After the attacks in the United States 20 years ago, Latin America remained an area of interest for Washington, but following the failure in Afghanistan experts warn that its influence in the area will worsen.
After the attacks on 11 September 2001, the White House focused on the crusade against terrorism in the Middle East and, without neglecting its usual interference in the Latin American countries, this influenced the rearticulation of the left in the region at the beginning of this century.
This is the opinion of Jorge Hernández, researcher of the Centre for US and Hemispheric Studies at the University of Havana, who believes that, from now on, the attention to the nations in the region, especially those with movements for change such as Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, will return with greater intensity.
According to Hernández in an interview for the Cuban television, the label born with 9/11 of cataloguing any movement as terrorism also applied to many revolutionary forces.
Cuba – he pointed out – is proof of that by being included in the unilateral list of states that sponsor terrorism when, in fact, it is a victim of this scourge.
The humanitarian interventions that serve as pretext for masking the military aggressions are on the agenda in a way that the current situation facilitates the deployment of war by non-conventional means in Our America, the researcher added.
Despite being involved in armed conflicts in other geographical areas, Latin America never became second or marginal to US interests. What the US policy has shown is that it is more about continuity than changes, the Monroe Doctrine is still present and so is the principle of the Manifest Destiny, he stressed when referring to Washington’s historic interests in what it considers its “natural zone of influence”.
Such examples are the coups d’état and the destabilising actions in nations of the region that have been backed by Washington over the last 20 years.
While these interventions do not bear the hallmark of those of the 20th century, when Marine corps were sent to overthrow a government and occupy a territory, the US Southern Command continued patrolling the coasts of Latin America and the Caribbean, exposes a study on the Rebelión.
Argentine political scientist Atilio Borón argues that the US military’s setback in Afghanistan will lead to a reconfiguration of the international system, and warns that this will exacerbate the US’s desire to take control of its “backyard”. (PL)
(Translated by Cristina Popa – Email: gcpopa83@gmail.com) – Photos: Pixabay
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