The democratic-peace thesis and US relations with Colombia and Venezuela

The literature that has examined extreme conflicts between democracies short of wars or militarized disputes has concluded that these interventions can be explained by the nature of one or both of the democracies involved in the conflict. Can this conclusion explain the policies of U.S. governments with regard to conflict with Venezuela and Colombia? Are there competing arguments that can account for U.S. behavior? Most important, how significant are the variables cited by proponents of the democratic-peace thesis for understanding the resolution of conflicts between democracies? © 2005 Latin American Perspectives.