Latin America Commentary & Analysis

United States, Cuba Reopen Embassies After Fifty-Four Years. Here’s Why it Matters

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Atlantic Council analysts discuss historic opportunity presented by reopening of embassies in Washington and Havana The United States and Cuba reopened embassies in each other’s capitals July 20 taking the biggest step toward ending half a century of animosity between the two countries. US Secretary of State John F. Kerry hosted Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno […]

Cuba’s Economic Reintegration: Is the Time Now?

By Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center

Since the breakdown of US-Cuban relations in the early 1960s, Cuba has experienced a self- and externally-imposed isolation from US-led global financial markets. While the socialist Cuban economy was able to sustain itself on foreign assistance from the Soviet Union during the Cold War, the economic hardships of the post-Soviet period have necessitated dramatic reforms […]

Dilma’s Visit Injects New Vigor into US-Brazil Relations

By Larry Luxner

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has wrapped up her historic visit to the United States and is heading back home, where a shrinking economy and a growing corruption scandal at state-owned oil giant Petrobras have made her deeply unpopular among Brazilians. In fact, it’s that scandal—not the one involving spying by the National Security Agency two […]

Making History, Obama Announces Opening of US Embassy in Havana

By Larry Luxner

On July 20, the Stars and Stripes will rise over a US Embassy in Havana for the first time in fifty-four years—and the Cuban flag will flutter over the newly reconstituted Cuban Embassy in Washington. If all goes according to plan, US Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Havana to witness the historic event. […]

From Chile to the Czech Republic: Diplomats Debate the Future of the Nation-State

By Larry Luxner

Five Washington-based foreign ambassadors shared the stage with US officials June 29 to discuss the 2015 Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR)—a report that deals with complex issues such as the rise of non-state actors. Thomas Perriello, QDDR Special Representative since his February 2014 appointment by Secretary of State John Kerry, unveiled the study at […]

Asian, Latin American Diplomats Debate TPP as Trade Bill Advances in Congress

With US lawmakers on the verge of granting the White House fast-track authority to negotiate complex free-trade accords, diplomats representing four of Washington’s eleven allies in the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership—Chile, Japan, Peru, and Singapore—gathered June 23 at the Atlantic Council to discuss TPP’s implications. The event, sponsored by the council’s Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center, […]

President Rousseff’s Visit: Photo-Op or a New Era for the US and Brazil?

By Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center

After 18 months of tension following the revelation of a US surveillance program directed at the Brazilian government, President Dilma Rousseff’s upcoming visit to Washington on June 30 marks an important shift toward reengagement for the United States and Brazil. The Presidents are expected to speak about a wide range of political and economic issues, from Venezuela and Haiti […]