Browsing: News

Restoring State Presence in Cauca: Colombia’s Long-Term Security ChallengeTransnational Crime

Restoring State Presence in Cauca: Colombia’s Long-Term Security Challenge

July 13, 2026

Colombia’s department of Cauca remains one of the country’s most challenging security environments, where guerrilla factions born from the remnants of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) continue to exploit coca-producing areas, strategic trafficking corridors, and difficult terrain despite sustained government security operations. The department sits at a critical nexus of drug trafficking routes, connecting Colombia’s interior with departure…

China’s Strategic Infrastructure in Cuba: Surveillance, Intelligence, and Regional PowerStrategic Influence

China’s Strategic Infrastructure in Cuba: Surveillance, Intelligence, and Regional Power

July 10, 2026

Since May, Cuba has seen several protests over the country’s deepening energy crisis and the rolling blackouts that continue to disrupt daily life. Independent journalists have also reported repeated internet outages, even after electricity service has been restored. “The regime cuts communications,” journalist Mag Jorge Castro wrote on X, describing a “massive internet outage in Havana.” These incidents point to…

Jamaica’s MOCA: Leading the Fight Against Cyber-Enabled Transnational Organized CrimeTransnational Crime

Jamaica’s MOCA: Leading the Fight Against Cyber-Enabled Transnational Organized Crime

July 09, 2026

For years, the public image of Jamaica’s fraud problem has been dominated by one phrase: lottery scamming. But according to the Director General of Jamaica’s Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA), Colonel (R.) Desmond Edwards, that characterization no longer reflects the scale, sophistication, or operational realities of the threat facing Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. “What we are confronting…

The Global Reassessment of Confucius Institutes: Lessons for Latin AmericaStrategic Influence

The Global Reassessment of Confucius Institutes: Lessons for Latin America

July 09, 2026

Created in 2004 to promote Chinese language instruction and cultural exchange, Confucius Institutes have become one of the most visible instruments of China’s soft power. In 2009, Li Changchun, then a member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo, described them as “an important part of China's overseas propaganda apparatus.” In just over two decades, Confucius Institutes have expanded to…

How the US Supports International Earthquake Relief Efforts in VenezuelaSecurity & Cooperation

How the US Supports International Earthquake Relief Efforts in Venezuela

July 08, 2026

As Venezuela transitions from the search and rescue phase to the long process of recovery following the devastating June earthquake, one of the greatest challenges is no longer delivering aid but coordinating the reconstruction effort effectively. The scale of the disaster underscores the magnitude of the task. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimates direct physical damage at approximately $6.7…

Chile Hosts 5th Iteration of Exercise SalitreSecurity & Cooperation

Chile Hosts 5th Iteration of Exercise Salitre

July 07, 2026

Aircraft, crews, and support personnel from across the Americas are converging in northern Chile as Exercise Resolute Sentinel–Saltire 2026, a premier multinational air combat exercise hosted by the Chilean Air Force, kicked off June 28, 2026, at Cerro Moreno Air Base in Antofagasta, Chile. U.S. participation in the fifth iteration of Salitre is led by U.S. Air Forces Southern/12th Air…

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

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

July 07, 2026

Maritime corridors in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific have become one of the Western Hemisphere’s principal security frontiers. In addition to sustaining global trade and regional fishing industries, these routes now operate as logistical arteries for transnational organized crime involved in drug trafficking, arms smuggling, chemical precursor trafficking, and other illicit activities. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs…

From Search and Rescue to Humanitarian Relief: The US Mobilizes for VenezuelaSecurity & Cooperation

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

July 06, 2026

The U.S. response to the earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24 represents one of Washington’s largest humanitarian and disaster relief operations. Led by the State Department’s Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response (DHR) and carried out in close coordination with the Department of War and U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), the operation has combined search-and-rescue efforts, military logistics, and international…

Drones: Accessible Technology Reshaping Threats and Strategies in Latin AmericaEmerging Threats

Drones: Accessible Technology Reshaping Threats and Strategies in Latin America

July 06, 2026

In recent years, commercially available drones have transformed capabilities once largely associated with advanced militaries into accessible tools reshaping security dynamics across Latin America. Lower costs, rapid technological diffusion, and growing weaponization of commercial drones by non-state actors have turned these platforms into an increasingly important factor in regional security and defense. According to the Florida International University (FIU) and…

China’s Global Strategy: Port Infrastructure as a Tool of PowerStrategic Influence

China’s Global Strategy: Port Infrastructure as a Tool of Power

July 02, 2026

China’s global expansion of port infrastructure is widely regarded as part of a broader strategy to expand geopolitical influence, secure access to strategic supply chains, and strengthen its long-term positioning. According to the report, Anchoring Global Ambitions, published by AidData in partnership with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Beijing has spent the last two decades building an…

A Strategic Megaproject: Chinese Infrastructure Expands in PeruStrategic Influence

A Strategic Megaproject: Chinese Infrastructure Expands in Peru

June 30, 2026

China’s growing role in Peru’s strategic infrastructure is raising new questions about economic dependence, control of critical logistics networks, and Beijing’s expanding influence in South America. In early 2026, the Peruvian government awarded Power Construction Corporation of China (POWERCHINA) a $420 million engineering, procurement, and construction contract to develop a 120-kilometer railway line, connecting the Port of Chancay, on Peru’s…

Honduras, US Expand Cooperation Against Organized CrimeTransnational Crime

Honduras, US Expand Cooperation Against Organized Crime

June 29, 2026

Cooperation between Honduras and the United States against transnational criminal organizations is increasingly focused on operational coordination, intelligence sharing, and maritime security as authorities confront evolving drug trafficking networks in Central America. Recent meetings and joint initiatives reflect a broader regional effort to strengthen the fight against organized crime, particularly as trafficking routes, criminal structures, and illicit economies continue to…