Geopolitics / South America

• Brazil's Desire for Superpower Status

  Brazil’s quest for superpower status has a long history. Initially, this was probably rooted in the Brazilian sense of size and uniqueness – a continental sized country, with immense natural resources and geographical and ethnic diversity; yet united by a common language, Portuguese – as opposed to Spanish in the rest of Latin America - and by a sense of a distinct history. Importantly, Brazil’s modern history, following 300 years of colonial neglect and exploitation, began in 1806 with the arrival of the Portuguese Court, escaping from Napoleonic Europe. The Portuguese Empire was ruled from Rio de Janeiro until 1821.…

• The Chilean Winter and Return of Student Activism

  While the United States and Europe stagger around blindsided by their self-inflicted economic wounds, the rest of the world has been enthralled by the dramatic events occurring in the Middle East, where the long oppressed peoples of many Arab nations have taken to the streets to register their discontent with their autocratic, corrupt governments, from Morocco to Bahrain. An element common to all these events is the population’s rising anger over governments’ perceived ineptitude and even outright corruption, inflicting financial misery on all but a privileged elite, who call for increasing sacrifice from the middle and working classes even as…

• Brazil Reiterates Support for Argentina over Falklands

  The British lion south of the border is looking more than a tad scrofulous these days. On 29 July in the wake of a meeting between Argentinean President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and Brazil’s Dilma Rousseff in Brasilia, the pair issued a joint communiqué in which Brazil reaffirmed its support for Argentina’s claim to the Falkland islands, which Buenos Aires refers to the as Malvinas. Brazil reiterated its intention of banning all Falklands’ flagged vessels from calling at Brazilian ports and described as “illegal” the current British oil exploration in the Falkland Islands’ territorial waters. The communiqué noted, “The President…

• The Quiet Revolution: Latin America Moving Away from Washington’s Influence

  Perhaps the biggest foreign-policy story of the past decade, thoroughly overlooked by the American media after 9/11 and its subsequent monomaniacal focus on terrorism, security and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, is the fact that Latin America has essentially moved away from Washington's influence. This quiet revolution from below, in rejecting the Monroe Doctrine, first enunciated in 1823 whereby the U.S. essentially barred European powers from influence in Latin America, has essentially for nearly 200 years served as an ideological platform for countless U.S. interventions south of the border but has yet to register on the radar the politicians in…

• The Secret to Brazil’s Success: Trade Diplomacy

  Brazil carries the mantle of being the 8th largest economy in the world, and according to the IMF, it is soon to leapfrog Italy in 2011 and become the 7th largest. With a $2 trillion economy, Brazil’s economy surpasses Russia, India and South Korea. To add more muscle to its current stature, Brazil is the world’s fourth largest food exporter, and is the world’s 16th largest oil producer. What Brazil has done differently than other Latin American countries is that it vehemently looked for new markets near and abroad to increase exports. For example, in March 2010 Brazil finalized a…

• Hugo Chavez in Trouble as Russia and China Begin to Look Elsewhere for Energy Security

  Over the past few weeks, the Venezuelan ruling party and Hugo Chavez have been consolidating power and embellishing the already far reaching role of the Executive Office.  Opposition parties were relatively successful in Venezuela’s most recent National Assembly elections; therefore, Chavez will face increased opposition when the new Assembly convenes.  This is a good thing for democracy, but not for Chavez.  Before the new Assembly can take their seats, the ruling party has been working to pass major legislation that would expand presidential powers.  According to the new legislation, Chavez would have the ability to rule by executive decree for…

• Trouble Brewing in South America Between Colombia and Venezuela

  In addition to floundering trade, deteriorating diplomatic ties between Colombia and Venezuela are exacerbating security risks at a fragile border. As rumors of an unlikely war between Colombia and Venezuela continue to circulate, the casualties of a smaller war at the border are already mounting up. During the week of 3-10 June, at least 11 people died in drug-related violence in the Colombian city of Cúcuta and the surrounding area, including the violent deaths of at least six people in Ureña, just over the border in Venezuela. The bloody week brings the number of violent deaths in Cúcuta in 2010…

• Unholy Alliance in Colombia Poses new Challenges for Government

  With the FARC weakened, Colombia's next president will face a more factionalized internal insurgency, requiring a different strategic approach. As candidates for the presidency of Colombia enter the final campaign stretch prior to the first round of elections on 30 May, the looming question of the future of President Alvaro Uribe's Democratic Security program remains a controversial topic. The program, which involved an aggressive military campaign against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the country’s oldest and largest insurgency, has been largely successful at weakening the group's ability to operate in many parts of Colombia. However, in spite of…

• Venezuela Encourages Orinoco Oil Belt Investment

  As Venezuela's oil production continues to decline, the Chavez administration has focused on courting international investment to increase production in the Orinoco Belt. Located in the southern portion of the eastern Orinoco River Basin, Venezuela’s non-conventional oil deposits of approximately 1,200 billion barrels are found primarily in the Orinoco oil sands, an expensive and difficult environment for oil extraction. According to the Chavez administration and some independent assessments, unproven reserves may surpass the amount of worldwide reserves of conventional oil. With the price of oil predicted to remain high, investment in the Orinoco oil sands has become more attractive to…

• Argentina Running Out Of Options In Falklands Oil Fight

  As Argentina's oil battle with the United Kingdom rages on, the only other obstacle the South American country can throw at oil companies planning to drill near the Falkland Islands is to interdict U.K. ships or equipment - but regional expert Riordan Roett doubts the Argentines are “stupid enough to do that.” This would be a “very dangerous move” on the part of the Argentine government, said Roett, director of Latin American studies at Johns Hopkins University in Washington. Argentina, which went to war with the U.K. in 1982 over Falklands’ sovereignty, is “very careful” about challenging the British in…