After his prompt, unexpected and unceremonial removal from Nicaragua, while there to conduct research on the transoceanic canal, Evan Ellis reflects on the events and what they mean for Nicaraguan democracy and U.S.-Nicaraguan relations.
In October 2015, Bolivia’s president, Evo Morales, announced an unprecedented expansion of financial support by and economic engagement with China. The announcement was the culmination of a growing relationship between China and Bolivia which has begun to bear fruit.
The question for businessmen and governments with a stake in the deteriorating situation in Venezuela is no longer if the regime of Nicholas Maduro will come to a premature end, but under what circumstances.
The government of President Salvador Sánchez Cerén has launched a new, expansive (and expensive) anti-crime package targeting gang leaders, reforming prisons and establishing renewed police presence in select municipalities. Will it work?
In comparing the perspectives of Mexican government officials, the Armed Forces and police to those of academics, journalists, teachers and taxi drivers, the range of perceptions regarding what is happening in the country is stunning.
Conversations with Colombian security officials reveal concerns that Colombia’s peace agreement, if approved and implemented, may in the short term lead to greater violence, as former FARC members defect to the ELN and join in criminal and violent activities. How should Colombia, the U.S, and the EU prepare?
Personal contacts and questionable contracts between the government and the Chinese company CAMC Engineering reveal both the problems with public procurement in Bolivia and how far Chinese companies have advanced in the country.
Forget about Sean Penn. The capture of El Chapo demonstrates the competence of the Mexican armed forces and the progress made in years of collaboration between the U.S. and Mexico. But at the same time cartels have also started to collaborate and consolidate, raising new challenges for both partners.
As 2015 unfolded, one-by-one Russia’s principal political supporters in Latin America and the Caribbean entered into problems that either restricted their ability to deepen relations with Russia, or called into question the survival or future direction of their government.
In August 2015, El Salvador registered its bloodiest month since its 1980-1992 civil war. There were 907 murders, including 52 in a single day on August 27. The country is on track to end the year with over 6,000 murders in a population of just 6.4 million, making it the most violent country not at war in the world.
