Contemporary diplomatic relations between Morocco and Spain saw their genesis after the Spanish departed from Western Sahara and the tripartite agreement was reached in 1975. Signed in Madrid, this agreement between Morocco, Mauritania, and Spain tried to normalize the future of the region's borders and of the people of Western Sahara. However, after signing the deal, the government in... Continue Reading
Chile is going through political change. In May, Chileans voted to elect an assembly that will write a new constitution. Those elected to redraw the country’s magna carta feature a large contingent of independents. Left-wing parties are most favorably positioned among institutional actors, but right-wing parties did not reach the one-third threshold needed to enjoy veto power. At the end of... Continue Reading
Visibly weakened following a hunger strike in prison yet full of his usual verve, Alexei Navalny appeared before a court via videoconference on April 29 to appeal his fine for the defamation of a World War II veteran just as branches of his Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) were being shuttered across Russia. This is but the latest installment of the Kremlin's campaign to increase pressure on... Continue Reading
The maxim “I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it,” often misattributed to Voltaire, sums up one of democracy’s pillars devised back in classical Greece and adapted by modern nation-states. Subsequently, the new era of instantaneous and digital global exchange flourishes under clear yet minimal controls on freedom of expression. However, as... Continue Reading
Over the last three decades, globalization, ethnic diversity and social inclusion have become forefront issues in American political discourse. However, this spotlight has not come without consequence. Finding historical precedents in the Civil War and civil rights eras, today’s new progressive wave has been met with backlash from conservative and reactionary sociopolitical milieus that see... Continue Reading
On Tuesday, August 4, via a short and unassuming tweet, the former president of Colombia, Alvaro Uribe Velez, informed the world that he was placed under house arrest. The news sent shockwaves throughout South America’s political circles and sparked protests across Colombia. Uribe’s house arrest order, issued by the supreme court of justice as part of a case investigating witness tampering... Continue Reading
Paraguay’s current president, Mario Abdo Benitez, was elected in April 2018. When he was sworn into office in August that year, it represented a second consecutive five-year term in power for the conservative Colorado Party, following the right-wing presidency of Horacio Cartes. At 48, Abdo Benitez is one of the youngest heads of state in Latin America along with Nayid Bukele in El Salvador,... Continue Reading
The COVID-19 global pandemic has become a make-it-or-break-it moment for many businesses, particularly startups and industry disruptors. With market forces and rules being reshaped daily at lightning speed, large swaths of the world have been forced to adopt technology and embrace the digital age in order to keep the lights on. The new socioeconomic order and redefined market priorities will... Continue Reading
In November 2019, Luis Lacalle Pou was elected president of Uruguay after defeating the ruling party candidate and former Montevideo mayor, Daniel Martinez, in the second round. President Lacalle Pou’s inauguration in March marked the end of a decade and a half of executive leadership by members of Uruguay’s left-wing Broad Front party, which included the iconic former presidents Jose... Continue Reading
The countries in Central America's Northern Triangle — Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala — do not have the public health infrastructure necessary to overcome the challenges of a pandemic. That is why these countries, which are used to seeing significant migratory transit, quickly shut their borders as the COVID-19 contagion gained steam in Latin America. The spread of the pandemic in a... Continue Reading
