Tag Archives: border issues

On Extraditions and Colombian-Panamanian Ties

Much has been made about Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos’ success at mending relations with his neighbors to the east and south. Rightly so. Given the difficult situation he inherited from his predecessor, this is no small feat. But Santos’ newest diplomatic test may now come from the north. On Jan. 3, Panamanian Foreign Minister Roberto Henriquez [...]
Posted in Colombia, Panama | Also tagged , , | Leave a comment

Brazil in Latin America: Emerging political risks?

Simon Romero has written a solid article on the front page of yesterday’s NYT about how Brazil’s rise and activity in Latin America is creating diplomatic problems with some its regional neighbors. The article itself is worth reading in its entirety, as it points to an interesting trend in regional politics, but for brevity’s sake, [...]
Posted in Bolivia, Brazil | Also tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

In Ciudad Mier, deploying troops is not enough

Back in November 2010, a small town on the US-Mexico border, Ciudad Mier, made headlines when most of the town’s residents left because of intense fighting between the Zetas and Gulf cartels. Both groups wanted the plaza, which is a strategic smuggling corridor for weapons, cash, and money between the United States and Mexico, and [...]
Posted in Colombia, Mexico | Also tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Ideas, not money, will make Central America safer

Boz has a great point about the fresh funding headed to Central America: I think a lesson is that there is no amount of money that the US could put on the table and no amount of attention the US could give that would guarantee Central America’s success in fighting organized crime. The US is not [...]
Posted in Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Latin America, Panama, nicaragua | Also tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Far-Reaching Demonstrations Against AZ Law

How divisive is Senate Bill 1070? There was a universal rejection of the law by the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), as well as protests on both sides of the border: But the protests have spread to countries where a large diaspora stands to be impacted by the law. On 14 May, hundreds of Ecuadorians  in [...]
Posted in Bolivia, Ecuador, Latin America, Mexico, United States | Also tagged , | Leave a comment

Selective Impunity

El Chiguire Bipolar has a good take on the concept of selective impunity. In the Onion-like fashion for which the blog is known, it tells the story of Maria Angelica Guerrero, a two-time victim of lightning kidnappings and exasperation at the police’s ineffectiveness. Thinking creatively, she attempts to get her kidnapper to speak negatively about Hugo [...]
Posted in Mexico | Also tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Merida 2.0: A New Phase in U.S.-Mexico Security Cooperation

Responding to a growing sense that an exclusive focus on a military-led fight against drug trafficking organizations is failing to curb violence on the other side of our southern border, the United States and Mexico formally announced a shift in their counternarcotics strategy that had been in the works since the fall of 2009. The “new stage” in bilateral cooperation will aim to strengthen civilian law enforcement institutions and rebuild communities crippled by poverty and crime.
Posted in Mexico | Also tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Beyond Playa del Carmen: Tourism and Diplomacy in Ecuador and Colombia

Last week’s Rio Summit between high ranking dignitaries of the Americas – The United States and Canada conspicuously excluded – produced a number of notable events: The announcement of the creation of a Brazil-led regional bloc to convene in July 2011 Universal [...]
Posted in Colombia, Ecuador | Also tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Anti-drug bases in Panama and the Drug War in 2010

One of the biggest stories emerging from the Americas in 2009 was Colombia’s decision to let the United States access military installations throughout Colombia in efforts to combat narcotrafficking. The move exacerbated already tenuous relations between Colombia and Venezuela, with the latter claiming that US presence in Colombia was a direct threat to sovereignty, another [...]
Posted in Colombia, Panama, Venezuela | Also tagged , | Leave a comment

Paraguay’s Anti-Terrorist Group and the US

On 4 November 2009, the United States announced they would donate US$1.39 million in equipment towards the formation of an elite unit of highly trained troops in the Paraguayan army. Backed by US funding (sources put the total amount of the expedition at US$3 million) and training from SOUTHCOM, the troops are trained in counterterrorism [...]
Posted in Brazil, Paraguay, United States | Also tagged , , | Leave a comment