America's Backyard

>> Joseph Ledford: In 1823, during his annual address to Congress, President James Monroe warned European powers not to meddle in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere. Simultaneously, President Monroe emphasized that the United States should avoid European entanglements and prioritize its own hemisphere. What became known as the Monroe Doctrine, the cornerstone of American foreign policy for much of the 19th and 20th century, is neither a call to isolationism nor a call for imperialism.

 

The Monroe Doctrine serves instead as a reminder that, to paraphrase Secretary of State George Shultz, American foreign policy begins in our own backyard, our own neighborhood. Today, though, this strategic outlook has been ignored, forgotten, and even worse, abandoned. The United States finds itself locked in a new era of great power competition.

 

We face no shortage of geopolitical challenges. Strategic rivals like China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran represent serious, coordinated threats to the United States, its allies, and global stability. Now it's necessary for the United States to dedicate time and resources to addressing those threats throughout the world. But doing so at the expense of America's own neighbors and neighborhood is a grave mistake.

 

If the United States is to successfully face its challenges and confront its rivals, it must rededicate itself to the strategic orientation of the Monroe Doctrine. America must put the Americas first. The United States must prioritize diplomatic relationships, military alliances, and economic partnerships with its neighbors in the Western Hemisphere.

 

President Ronald Reagan understood the Western Hemisphere's strategic importance in his fight against the Soviet Union to effectively wage the Cold War, Reagan forged strong relationships and partnerships in the region. He engaged in high profile diplomacy by making trips to Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Honduras. And he hosted key Latin American leaders at the White House.

 

He developed economic initiatives like the Caribbean Basin Initiative and he laid the groundwork for NAFTA. He encouraged transitions to civilian rule in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay. And he rolled back the spread of communism with calculated covert action. Such a comprehensive strategy, however, is missing in today's world of great power competition.

 

While the United States has paid little attention to Latin America in recent years, China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea have made significant economic and political inroads. China has partnered with 22 countries in the Western Hemisphere, investing in infrastructure projects and increasing trade by nearly 3,000%. While economic cooperation has allowed the Chinese Communist Party to gain footholds across many Latin American countries.

 

The Chinese Communist Party also exports advanced surveillance technology to authoritarian regimes in Venezuela and Cuba. And the Chinese Communist Party now provides drug cartels with not only the chemicals and equipment needed to manufacture narcotics, but also the money laundering services to wash their profits. Russia, meanwhile, is strengthening its regional ties particularly with Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela.

 

Moscow has also flexed its anti American, anti Western influence through its economic partnership with Brazil, a founding member of brics, which purchases Russian diesel fuel to fund Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, circumventing Western economic sanctions. Hezbollah Iran's terrorist proxy deals arms launders money among other illicit activities in South America, funneling millions to the Middle east to finance terrorism.

 

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un continues to foster relationships with Brazil and Cuba and has recently permitted the opening of a brand new Nicaraguan embassy. Now, despite the Despotic Quartet's regional advancements, most Latin American countries still view the United States in a positive light. The National Intelligence Estimate for Latin America finds that the region would be most open to US engagement on shared interests, including education, economic investments and renewable energy.

 

Following Colombia's admission in 2017, Argentina's President Javier Milei has applied for global partner status with NATO. And in May 2024 Argentina and the United States held joint naval exercises for the first time in 14 years. The United States must advance these encouraging developments. America must dispense with non binding status quo forums dedicated to pledges and declaration under President Joe Biden's America's Partnership for Economic Prosperity.

 

Instead, America must seek binding and sustainable long term economic cooperation that leads to regional integration, joint security measures that address 21st century challenges and cultural exchanges that strengthen our hemispheric relations. In fact, we should engage in what George Schultz referred to as gardening. We should tend and cultivate diplomatic relations with our neighbors through constant proactive engagement.

 

The President should visit our neighbors more often and tend to the garden. The United States must actively engage its neighbors to ensure long term prosperity and stability. Like Ronald Reagan, policymakers must again align national power with grand strategic purpose and it starts in the neighborhood.