A moderated discussion with guest speaker Lt. Col. Michael Jones, Executive Director of CARICOM IMPACS, exploring the development of the Caribbean Maritime Security Strategy and its implications in the region.
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This paper focuses on vaccination practices among the Western Hemisphere's armed forces. The paper will look at three issues: (1) the institutional and normative sources of vaccine requirements and mandates; (2) the alternatives provided to service members who choose not to be vaccinated; and (3) incentives and penalties for non-compliance. The analysis is broken down by sub-regions of the Western Hemisphere: North America, the Caribbean (non-Spanish speaking), Central America and the Dominican Republic, and South America.
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In Latin America, it is expected that climate change will exacerbate extreme weather events such as hurricanes, droughts, and wildfires, a consequence of extremely dry conditions. The armed forces of Latin America have a long history of participating in Humanitarian Assistance/ Disaster Relief (HA/DR) operations when natural disasters events occur. To be prepared for the next disaster, regional armed forces constantly train via local and multinational exercises, while defense budgets are aimed at acquiring HA/DR equipment.
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A moderated discussion with two of the authors of the recently published English-language book Adversarial System Analysis of the Salvadoran Gangs which examines the organizational dynamics and evolution of the Salvadoran gangs.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has upended the post-World War II political, economic, social and international order with many questioning whether our current democratic and economic institutions are suitable for and capable of recovering from this profound health, economic and governance crisis. While democracies and open economies were hard hit by the pandemic, illicit networks including transnational criminal groups, terrorist organizations and their facilitators have proven more resilient, expanding their activities and influence in the Americas. This article will examine the impact COVID-19 has had on the health, economy, democracy, security of the region and on illicit networks. The article will conclude with recommendations on how nations incorporate strategic foresight and anticipatory governance to safeguard their sovereignty and counter to the growing threats from corruption and illicit networks in the new world order.
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The Caribbean faces a plethora of security challenges not the least of which are the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change problems, crime, and cyber security gaps. This collection of essays from participants in the Caribbean Defense and Security Course (2021) in August 2021 provides first-hand perspectives of 18 authors who help manage these challenges on behalf of their governments.
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Revenue from illegal drugs is the principal source of income for transnational organized crime groups in the Americas. Cocaine is the biggest revenue generator. Heroin and fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, have recently surged in Mexico. This report examines the surge in cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl from the Americas. Data are draw from the US Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)'s National Drug Control Strategy Data Supplement from 2020 and from the ONDCP Drug Dashboard.
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During the COVID-19 pandemic, life as we knew it changed dramatically as activities, both licit and illicit, moved to the virtual world. We witnessed shopping, college classes, diplomatic meetings, financial transactions, and organized crime activities transition online almost overnight. The pandemic has empowered transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) to establish new virtual markets for their drug, human, arms, and contraband trafficking and money laundering with cryptocurrencies.
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The Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies is hosting its fourth annual forum on the security challenges in Latin America. This year?s forum aims to address the thematic question, "Security, Defense, and Gender: What are the Impacts?"
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