La geopolítica en el hemisferio occidental después de Trump: ¿ha abandonado los Estados Unidos la hegemonía en América Latina?

• Author: Kacper Grass
• Position: UAB
• Pages: 473-491

Revista inteRnacional de Pensamiento Político - i ÉPoca - vol. 16 - 2021 - [473-491] - issn 1885-589X

473

GEOPOLITICS IN THE WESTERN

HEMISPHERE AFTER TRUMP: HAS THE

UNITED STATES ABANDONED HEGEMONY

IN LATIN AMERICA?

LA GEOPOLÍTICA EN EL HEMISFERIO OCCIDENTAL DESPUÉS

DE TRUMP: ¿HA ABANDONADO LOS ESTADOS UNIDOS LA

HEGEMONÍA EN AMÉRICA LATINA?

Kacper Grass

University of Tennessee, Knoxville, USA

kgrass@vols.utk.edu

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8207-3355

Recibido: enero de 2021

Aceptado: abril de 2021

Palabras clave: Geopolítica, Política exterior de los Estados Unidos, Relaciones internacionales, América Latina

Keywords: Geopolitics, United States foreign policy, International relations, Latin America

Resumen: La presidencia aislacionista de Donald Trump fue solo la última,

aunque la más radical, de una serie de administraciones estadounidenses que

han ignorado en gran medida fomentar relaciones con América Latina y el Ca-

ribe. Esta aparente retirada ha resultado en el ascenso de Brasil como una po-

tencia regional importante, así como en la incursión de la influencia rusa y china

en la región. Teniendo en cuenta estos desarrollos, este artículo presenta un

panorama histórico de la hegemonía de los Estados Unidos en el hemisferio occi-

dental antes de describir cómo los reveses recientes han socavado esta tenden-

cia en las áreas de comercio regional, diplomacia y seguridad. A medida que la

administración Biden hace su transición, el artículo termina proponiendo cómo

los Estados Unidos podría recuperar influencia en la región, colaborando con sus

vecinos del sur para promover el desarrollo económico, defender los derechos

humanos y enfrentar los actuales problemas de seguridad de la región.

Abstract: The isolationist presidency of Donald Trump was only the last, albeit

the most radical, of a series of United States administrations that have largely

ignored fostering close relations with Latin America and the Caribbean. This

apparent withdrawal has resulted in the steady rise of Brazil as a significant

regional power as well as the incursion of Russian and Chinese influence in the

region. In light of these developments, this article presents a historical overview

of United States hegemony in the western hemisphere before outlining how

recent setbacks have undermined this trend in the areas of regional trade,

Revista inteRnacional de Pensamiento Político - i ÉPoca - vol. 16 - 2021 - [473-491] - issn 1885-589X

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diplomacy, and security. As the Biden

administration makes its transition, the

article finishes by proposing how the

United States could regain influence

in the region by collaborating with its

southern neighbors to promote eco-

nomic development, defend human

rights, and confront the region’s on-

going security issues.

1. Introduction

Since the consolidation of a sovereign

United States, relations with Latin

America and the Caribbean have been at

the forefront of the country’s foreign policy

concerns. As the first independent country

in the western hemisphere, the United

States was already in an advantageous

position when a wave of nationalist

movements swept across the continents

of North and South America in the early

19th century. Seeing itself as a beacon of

the Enlightenment and a symbol of anti-

colonial struggle, the United States was

quick to create a sphere of influence

among the newly independent countries

of Latin America and the Caribbean.

However, this idealism was only valid so

long as it was compatible with the vision

of the United States’ manifest destiny to

grow territorially and expand economically

across the hemisphere it had recently

liberated from foreign tyranny. In

geopolitical terms, this destiny meant

adopting a grand strategy of establishing

hegemony, first on the North American

continent and later throughout Latin

America and the Caribbean. Within two

centuries, however, the United States

managed to expand its hegemony on a

scale that would have been unfathomable

to even the most visionary of the Founding

Fathers. By the end of the 20th century,

the Cold War had come to an end and

it became clear that unipolarity under

United States leadership would define

the new world order. With the collapse

of the Soviet Union and the apparent

defeat of the international communist

movement, United States economic,

diplomatic, and military hegemony in the

western hemisphere seemed certain and

undisputable.

Despite this initial certainty, however, the

past two decades have seen the United

States turn its attention away from Latin

America and the Caribbean. Ever since

the attacks of September 11, 2001 and

the beginning of the Bush administration’s

war on terror, the Middle East has almost

monopolized the focus of United States

foreign policy. Despite President Obama’s

efforts to solve the country’s southern

migrant crisis and restore diplomatic

relations with Cuba, his administration

ultimately failed to produce a coherent

strategy for furthering relations with the

region as a whole. Thus, if the Bush and

Obama administrations marked a gradual

setback in United States–Latin American

relations, then the recent administration

of President Trump has bordered on

complete abandonment of the region. In

the meantime, these trends have been

accompanied by the rise of Brazil as a

regional power that is increasingly eager

to prove itself as such on the world stage.

Moreover, Russia and China have taken

advantage of the United States’ absence

and isolationism, becoming more

assertive in establishing both military and

economic ties with countries that continue

to struggle with the pressing issues of

insecurity and underdevelopment.

With a new presidential administration

about to take control of the United States’

foreign policy apparatus, there is still