Topics / Spotlights

JGI Policy Newsletter Catalog

Stay informed with our comprehensive newsletter catalog, designed to bring together the most relevant sources on the key dynamics shaping Latin America and the Caribbean. This catalog highlights essential readings, reports, and analyses across a wide spectrum of issues, including: External Actors, Transnational Crime, Critical Minerals, Cyber and AI, Economics and Trade, Elections and Democracy, Foreign Policy and Regional Engagement, Migration, and Politics and Governance. Our catalog serves as a trusted resource to navigate the complexities and opportunities emerging in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Podcast - Latin America Joins the Space Race:

Americas Quarterly - featuring JGI Senior Fellow, Laura Delgado Lopez

Podcast - “Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Terrorism”: Audio Brief with Dan Byman:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - USMCA Review Deadline with CSIS's Diego Marroquín Bitar:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Video - This is not another podcast about a kingpin.:

InSight Crime

Regional Highlight - NEW AQ: Latin America Looks to the Stars:

Americas Quarterly & Florida International University

Regional Highlight - Latin America's Evolving Strategic Panorama:

Evan Ellis Substack

Regional Highlight - Latin American Risk Advisor:

Inter-American Dialogue

Regional Highlight - IWI’s Summer 2026 Reading List:

Irregular Warfare Initiative

Venezuela - Venezuela’s Shattered Post-Quakes Economy:

Americas Quarterly

Venezuela - Trump in Latin America: Brazil Readies for Tariffs; Venezuela Opens Oil to Private Sector:

Council of the Americas

Venezuela - LatAm in Focus: Financing Venezuela’s Future in the Aftermath of Disaster:

Council of the Americas

Crime - Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Terrorism:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Crime - A conversation with Minister Alejandra Monteoliva:

Inter-American Dialogue

Cyber, Space, and AI - Blind Spot Indicators for Space:

RAND

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Industrial Property under the USMCA: Commitments, Challenges, and Opportunities:

Inter-American Dialogue

Politics and Governance - Nicaragua's Opposition Must Prepare for a Succession Crisis:

Evan Ellis Substack

Politics and Governance - The Other American Anniversary: The 1826 Congress of Panama sought to resist the predations of great powers. It was as relevant then as it is now.:

Foreign Policy

Politics and Governance - Latin America’s Rightward Shift Isn’t About Ideology:

World Politics Review - JGI Contributor, Orlando J. Pérez

Politics and Governance - In Guatemala, Arevalo’s Win for the Rule of Law Comes at a High Price:

World Politics Review

Podcast - A New Criminal Landscape in Latin America:

Americas Quarterly

Video - Brian Winter on CNN about Cuba's Worsening Humanitarian Situation:

Council of the Americas

Video - The InSight Take: Inside Ecuador’s Chone Killers, the Latest Addition to US Terrorism List:

InSight Crime

Regional Highlight - Tracking the Port Visits of China's Latest PLAN Hospital Ship Mission:

AidData

China, Russia, and Iran - China Buys Brazil’s Soy and Beef—Not Its Loyalty:

Americas Quarterly

China, Russia, and Iran - The People’s Liberation Army Navy’s Approach to Maintenance Management:

RAND

Crime - Drones: Accessible Technology Reshaping Threats and Strategies in Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Maritime Security: The Hemisphere’s New Front Line Against Transnational Crime:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Can A New President’s Hard-Line Approach Stop the Spread of Coca in Colombia?:

InSight Crime

Crime - The Last Chapitos Standing: Iván Archivaldo and Jesús Alfredo Guzmán:

InSight Crime

Critical Minerals - Everyone Wants in on Brazil’s Rare Earths, but is Brasília ready to meet the moment?:

Foreign Policy

Elections - Mexico’s Weak Opposition—and Morena’s Hidden Fragility:

Americas Quarterly

Elections - Will a Keiko Fujimori Presidency Mean the Return of Autocracy to Peru?:

World Politics Review

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Chile Hosts 5th Iteration of Exercise Salitre:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - How Trump Lost America the World Cup:

Foreign Policy

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Flagpole to Front Lines: A Warfighter-Driven Requirements Process:

RAND

Foreign Policy and Engagement - The USMCA Misses Its World Cup Window of Opportunity:

World Politics Review

Humanitarian Assistance - How the US Supports International Earthquake Relief Efforts in Venezuela:

Dialogo Americas

Humanitarian Assistance - From Search and Rescue to Humanitarian Relief: The US Mobilizes for Venezuela:

Dialogo Americas

Humanitarian Assistance - What Urgent Needs Face Venezuela After the Earthquakes?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Video - BBC Interview with Dr. Brian Fonseca re: Venezuela earthquake (June 25, 2026):

BCC News

Video - José Enrique Arrioja on BBC News about the Post-Earthquakes Crisis in Venezuela:

BBC News

Video - Chavez: “The earthquakes happened on top of a real humanitarian crisis. 70% of the population didn’t have access to health care services, 40% of the population is food insecure, and over 60% of the population didn’t have reliable access to drinking water.”:

BBC News

Podcast - Venezuela Suffered Its Worst Earthquake in Decades: What Comes Next?:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - Best of 35 West: Canada's Role in the Golden Dome:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - Don’t Let the USMCA Drift Away:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - LatAm in Focus: Alfredo Thorne on What Lies ahead for a Keiko Fujimori Presidency:

Councill of the Americas

Video - Charting Peru’s Democratic Path Forward:

Inter-American Dialogue

China, Russia, and Iran - Mission Harmony 2025 - 2026:

AidData

China, Russia, and Iran - Getting the China Dimension of USMCA Right:

Americas Quarterly

China, Russia, and Iran - A Strategic Megaproject: Chinese Infrastructure Expands in Peru:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - China Strengthens Its Strategic Influence in El Salvador’s Energy Sector:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Expansion of Chinese Smart Cars in Mexico Creates Data and Logistics Vulnerabilities:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - China builds an airport in the middle of nowhere:

Expediente Publico

Crime - Honduras, US Expand Cooperation Against Organized Crime:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Corruption undermines U.S. drug war in Latin America:

FIU Jack D. Gordon Institute & Expediente Publico

Crime - India's role in global synthetic drug markets:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Crime - The new drug world: Rethinking multilateral cooperation in an age of synthetic threats:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Energy - The 2026 Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum, distilled:

Atlantic Council

Foreign Policy and Engagement - American Air Chiefs Reaffirm Commitment to Regional Security, Address Shared Challenges at CONJEFAMER 2026:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - OAS Hardens Stance Against Nicaragua Over Regional Security Crisis:

Expediente Publico

Politics and Governance - How Will De La Espriella Govern? Previous Newcomers Offer Clues:

Americas Quarterly

Politics and Governance - Bolivia’s Governance Crisis Under Rodrigo Paz:

Center for Strategic and International Studies - Evan Ellis, FIU-JGI Senior Fellow

Podcast - LatAm in Focus: Alfredo Thorne on What Lies ahead for a Keiko Fujimori Presidency:

Council of the Americas

Podcast - The Reality of the Global Energy Situation:

Zeihan on Geopolitics

Venezuela - Earthquakes Have Often Shaken Latin American Politics:

Americas Quarterly

Venezuela - Twin Earthquakes Strike Already Vulnerable Venezuela:

Council of the Americas

Venezuela - Venezuela earthquake - June 2026:

Latin America Risk Report

Regional Highlight - Central and South America and the Caribbean, and Mexico: U.S. Army War College 2026-27 Strategic Estimate:

Evan Ellis Substack

China, Russia, and Iran - China Strengthens Its Strategic Influence in El Salvador’s Energy Sector:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Expansion of Chinese Smart Cars in Mexico Creates Data and Logistics Vulnerabilities:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Confucius Institutes: Beijing’s Academic Influence Network:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Partnership and Cooperation: Jamaica’s Force Multiplier Against Transnational Organized Crime:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - The new drug world: Rethinking multilateral cooperation in an age of synthetic threats:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Elections - Colombia Leaps Into the Void:

Inter-American Dialogue

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Latin America’s Slow But Steady Pivot Toward Africa:

Americas Quarterly

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Amistad 2026 Builds Medical Readiness Through Partnership in Paraguay:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Trump in Latin America: Trump Gains an Ally in Colombia; OAS Meets in Panama:

Council of the Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Twelfth Annual Building a Competitive U.S.-Mexico Border Conference:

Inter-American Dialogue

Foreign Policy and Engagement - What Will De la Espriella’s Presidency Mean for Colombia?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Foreign Policy and Engagement - From Lithium to Drinking Water, Israel’s Influence Stirs Controversy in Milei’s Argentina:

World Politics Review

Politics and Governance - El Niño Will Bring More Than Just Bad Weather to Latin America:

World Politics Review

Politics and Governance - In Brazil, the Scandal-Plagued Bolsonaro Dynasty Fights for Political Survival:

World Politics Review

Podcast - Cuba: Four Possible Scenarios:

Americas Quarterly

Video - Cuba’s Next Chapter:

Inter-American Dialogue

Regional Highlight - Cuba’s Crisis: Four Near-Term Scenarios:

Americas Quarterly - Authored by Dr. Brian Fonseca (Director of FIU-JGI) and Liany Diaz-Gonzalez (FIU-JGI Research Assistant)

Regional Highlight - Latin American Advisor:

Inter-American Dialogue

China, Russia, and Iran - China's Limited Advance in El Salvador:

Evan Ellis Substack

China, Russia, and Iran - The U.S. Can’t Exclude China From Latin America:

Foreign Policy - Authored by Dr. Brian Fonseca (Director of FIU-JGI)

China, Russia, and Iran - Challenges When Collaborating with China on Space Research and Technology:

RAND

Crime - The PCC Beyond Brazil: Criminal Adaptation, Logistical Infiltration, and Transnational Risk:

Border Security Report

Crime - A renewed security and cooperation agenda for Colombia’s next government:

Atlantic Council

Crime - A Multinational Dragnet in the Caribbean: How the Zeus Strategy Operates:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - How Regional ISR Integration Strengthens Countercrime Operations in Central America:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - The Reconfiguration of Organized Crime Under Security Pressure in Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Prisoner's dilemma: Responding to organized crime in a new world:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Crime - The currency of global crime: How crypto is reshaping illicit economies:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Crime - What Will Come of a U.S. Designation on Brazilian Gangs?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Economics and Trade - The UAE’s Push Into Latin America Is About More Than Business Deals:

World Politics Review

Elections - Ahead of Colombia's Runoff, Candidates Make Final Plays for the Presidency:

Council of the Americas

Elections - Order, Injustice, Corruption and Polarization:

Evan Ellis Substack

Elections - Will Colombia Elect Its Own Bukele?:

Foreign Policy

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Updating the Democratic Transition Framework to chart a way forward in Venezuela:

Atlantic Council

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Tracking the U.S.-Mexico Talks in the USMCA Review:

Council of the Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Ecuador and Kentucky National Guard Mark 30 Years of Partnership During Exercise EL GATO:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - PANAMAX: A Panama-Led Effort to Strengthen Canal Security:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - U.S. Congressional Staff Delegation to Brazil:

Inter-American Dialogue

Politics and Governance - How Strong Is Delcy Rodríguez’s Hold on Power?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Podcast - Soccer in America: From the Sidelines to the Mainstream:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - De la Espriella, Cepeda, and Colombia’s Political Divide:

Council of the Americas

Podcast - Hidden Costs of Precision: What Drone Strikes Actually Do to Civilians:

Irregular Warfare Initiative

Regional Highlight - The OAS’s Existential Challenge:

Americas Quarterly - Co-Authored by Dr. Frank Mora, JGI Senior Fellow

Regional Highlight - Bolivia's Troubled Path with China:

Evan Ellis Substack

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List - 12 June 2026:

LATAM Risk Report

Regional Highlight - Why the U.S. Cannot Afford to Lose Intelligence Partners:

The Cipher Brief

China, Russia, and Iran - An Unwarranted War, a Global Economic Drag:

China US Focus

China, Russia, and Iran - Can China and the U.S. Work Together on Preventing Human Extinction?:

China US Focus

China, Russia, and Iran - Chinese EVs in Brazil: Connectivity, Data, and Strategic Risks:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - China’s Techno-Industrial Strategy in the Xi Era: Producing Under Pressure:

RAND

China. Russia, and Iran - Can China Afford to De-Risk From the U.S.?:

World Politics Review

Crime - Persistent Vigilance: Maritime Enforcement Adapts to Evolving Threats at Sea:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Mexican Cartels’ Regional Networks Challenge Security Across Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Haiti Enhances Operational Response with Gang Suppression Force:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Commodity, currency, crime: How illicit gold markets are outpacing global responses:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Crime - On the Radar: Colombia’s ‘Otoniel,’ Venezuela’s Illegal Miners, and Mexico’s World Cup:

InSight Crime

Crime - What a Drug Bust Involving a MrBeast Winner Says About LatAm’s Marijuana Trade:

InSight Crime

Cyber and AI - Latin America’s Data Center Gold Rush: Myth and Reality:

Americas Quarterly

Cyber and AI - Generative AI, propaganda, and digital authoritarianism: Comparative insights from six democratically weakened countries:

Big Data & Society

Cyber and AI - Navigating Duality in Space: Establishing a Foundational Understanding of Dual-Use Space Activities:

RAND

Cyber and AI - Milei Wants to Unleash AI Chaos in Argentina:

World Politics Review

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Antigua and Barbuda Strengthens Maritime Security in the Eastern Caribbean:

Dialogo Americas

Podcast - Trump Wades into Brazil’s Campaign (Again):

Americas Quarterly

Video - The InSight Take: PCC and Red Command— Who Loses From US Terrorist Designations in Brazil?:

InSight Crime

Regional Highlight - US-Caribbean maritime cooperation: Why stronger ports, supply chains, and security matter now:

Atlantic Council - Event co-hosted by FIU

Regional Highlight - The Next Caribbean Crisis? Assessing U.S. Military Options Toward Cuba:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Regional Highlight - A New Chapter: Venezuela and Regional Cooperation Against Transnational Crime:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Chinese Cyber Espionage Puts Latin America’s Critical Infrastructure at Risk:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Huawei: China's silent operator in Central America:

Expediente Publico

China, Russia, and Iran - Combating Chinese Fentanyl Trafficking: Policy Considerations for Supply Reduction and International Coordination:

RAND

Crime - Pressure, Diversification, and Fragmentation Shape Ecuador’s Criminal Landscape:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Guatemala Strengthens Fentanyl Detection Through K-9 Capabilities:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Massacres revive the 'iron fist' in Nasry Asfura's government:

Expediente Publico

Crime - On the Radar: Trump in Colombia’s Elections, a Blow to Tren de Aragua, and Brazil’s Terrorist Tag:

InSight Crime

Crime - Violence Between Criminal Groups and LatAm Governments Has Risen Since Trump: Report:

InSight Crime

Crime - US Terrorism Designations Will Hit the PCC’s Money—and Everyone Else’s:

InSight Crime

Crime - ‘It's Just Business’: Texts Reveal the Daily Work — and Drama — of an International Cocaine Syndicate:

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

Crime - Third Generation Gangs Strategic Note No. 61: Drone Strikes from Haitian ‘Task Force’ PMSC Vectus Global Kill Over Twelve-Hundred People:

Small Wars Journal

Crime - How Armed Groups Are Contesting Colombia’s Airspace With Drones:

Small Wars Journal

Cyber and AI - AI innovation:

Atlantic Council

Cyber and AI - Building talent and institutional readiness:

Atlantic Council

Cyber and AI - Governance of AI:

Atlantic Council

Cyber and AI - Supply chain:

Atlantic Council

Cyber and AI - Powering AI:

Atlantic Council

Cyber and AI - Allies and partners:

Atlantic Council

Cyber and AI - Atlantic Council Commission on AI lays a roadmap for US leadership in the age of AI:

Atlantic Council

Economics and Trade - Kast and Chile’s Investment Reset:

Americas Quarterly

Elections - Colombia Heads Toward a Polarizing Runoff:

Americas Quarterly

Elections - Four Takeaways from Colombia's First-Round Vote: De la Espriella, Cepeda Head to Runoff:

Council of the Americas

Elections - Peru Elects 2026: Ongoing Coverage of the Presidential Race—The Runoff Debate:

Council of the Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - CENTAM SMOKE, Building Lifesaving Partnerships:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Convocation 5.0 Policy Brief: North American Cooperation and the Future of Regional Integration:

Inter-American Dialogue

Podcast - The Mexico-U.S. Relationship’s Most Delicate Phase:

Americas Quarterly

Podcast - Beyond Left and Right: Colombia’s 2026 Presidential Election:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - “The Terrorist Threat to the 2026 World Cup”: Audio Brief with Daniel Byman and Riley McCabe:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - Jorge Castañeda on the Frictions Straining U.S.-Mexico Ties:

Council of the Americas

Podcast - Cuba Faces a Humanitarian Crisis:

Zeihan on Geopolitics

Regional Highlight - Latin America Advisor:

Inter-American Dialogue

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List - 29 May 2026:

LATAM Risk Report

China, Russia, and Iran - What Nicaragua Gains From Russia’s Embrace:

Americas Quarterly

China, Russia, and Iran - Parsing the Results of the Xi-Trump Summit:

China US Focus

China, Russia, and Iran - Hard Work Ahead for China, U.S.:

China US Focus

China, Russia, and Iran - How China’s Demand Is Fueling Illicit Sand Extraction in Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - The Shadow of Russia and Iran in Venezuela:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Challenges When Collaborating with China on Space Research and Technology:

RAND

Crime - Ecuador Strengthens Strategy and Mobilizes Citizens Against Transnational Threat:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Lessons from Maritime Interdictions: What Recent Cases Revealed About Illicit Shipping Networks:

Dialogo Americas

Cyber and AI - Artificial Intelligence for environmental crime enforcement:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Elections - Elections and Organized Crime:

InSight Crime

Elections - Security Proposals Presidential Candidates Colombia 2026:

Inter-American Dialogue

Elections - Weary of Insecurity, Colombia’s Voters Face a Choice Between ‘Total Peace’ and Total War:

World Politics Review

Foreign Policy and Engagement - What November’s U.S. Midterm Vote Means for the Americas:

Americas Quarterly

Foreign Policy and Engagement - The Politics and Repercussions of Washington’s Permanent Joint Board on Defense Pause:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Foreign Policy and Engagement - The Terrorist Threat to the 2026 World Cup:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Building Trust in Uniform: Restoring Security and State Presence in Haiti:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - USMCA Labor Commitments: Executive Report and 2026 Review Outlook:

Inter-American Dialogue

Political Governance - Bolivia’s Crisis Is About More Than Evo Morales:

Americas Quarterly

Politics and Governance - What Demands Are Fueling Ongoing Protests in Bolivia?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Podcast - The Mexico-U.S. Relationship’s Most Delicate Phase:

Americas Quarterly

Podcast - USMCA Review and Autos with Jennifer Safavian:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - What Trump and Lula Want from U.S.–Brazil Ties:

Council of the Americas

Video - Cuba has acquired over 300 military drones:

FOX - featuring Dr. Brian Fonseca, FIU-JGI Director and FIU Vice Provost for Defense and National Security Research

Video - Expert who wrote about "Thucydides trap" reacts to Xi Jinping warning to Trump about U.S. and China:

Harvard Belfer Center

Video - Could US Military Action Against Cuba Look Like?:

Newsweek - featuring Dr. Brian Fonseca, FIU-JGI Director and FIU Vice Provost for Defense and National Security Research

Video - Inside the US strategy to indict Cuba's Raul Castro:

USA Today - featuring Randy Pestana, FIU-JGI Director of National Security Policy and Strategic Engagement

Regional Highlight - Venezuela’s Citgo and the Strategic Stakes for U.S. Policy:

Americas Quarterly - Authored by Dr. Brian Fonseca, Director of FIU's Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy

Regional Highlight - Vladimir Rouvinsky: Moscow promotes politicians "who can favour the Russian position":

Expediente Publico

Regional Highlight - Latin America Risk Report:

Inter-American Dialogue

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List - 22 May 2026:

LATAM Risk Report

Cuba - Trump in Latin America: DOJ Unseals Castro Indictment as Pressure Builds on Havana:

Council of the Americas

Cuba - After the Castro indictment, what is Trump’s endgame in Cuba?:

Atlantic Council

Cuba - U.S.-Cuba Relations:

Council on Foreign Relations

Cuba - U.S. closes ranks against Raul Castro:

Expediente Publico

Cuba - Cuba: Malnutrition as a punishment for political prisoners:

Expediente Publico

China, Russia, and Iran - For U.S.-China Rivalry, Panama Needs a Real Plan:

Americas Quarterly

China, Russia, and Iran - Golden Dome is the missile defense the US needs:

Atlantic Council

China, Russia, and Iran - Why Are More U.S. Allies Exploring Ties with China?:

Council on Foreign Relations

China, Russia, and Iran - The Peru F-16 Sale: The Relationship Between Partner Politics, Extra-Hemispheric Adversaries, and US Defense Access:

Evan Ellis Substack

Crime - Coordinated Operations Reshape Ecuador’s Approach to Transnational Crime:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Tracking the Shadow Fleet: How Maritime Enforcement Is Evolving in the Hemisphere:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - GLACSED: A New Regional Framework to Combat Organized Crime in Latin America and the Caribbean:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - New Map of Organized Crime in Brazil:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - On the Radar: Alex Saab’s Deportation, Colombian Elections, and Sinaloa Cartel Investigations:

InSight Crime

Crime - Venezuela Says It is Fighting Organized Crime. Is It?:

InSight Crime

Crime - Paraguay Jails Ex-Senator Over Ties to Drug Kingpin Marset:

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

Crime - Colombia Seizes Belgian Aristocrat’s Hotel Empire:

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

Crime - ‘It's Just Business’: Texts Reveal the Daily Work — and Drama — of an International Cocaine Syndicate:

Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project

Cyber, AI, and Space - Space Conference of the Americas: Space Challenges Know No Borders:

Dialogo Americas

Elections - Peru's 2026 Presidential Candidates: Keiko Fujimori and Roberto Sánchez:

Council of the Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - U.S., Latin American Leaders Examine Issues Shaping Hemisphere at Washington Conference:

Council of the Americas

Podcast - Unpacking Peru's First-Round Elections:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Podcast - LatAm in Focus: What Trump and Lula Want from U.S.–Brazil Ties:

Council of the Americas

Podcast - El Jardinero Gets Trimmed by Mexican Authorities:

Zeihan on Geopolitics

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List - 15 May 2026:

Latin America Risk Report

Regional Highlight - Latin America Advisor:

Inter-American Dialogue

China, Russia, and Iran - Trump in Latin America: The Hemisphere's Position on the U.S.–China Chessboard:

Council of the Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - The Promise and Peril of U.S.-China Summitry: What Xi Wants From Trump—and Trump Might Get From Xi:

Foreign Affairs

China, Russia, and Iran - China's Science and Technology Strategy in Perspective:

RAND

Crime - Biofuels’ Boom Meets Brazil’s Criminal Frontier:

Americas Quarterly

Crime - Efforts Grow to Counter China’s Expanding Distant-Water Fishing Fleet:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - From Isolation to Integration: Venezuela’s Emerging Role in Regional Counter-TCO Efforts:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Gold from the Amazon: How Illegal Mining Fuels and Expands Organized Crime in the Guiana Shield:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Guatemala Strengthens Border Security Through Expanded Operational Capabilities:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - What Spain’s Record Cocaine Bust Says About the Drug Trade:

InSight Crime

Crime - How AI Illuminated Tren de Aragua’s Money Laundering Methods:

InSight Crime

Crime - Meet the First Costa Ricans to Be Extradited on Drug Charges to the US:

InSight Crime

Economics and Trade - A Latin American Model for Dealing with Rising Gasoline Prices:

Americas Quarterly

Economics and Trade - The New Trade Order: Restoring Balance to a Broken Global Economy:

Foreign Affairs

Economics and Trade - How to Fight an Economic War: A Field Manual for a Ruptured World:

Foreign Affairs

Economics and Trade - State-Level Overview of U.S. Trade With Brazil:

Inter-American Dialogue

Economics and Trade - Why Gold Continues to Endure:

World Politics Review

Elections - Colombia's 2026 Presidential Candidates: Cepeda, De la Espriella, and Valencia:

Council of the Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - How Are Perceptions of the U.S.-Mexico Relationship Changing?:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Readiness Through Partnership: LAMAT 2026 Delivers Care in Saint Lucia:

Dialogo Americas

Politics and Governance - Why Are Milei’s Approval Ratings Falling in Argentina?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Podcast - Colombia’s High-Stakes Election:

Americas Quarterly

Regional Highlight - Latin American Advisor:

Inter-American Dialogue

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List - 8 May 2026:

Latin American Risk Report

Regional Highlight - Irregular migration, a good business for organized crime:

Expediente Publico

Regional Highlight - New 'engines' of organized crime in Latin America:

Expediente Publico

Regional Highlight - China, Russia and Iran intervene in key sectors in Latin America:

Expediente Publico

Regional Highlight - China and Russia threaten Latin America's maritime sovereignty:

Expediente Publico

Regional Highlight - Latin America, the stage for competition between the great powers:

Expediente Publico

Regional Highlight - Political Transition in Cuba and Venezuela Discussed at Hemispheric Security Conference:

Exepdiente Publico

China, Russia, and Iran - The New Critical Minerals Map:

Foreign Policy

China, Russia, and Iran - China Is Transforming Brazil’s Car Market:

Foreign Policy

China, Russia, and Iran - China's Science and Technology Strategy in Perspective:

RAND

Crime - There is Nowhere to Hide: Joint Operation Tridente Chokes Off Narcoterrorism in the Eastern Pacific:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - How Organized Crime Is Reinventing Money Laundering in Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Bolivia’s Role in South America’s Drug Networks Deepens as Trafficking Dynamics Evolve:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - How Influencers Launder Money for Criminal Groups:

InSight Crime

Cime - Mapping Out US Alleged Drug Boat Strikes:

InSight Crime

Crime - Ecuador Says Extortion Is Down. The Reality Is More Complicated.:

InSight Crime

Cyber and AI - Brazil’s Digital Governance Moment:

Inter-American Dialogue

Economics and Trade - Why Are Levels of Household Debt Escalating in Brazil?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Economics and Trade - 2026 Latin American and Caribbean Macroeconomic Report: Resilience and Growth Prospects in a Shifting Global Economy:

Inter-American Development Bank

Elections - In Colombia’s Election, Two Conservatives Fight to Face Cepeda:

Americas Quarterly

Elections - Peru’s Chaotic Election — and Some Reasons for Hope:

Americas Quarterly

Energy - Colombia’s Anti-Fossil Fuel Conference:

Foreign Policy

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Costa Rica’s paradox of political continuity:

Atlantic Council

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Coordinated Operations and Regional Cooperation Drive Mexico’s Security Gains:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Southern Vanguard 2026: Strengthening Regional Cooperation in the Amazon:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Nicaragua’s Democratic Crisis: Consolidation of Authoritarian Rule and the Future of U.S. Policy:

Inter-American Dialogue

Podcast - Is China’s military as strong as it looks?:

Brookings

Video - On the Radar: Drug Lords, Dissident Groups, and Airstrikes in Latin America:

InSight Crime

Regional Highlight - Trump in Latin America: U.S. Indicts Mexican Governor, Condemns China's Panama Action:

Council of the Americas

Regional Highlight - LATAM Advisor:

Inter-American Dialogue

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List - 1 May 2026:

Latin American Risk Report

Regional Highlight - Trump’s ‘Venezuela Playbook’ Is a Bad Fit for Cuba:

World Politics Review

Regional Highlight - Venezuela Is Consolidating Its Hybrid Regime—With Washington’s Blessing:

World Politics Review

China, Russia, and Iran - China’s “Fake” De-Dollarization:

Council on Foreign Relations

China, Russia, and Iran - Chancay Port: A Geopolitical Challenge for Peru:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Peru Under Pressure: Illegal Mining, Illicit Exports, and China’s Role in Expanding Criminal Supply Chains:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - Chinese Eyes, Iranian Missiles: Intelligence Cooperation in the US/Israel–Iran War 2026:

Irregular Warfare Initiative

China, Russia, and Iran - Can China Stop Its Demographic Slide? Can the United States?:

RAND

Crime - Colombia-Brazil Cooperation in the Amazon Delivers Results Against Transnational Crime:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - InSight Crime’s 2025 Cocaine Seizure Round-Up:

InSight Crime

Crime - The InSight Take: Rubén Rocha Moya’s Alleged Sinaloa Cartel Ties Highlight Criminal Governance in Mexico:

InSight Crime

Crime - Who Is ‘El Jardinero,’ the CJNG Power Broker Arrested in Mexico?:

InSight Crime

Crime - Is Mexico Running out of Kingpins?:

InSight Crime

Cyber and AI - The AGI Rideout Strategy for Reducing Strategic Risk and Promoting Stability in the Transition to Artificial General Intelligence:

RAND

Economics and Trade - LatAm in Focus: Mercosur, EU, and the New Frontiers of Free Trade:

Council of the Americas

Economics and Trade - What Is the Future of U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade?:

Council on Foreign Relations

Elections - How Colombia can reduce security threats ahead of its presidential election:

Atlantic Council

Elections - Colombia Elects 2026: Ongoing Coverage of the Presidential Race—Security in the Spotlight:

Council of the Americas

Elections - How Interested Is Venezuela in Holding Elections?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Elections - False Claims of Election Fraud Put Peru’s Democracy on Its Last Legs:

World Politics Review

Foreign Policy and Engagement - CENTAM Guardian 2026 Strengthens Readiness and Interoperability:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - LAMAT 2026: US Air Force Medics Deliver Care in the Amazon:

Dialogo Americas

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Why International Order Still Matters:

World Politics Review

Regional Highlight - Beyond Venezuela and Cuba: The U.S. Military’s Future Operations in the Western Hemisphere:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Regional Highlight - Governing Antarctica in 2026:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Regional Highlight - Trump in Latin America: Greer in Mexico, F-16s in Peru, State Dept in Cuba:

Council of the Americas

Regional Highlight - From the Caribbean to the Pacific coast of South America: Undersea Cables and China’s Strategic Control of Information Flows:

FIU Policy Innovation Series - Co-authored by Martin Brown (JGI Research Assistant)

Regional Highlight - LATAM Risk Report:

Inter-American Dialogue

Crime - South American Crime Groups Are Going for Gold:

Inter-American Dialogue

Cyber, AI, and Space - International Collaboration Took the United States Back to the Moon:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Cyber, AI, and Space - What Comes Next for Artemis?:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Ecuador Security Situation - Shadow Partners: China’s Collaboration with Terrorist Groups to Plunder Venezuela’s Strategic Minerals:

Dialogo Americas

Ecuador Security Situation - Ecuador: Country Overview and U.S. Relations:

Congressional Research Service

Ecuador Security Situation - Lobos:

InSight Crime

Ecuador Security Situation - The U.S. is designating Ecuador's largest gangs as terrorists:

NPR

Ecuador Security Situation - Maximizing Impact Through Coordinated Security and Counterdrug Cooperation in Ecuador:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Ecuador Security Situation - In the Eye of the Storm: Ecuador’s Compounding Crises:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Ecuador Security Situation - Ecuador’s Security Challenges and the Government’s Response:

Evan Ellis

Ecuador Security Situation - Pressure rises on Ecuador's government to rein in escalating gang violence:

ACLED

Ecuador Security Situation - Paradise Lost? Ecuador’s Battle with Organised Crime:

International Crisis Group

Ecuador Security Situation - Ecuador’s criminal crisis: The fragmentation of criminal groups has driven Ecuador into a new cycle of violence:

Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime

Elections - Colombia Elects 2026: Ongoing Coverage of the Presidential Race—Cepeda Proposes a Debate:

Council of the Americas

Elections - Ground Truth: Elections 2026 | Monthly Assessment (April Edition):

Inter-American Dialogue

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Abed: "The Western Hemisphere, particularly Mexico, has a unique opportunity to reiterate the importance of the interdependence of the bilateral relationship, of the importance of North America.":

Inter-American Dialogue

Foreign Policy and Engagement - Will Kast Bring a New Era for Chile-Argentina Ties?:

Inter-American Dialogue

Politics and Governance - The Gray Tide: Latin America’s Demographic Transformation:

Americas Quarterly

Economics and Trade - A New Test for Peru’s Economic Resilience:

Americas Quarterly

Economics and Trade - Trump in Latin America: A Brazil-ICE Row, Sanctions Lifted on Venezuelan Banks:

Council of the Americas

Economics and Trade - IMF and World Bank’s April 2026 Update: Latin America's Economic Outlook:

Council of the Americas

Elections - The Voters Flávio Bolsonaro Still Needs:

Americas Quarterly

Elections - Peru Elects 2026: Ongoing Coverage of the Presidential Race:

Council of the Americas

Migration - The first Colombians expelled en masse from Chile arrived in Bogotá: why Kast's government took them out of the country:

Infobae

Migration - Petro announced that he will travel to Caracas on April 24 and proposed a "transitional government" in Venezuela:

Infobae

Podcast - Javier Milei’s Ups and Downs:

Americas Quarterly

Video - On the Radar: Do Crackdowns Work?:

InSight Crime

Video - AI and the Rewiring of Organized Crime:

Small Wars Journal

Video - The End of the WTO:

Zeihan on Geopolitics

Regional Highlight - Can the Donroe Doctrine Help Deliver Stability in Haiti?:

Americas Quarterly

Regional Highlight - Preparing for the Consequences of Collapse in Cuba:

Center for Strategic and International Studies

Regional Highlight - Friday Reading List: 10 April 2026:

LATAM Risk Report

China, Russia, and Iran - The Kast Administration in Chile: Pursuing Washington's Goodwill and China's Money:

Evan Ellis Substack

China, Russia, and Iran - The Iranian Revolution and the Expansion of Terrorism in Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - China’s Pressure Playbook: Panama and a Pattern of Economic Coercion:

Dialogo Americas

China, Russia, and Iran - How the Iran War Will Upend the Global Economy: The Risk Is Not Just an Energy Shock—but Also a Debt Crisis:

Foreign Policy

China, Russia, and Iran - America and China at the Edge of Ruin A Last Chance to Step Back From the Brink:

Foreign Policy

China, Russia, and Iran - Hormuz and the Oil Price Shock: Another Cost of the War in Iran:

Inter-American Dialogue

China, Russia, and Iran - What Are the Effects of the Iran War on Agriculture?:

Inter-American Dialogue

China, Russia, and Iran - Quantum Power Parity: The Next Front in U.S.–China Strategic Competition:

Small Wars Journal

China, Russia, and Iran - Writing A New Chapter in the Army’s “Jungle Book”: How the U.S. Can Gain Three Birds via Panama’s Hand and Leave China in the Bush:

Small Wars Journal

Crime - A Weakened Hezbollah Remains a Threat in Latin America:

Dialogo Americas

Crime - Firepower vs. Drug Flows: What Has US Military Might Achieved in the Caribbean?:

InSight Crime

Crime - From Drug Dealer to the Sinaloa Cartel’s Highest-Ranking Woman:

InSight Crime