illiberal tendencies in Mexican democracy today, and makes it clear that democratic consolidation faces higher hurdles than often assumed.
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This article examines the foreign policy of Latin America and the Caribbean toward the People's Republic of China. It finds that, for those nations recognizing Taiwan, most Latin American nations have had relatively few political differences with the PRC. Exceptions include Brazil's bid for a seat on the UN Security Council and Mexico's receipt of the Dali Lama under the sexenio of Felipe Calderón. Within the region, the most important differences have emerged on issues of foreign economic policy. The article finds that Latin America's heterogeneous orientation toward China on economic issues may be understood in terms of four cross-cutting cleavages, which reflect economic, political, and geographic divisions in the region more broadly: (1) north versus south, (2) populist regimes versus market economies, (3) pure resource exporters versus industrialized exporters versus nonexporting capital recipients versus pure importers , and (4) Pacific versus Atlantic.
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Two of the greatest threats in the Northern Hemisphere are terrorism and drug trafficking. However, drug trafficking-related violence, cartel criminal diversification in national and transnational fronts, and terrorist-style displays of force are just the visible elements of a deeper, more complex social dynamics in the country. Drug trafficking, like international terrorism, is not a one-sided problem. It is a multi-level, multi-dimensional issue that must include different measures to effectively engage it. It is, by definition, a complex social phenomenon that does not hold definition. Mexico has its share of these problems. Among the major cartels operating in Mexico, the Zetas are the ones that have displayed a relatively high level of mobility, adaptability, and aggressiveness over the last few years. Other complicating factors are the transnational criminal organization development dynamics and adaptation to the environment. Consequently, military and law enforcement must constantly adapt to the new operating conditions they encounter as they regain control of public spaces in the country.
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The purpose of this paper is to characterize China's growing relationship in Latin America and the Caribbean from a US perspective, the US response to that relationship, and some of the opportunities and challenges that the changing relationship creates for all parties. It argues that some of the greatest challenges are likely to come not from China-Latin America military engagement, but rather, from the growing physical presence of Chinese companies on the ground in the region, and byproducts of expanding commercial interactions such as trans-pacific criminal activity.
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The Writing Guide contains helpful advice on developing a thesis statement, citing references, creating a bibliography, using transitional sentences, and proofreading.
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