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South America

First Lady Jill Biden, Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso, and Ecuadorian First Lady María de Lourdes Alcívar de Lasso wave to reporters at the Carondelet Palace in Quito, Ecuador, on May 19.
First Lady Jill Biden, Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso, and Ecuadorian First Lady María de Lourdes Alcívar de Lasso wave to reporters at the Carondelet Palace in Quito, Ecuador, on May 19.

Will Washington Invest in Its Neighborhood?

The June Summit of the Americas is an opportunity to unveil a more ambitious regional economic strategy.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
Gustavo Petro, Colombian presidential candidate for the Historic Pact coalition, gestures at the presidential candidate for the Team for Colombia coalition, Federico Gutiérrez, during a presidential debate at the headquarters of El Tiempo in Bogotá, Colombia, on May 23.
Gustavo Petro, Colombian presidential candidate for the Historic Pact coalition, gestures at the presidential candidate for the Team for Colombia coalition, Federico Gutiérrez, during a presidential debate at the headquarters of El Tiempo in Bogotá, Colombia, on May 23.

Is Colombia Ready for a Leftist President?

Election front-runner Gustavo Petro is a former Marxist guerrilla.

Explainer |
Maria Ximena Aragon
the-catch-logo-site-3-2
the-catch-logo-site-3-2

Coming Soon: The Catch

How squid explains the state of global fishing.

Podcast
People hold up signs and protest.
People hold up signs and protest.

How Chile’s Constitutional Overhaul Emboldened the Right

Even if the new constitution is adopted, Chile’s anti-democratic right wing is here to stay.

Analysis |
Jennifer M. Piscopo, Peter M. Siavelis
Argentine President Alberto Fernández visits the Museum of the Communist Party of China in Beijing on Feb. 4.
Argentine President Alberto Fernández visits the Museum of the Communist Party of China in Beijing on Feb. 4.

Argentina’s Embrace of China Should Be a Wake-Up Call

U.S. Latin America strategy needs serious reform—before it’s too late.

Argument |
Ariel González Levaggi, Ryan C. Berg
Police and soldiers stand outside a bar in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, minutes after an execution occurred inside on April 18, 2009.
Police and soldiers stand outside a bar in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, minutes after an execution occurred inside on April 18, 2009.

In the Americas, Homicide Is the Other Killer Epidemic

The good news: Lockdowns reduced crime almost everywhere else, and we know how to stop lethal violence.

Analysis |
Robert Muggah, Katherine Aguirre
Cubans line up to buy food outside a store in Havana on Jan. 6.
Cubans line up to buy food outside a store in Havana on Jan. 6.

Rethinking Maximum Pressure

Washington loosens its sanctions on Cuba and Venezuela ahead of a critical summit.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
A motorcycle passes in front of an oil-themed mural in Caracas, Venezuela
A motorcycle passes in front of an oil-themed mural in Caracas, Venezuela

Democracy Is Not a Commodity

The United States shouldn’t bargain away Venezuela’s future for oil.

Argument |
Isadora Zubillaga
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva speaks during an event to announce his pre-candidacy for the October presidential elections with running mate Geraldo Alckmin at Expo Center Norte in São Paulo on May 7.
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva speaks during an event to announce his pre-candidacy for the October presidential elections with running mate Geraldo Alckmin at Expo Center Norte in São Paulo on May 7.

Lula’s Tricky Comeback

The Brazilian leftist has crafted an unusual alliance with the center. Will it sully or save him?

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
Pro-Choice demonstrators celebrate outside the Justice Palace in Bogota after the Constitutional Court voted in favor of decriminalizing abortion up to 24 weeks of gestation
Pro-Choice demonstrators celebrate outside the Justice Palace in Bogota after the Constitutional Court voted in favor of decriminalizing abortion up to 24 weeks of gestation

How Latin American Feminists Won Abortion Rights

Many argue abortion is not just an issue of individual choice but also of social justice.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro gestures during a meeting of the National Confederation of Industry in Brasília, Brazil, on Dec. 7, 2021.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro gestures during a meeting of the National Confederation of Industry in Brasília, Brazil, on Dec. 7, 2021.

Bolsonaro Is Already Undermining Brazil’s Upcoming Election

The populist president and his devotees are casting a dark cloud over the October vote.

Analysis |
Robert Muggah
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during the first North American Leaders’ Summit since 2016 in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Nov. 18, 2021.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during the first North American Leaders’ Summit since 2016 in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Nov. 18, 2021.

Biden Is Setting Himself Up for Embarrassment in Los Angeles

The upcoming Summit of the Americas could be the gravestone on U.S. influence in the region.

Argument |
Christopher Sabatini
Art collectives march in Buenos Aires to commemorate the Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice.
Art collectives march in Buenos Aires to commemorate the Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice.

Will Argentina’s Stolen Generation Be Forgotten?

Far-right leaders want to erase the memory of the junta’s disappeared. The fight to remember them is now in the hands of Argentine youth.

Dispatch |
Lucía Cholakian Herrera
Argentine President Alberto Fernández and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador talk during the commemoration of Mexico’s Flag Day and the 200th anniversary of the enactment of the Iguala Plan at Cerro del Tehuehue in Iguala, Mexico, on Feb. 24, 2021.
Argentine President Alberto Fernández and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador talk during the commemoration of Mexico’s Flag Day and the 200th anniversary of the enactment of the Iguala Plan at Cerro del Tehuehue in Iguala, Mexico, on Feb. 24, 2021.

Washington Learns to Live With Regional Differences on Ukraine

The White House is mellowing its public criticism of the stances Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico have taken on the war.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
An aerial view of the first thermosolar power plant in Latin America in Antofagasta, Chile, on Sept. 22, 2021.
An aerial view of the first thermosolar power plant in Latin America in Antofagasta, Chile, on Sept. 22, 2021.

Chile Bets Big on Green Hydrogen

The country aims to lure investors and become a global clean energy hub.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
Solar technicians from Alianza Ceibo/Amazon Frontlines help members
Solar technicians from Alianza Ceibo/Amazon Frontlines help members

Ecuador’s Distant Dream of a Green Recovery

The debt-saddled country is struggling to meet its climate goals under IMF austerity.

Dispatch |
Catherine Osborn
Migrants and asylum-seekers march to protest against the United States’ Title 42 policy on the Mexican side of the San Ysidro crossing port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on March 21.
Migrants and asylum-seekers march to protest against the United States’ Title 42 policy on the Mexican side of the San Ysidro crossing port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on March 21.

The End of Title 42 Doesn’t Mean Back to Normal

During the pandemic, Washington outsourced harsh migration management to its southern neighbors.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
People cheer during a celebration after the number of signatures to call a referendum to repeal some portions of the Law of Urgent Consideration were achieved in Montevideo, Uruguay, on July 8, 2021.
People cheer during a celebration after the number of signatures to call a referendum to repeal some portions of the Law of Urgent Consideration were achieved in Montevideo, Uruguay, on July 8, 2021.

Uruguay’s Low-Key Drama

Latin America’s most stable democracy holds a high-stakes policy referendum.

Latin America Brief |
Catherine Osborn
Members of the Venezuelan army take part in a military parade in Tumeremo, Bolívar state, Venezuela, about 56 miles from the border with Guyana, on July 21, 2015.
Members of the Venezuelan army take part in a military parade in Tumeremo, Bolívar state, Venezuela, about 56 miles from the border with Guyana, on July 21, 2015.

Another Conflict Is Brewing in the Caribbean

Russia’s war in Ukraine stirs Venezuela’s dreams of conquest in oil-rich Guyana.

Argument |
Paul J. Angelo, Wazim Mowla
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