On 25 January, in London, England, Perry Center Director Paul Angelo participated in the conference “Promoting Cooperation to Meet Evolving Challenges,” hosted by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). This event focused on strengthening defense collaboration across Latin America and the Caribbean by gathering a diverse group of policymakers, defense professionals, and stakeholders to explore the security challenges facing the region. In a panel titled “Forging Ties and Improving Defense Cooperation Mechanisms across Land, Sea, and Air,” Dr. Angelo underscored the importance of collaboration in confronting transnational threats, emphasizing, “One of the major issues in the Latin America and Caribbean region, is that too often countries have siloed their security and defense institutions in a way that allows criminals and other adversaries to take advantage of the gray areas between delineations. We need to start thinking of strategies to confront the major security issues in an inter-institutional manner.”

Delving deeper into the discussion, Dr. Angelo highlighted the need to adopt a multilateral approach to security, acknowledging the interconnected nature of contemporary threats. “It is time for countries in the region to start looking to multilateralism and working across borders to confront transnational challenges,” he stated. Within that cooperation framework, Dr. Angelo called for “a renewed focus on combating disinformation and building out the technical capabilities of security forces across the region to deal with human trafficking.”

Addressing the role of technology in defense cooperation, Dr. Angelo shed light on the challenges posed by emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI). “There are opportunities for our adversaries to exploit weaknesses. We have to be right 100% of the time, while our adversaries have to be right just once,” he remarked. Additionally, Dr. Angelo acknowledged the geopolitical landscape, noting the strategic advantage the United States and its allies hold in technology and information sharing in the face of near-peer competition with nations like China and Russia. “The United States and like-minded partners, particularly the countries of Europe, have a lot of credibility in dealing with security and defense issues, especially technology and the respectful integration of information sharing. That should not be taken for granted and is a strategic advantage that the US currently enjoys,” he concluded, highlighting the significance of international cooperation in ensuring a more prosperous and peaceful future.