Infrastructure as a Geopolitical Lever: Strategic Dynamics in Latin America’s Global Power Struggle

Abstract Infrastructure development is a strategic axis for Latin America, historically hindered by various challenges. In the 2000s, regional initiatives like IIRSA and COSIPLAN aimed to enhance infrastructure and competitiveness. However, political and economic instability disrupted these efforts,...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Bárbara Carvalho Neves, Karen dos Santos Honório
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Instituto Brasileiro de Relações Internacionais 2024-11-01
Series:Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional
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Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0034-73292024000200203&lng=en&tlng=en
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Summary:Abstract Infrastructure development is a strategic axis for Latin America, historically hindered by various challenges. In the 2000s, regional initiatives like IIRSA and COSIPLAN aimed to enhance infrastructure and competitiveness. However, political and economic instability disrupted these efforts, leading to the dismantling of regional efforts, as seen with the South American Nations Union (UNASUR). Despite this, infrastructure development continued, driven by various actors that used it to expand their influence. Between 2014-2015, China emerged as a key player in financing infrastructure, prompting the U.S. and the EU to launch initiatives to counterbalance China’s influence in the region from 2019-2021. This paper underscores the importance of infrastructure in Latin America as a geopolitical lever to analyze global power struggles in the region.
ISSN:1983-3121