From various corners of the U.S. executive branch, here are a few recent documents with relevance for Latin America policy.
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A February 17 State Department fact sheet lays out the U.S. government’s side of a noisy diplomatic dispute with Argentina over items aboard a U.S. military aircraft present in Buenos Aires for a police training exercise. Often, these State Department “fact sheets” are short on specifics and
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- Two FARC hostages were released Wednesday, after being held by the rebel group for more than two years. Major Guillermo Solorzano, 35, was kidnapped by the FARC in Cauca in June 2007 and Corporal Salin Sanmiguel, 28, was kidnapped in Tolima in May 2008 during an attack on the Army in which five soldiers where killed. The two were scheduled to be released to the International Committee of the Red Cross on Sunday, but the release was delayed for reasons that remain in dispute. Government officials accused the FARC of deceiving the humanitarian delegation on purpose, but ...
An incident surrounding the contents of a U.S. military plane has Washington's relations with Argentina in crisis. Adam discusses the episode, and its context, with Lucila Santos of WOLA.
See below for a fact sheet about the incident prepared by Lucila Santos.
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Yesterday's post on the 2012 budget request noted a deep cut in military and police assistance to Mexico. We asked whether the Obama administration might be planning to keep providing this aid through other sources, like the defense budget or a special supplemental appropriation. It turns out that, in fact, what the State Department calls the "Beyond Mérida" initiative will be focused on civilian institution-building (something our organizations support), at a substantially lower level of funding.
A State Department...
The Obama administration's 2012 aid request for Latin America. Two hearings in Congress this week about U.S. policy toward the region. A bizarre episode highlights problems in U.S. relations with Argentina.
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Here's a rundown of news from Mexico last week: