A Conversation With

As has become the tradition, the Inter-American Defense Board (IADB) was present at the South American Defense Conference (SOUTHDEC) 2016, which took place in Montevideo, Uruguay from August 16th -19th. The president of the Counsel of Delegates of the Inter-American Defense Board, Peruvian Navy Vice Admiral Gonzalo Ríos Polastri, briefed [ … ]

The most important function of Colombia’s Armed Forces and Police, among the new duties being assumed by the military in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, is the fight against drug trafficking. But a little over a year ago, the country signed an agreement with the United Nations to [ … ]

Gracias Peru has a long standing tradition of participating in peacekeeping missions; it is even a founding member of the Organization of the United Nations (UN). It was under the leadership of Peruvian UN Secretary General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar that the UN Peacekeeping Forces received the Nobel Peace Prize [ … ]

The South American Defense Conference (SOUTHDEC) 2016 began with a moment of silence on August 17th in Montevideo, Uruguay, in honor of Uruguayan Air Force Captain Fernando Martín de Rebolledo and Second Lieutenant Gonzalo Correa, who perished in a tragic military helicopter accident the day prior. However, it was the [ … ]

During a meeting with Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes in 2015, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon highlighted Paraguay’s contributions to peacekeeping missions, especially in Haiti. Proportionally, Paraguay’s population of fewer than seven million makes is one of the highest participants in peace keeping operations around the world. To speak about [ … ]

The principal task of Suriname’s National Army is to defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country against foreign armed military aggression, but like in so many other nations in Central and South America, the role of their military has been changing in the past years, especially to combat [ … ]

During the past 15 years, Colombia has progressed considerably in social and economic spheres thanks to the country's strengthening of its internal security. New training tools, inter-institutional work, and technology have made the transformation of the Colombian Armed Forces possible. Aníbal Fernández de Soto, Colombian Deputy Defense Minister for International [ … ]

The last few weeks saw the activation of the Brazilian Army’s Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defense Battalion and its bomb squads. Many of these activities were clearly tests to check out the response capabilities of the security structure set up for the Rio 2016 Olympics. In order to expand [ … ]

U.S. Army, South participated in a workshop held in Asunción, Paraguay, between June 21st and 24th as part of an exchange program between Paraguayan and U.S. high-level non-commissioned officers. Diálogo took the opportunity to talk with General Oscar Luis González, commander of the Paraguayan Army, who spoke to participants at [ … ]

U.S. Air Force Major General Gary W. Keefe, Adjutant General of the Massachusetts National Guard, met with Paraguayan Minister of Defense Diógenes Martínez in Asunción. During his visit, Brig. Gen. Keefe confirmed the U.S. intention to continue cooperating with the South American country. Beginning in 2001, as part of the [ … ]

The Fe en Colombia program began in 2014 as a campaign for inter-institutional coordination among public and private entities and international cooperation in Colombia. It aims to improve the living conditions of the most vulnerable populations in the southwestern part of the country, within the framework of full security. The [ … ]