35 West

Illegal mining of the vast mineral resources in Venezuela, specifically gold, has devastated the southern part of the country. In this episode of 35 West, CSIS Future of Venezuela Initiative Director Moises Rendon speaks to Cristina Burelli, Advisor & International Liaison at SOS Orinoco, about the impact of illegal mining on the environment, human rights, and security in the region.

Youth violence in Latin America and the Caribbean is a big problem, but how well do we understand it? Richard Miles talks to Dr. Patricia Campie, an expert who was commissioned by USAID to find out which violence prevention interventions in the region worked, and which didn’t. She found that parenting and after school programs worked well, but other interventions had very mixed results. You can re...

In a wide-ranging conversation, Gerónimo Gutiérrez, former Ambassador of Mexico to the U.S., sits down with CSIS Senior Associate Richard Miles to talk about the fundamentals of the U.S.-Mexico relationship. Have the two countries grown closer or further apart over the last two generations? What has been the effect of increased trade, investment, security cooperation, cultural ties, and migration?...

Former Bolivian President Evo Morales resigned following the OAS Electoral Observation Mission denouncement of the October presidential elections as fraudulent, and massive street-wide protests. As a result and according to the Bolivian Constitution, an interim government led by Senator Jeanine Áñez took over with the objective to host free and fair elections in the spring of 2020. Electoral and p...

According to the UN, the number of Venezuelan refugees in Colombia will reach 6.5 million in 2020. While Colombia has shown patience in trying to mitigate the issues of its global neighbor, it is also facing an important and delicate time internally. CSIS's Moises Rendon invites former U.S. Ambassador to Colombia Kevin Whitaker to discuss Colombia's priorities for peace integration efforts, its re...

For one week last June, dozens of reporters in the USA Today network coordinated stories on migrants attempting to cross the U.S. southern border in the article "One deadly week reveals where the immigration crisis begins - and where it ends." Daniel Gonzalez, a long-time immigration reporter for The Arizona Republic, tells what they found, and recounts some of his interviews in Guatemala and Mexi...

Argentines go to the polls on October 27th, and the results may spell the end of Mauricio Macri’s presidency. What went wrong? Michael Matera, Argentine expert and Director of the Americas Program at CSIS, explains how inflation never went away and growth never returned. He also makes predictions on the polices of a likely Alberto Fernández - Cristina Fernández de Kirchner government, and whether...

The Trump Administration has dramatically reduced the annual number of refugees that the U.S. will accept. Erol Yayboke of CSIS’s Project for Prosperity and Development tells us what being a “refugee” means in international law, and details the ebb and flow of post-World War II U.S. refugee policy. He also explains the effects the policy will have on Mexico and Central America, the largest sources...

National elections take place in Canada on October 2, and Justin Trudeau could be out of a job. Will the election turn on foreign policy? Canada expert Christopher Sands of Johns Hopkins University is back to explain why this might be the case, how Canada is tied to the U.S., like it or not, and how Canada views itself in the world.

Brazil is a world leader in crime, particularly violent crime. Part of the dynamic is the prison system, which serves as an incubator for even more violence. David Van Patten, Chief Operating Officer of Prison Fellowship International, explains the PFI model and why the overwhelmed Brazilian government has entrusted Prison Fellowship Brazil with the rehabilitation of about 4,000 prisoners convicte...

The “future of work” looks quite different for developing countries. Robotics and artificial intelligence mean less to countries that still don’t have decent Internet access. Senior Fellow Romina Bandura, co-author of a CSIS study on the subject, explains how the Fourth Industrial Revolution is impacting countries like Brazil and Argentina, and some of the policies that governments need to conside...

Brazil has vast oil reserves, but can the Bolsonaro government get the energy to market? Returning guest Lisa Viscidi of the Inter-American Dialogue says reforms are already in place that will enable oil production “to take off.” The real obstacles are the financial stability of Petrobras, the shaky state oil conglomerate, and the monopoly that the state has on most aspects of energy production, d...

Latin America has had a love-hate relationship with foreign investment. China is the latest suitor to test the region’s readiness to join the global economy. Stephen Kaplan, professor of international affairs and political science at George Washington University, dissects China’s role in the region, as well as the prospects for Venezuela to eventually rebuild its economy.

The number of Central Americans fleeing their countries for the U.S. has skyrocketed in the last few months. On the latest episode of 35 West, Rick Jones of Catholic Relief Services (CRS) has some answers. With close to 30 years of experience in the region, Rick also details how CRS has helped build alternative futures for young people mired in poverty and violence.

Justin Trudeau is in trouble for meddling in a criminal investigation and dumping his attorney general. Mr. Canada, a.k.a. Chris Sands of Johns Hopkins University, is back to explain the details and how they could affect Canadian politics sooner rather than later.

As global forced migration increases rapidly, Mexico has transitioned from just an exporter of people north to a transit and a recipient country all in one. While significant challenges remain, Mexico has an opportunity for regional leadership on migration. Erol Yayboke, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow at the CSIS Project on Prosperity and Development, and CSIS Americas’ Moises Rendon discuss th...

Ambassador Jay Anania, born two blocks from the State Department, was drawn to the U.S. Foreign Service partly by the examples of his NSA dad and CIA mom. His 30-year career started in Tijuana and ended in Paramaribo, with stops along the way in Amman, Havana, Abu Dhabi, Berlin, Hong Kong, and Baghdad. He and host Richard Miles discuss changes on the U.S. southern border as well as the effectivene...

Juan Guaidó, the 35-year old legitimate head of the Venezuelan National Assembly, is facing off against Nicolas Maduro, who clings to his illegitimate power. Venezuela experts Moises Rendon of CSIS and Eric Farnsworth of the Council of the Americas are back to describe the role of the United States, the international community, and the Cubans. Guaidó himself, according to Moises, has a promising p...

Images of migrants charging the U.S. border obscure a larger trend. Many Mexican and Central American migrants are returning home, whether they want to or not. Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute, returns to talk about who is coming and who is going. What are the governments of Mexico and the Northern Triangle doing to handle this reverse influx and what does it mean for U.S....

Texas is greatly affected by tariffs, trade, and travel across the U.S. southern border. Matthew Rooney, director of the Economic Growth Initiative at the George W. Bush Institute in Dallas, gives us the view from the Lone Star State. He also explains border infrastructure, supply chains, and the long-term economic effects of trade barriers on North America. He and Richard also trade predictions o...

Democrats now run the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. Does it matter for Latin America? According to former Bush official José Cardenas, apart from Trump’s Wall there is remarkable bipartisan consensus on what needs to be done in hotspots like Venezuela, Nicaragua, and even Central America. On migration and border security, Cardenas argues against a “Fortress America” mentality if we want to p...

Arguably no state is more politically important than Florida, which has become an electoral microcosm for the whole country. But Hispanic voting patterns in the Sunshine State - and the definition of Hispanic - is very different. Ana Quintana, an expert at the Heritage Foundation, explains the results of the 2018 midterms on statewide races. She and Richard also discuss the importance of the immig...

Mexico’s government has surrendered its monopoly on the use of force, while large Mexican companies exert one in the marketplace. So argues Francisco González of SAIS in this week’s episode of 35 West. Along the way, Francisco covers 50 years of Mexican politics, Mexicans’ support for democracy, and the prospects for reducing violence and the flow of drugs to the U.S. Finally, he predicts stabilit...

January 10, the date a new presidential period begins, represents an unprecedented opportunity for the international community to help halt Venezuela’s collapse. Despite the refusal of nearly 50 countries to recognize the May 2018 Venezuelan presidential elections, Nicolas Maduro plans to be sworn in. The implications of so many nations not recognizing Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate president af...

New leaders in Mexico and Brazil may mean big changes to their respective energy sectors. Energy expert Lisa Viscidi of the Inter-American Dialogue says a Mexican delay on offshore bidding could have a major impact, but that Brazil is likely to maintain the status quo. Finally, Venezuela may eventually run dry, given the massive investment required to reverse declining oil output.