Militarization, Security and the Free Market Confronting US Foreign Policy toward Latin America

Confronting US foreign policy toward Latin America and taking into account the continuities and discontinuities of the last decades, this study focused on the existing connections between military and security guidelines, economic assistance and market liberalization, paying attention to the practices and interests that underlie these connections. Some elements considered key regarding the role of the armed forces in US foreign policy and their relation to counterinsurgency in Latin America were considered. Echoing the cases of Mexico and Colombia, Plan Colombia and the Merida Initiative as well as the implications of other free trade agreements between the US and those Latin American countries were analyzed using the above-mentioned viewpoint. Likewise, a brief investigation was made about the functionality of economic and military aide in the region. Conclusions were that today, beyond the official discourse, US foreign policy for Latin America connects free market policies and military and security affairs. The study included specialized bibliographic research plus a review of press information in LA and the USA and declassified documents from the US State Department.