Reactionaries and US Military Backers Prevail in Latin America - for Now
MAY 3, 2024
BY W. T. WHITNEY
U.S. Southern Command Chief Laura Richardson was visiting Argentina for the third time. On April 4 in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego – the world’s southernmost city – she and U. S. Ambassador Marc Stanley were received by President Javier Milei, his chief-of-staff, his cabinet chief, the defense minister, the interior minister, a military band, and an honor guard – at midnight.
Richardson announced her government would build an “integrated naval base” in Ushuaiathat, close to the Strait of Magellan, looks to Antarctica. Both are strategically important. She“warned about China’s intention to build a multi-purpose port in Rio Grande, [Tierra del Fuego’s capitol city].”
Richardson, the U.S. military’s top leader for the region, had previously noted its attractions. She explained to the House Armed Services Committee in 2022 that Latin American and Caribbean area “accounts for $740 billion in annual trade with the U.S.; contains 60% of the world’s lithium and 31% of the world’s fresh water; has the world’s largest oil reserves” She insisted later that, “This region matters. It has a lot to do with national security, and we have to step up our game.”
Testifying before a congressional committee on March 14, she remarked that, “The PRC (People’s Republic of China) is America’s pacing threat; countering their aggression and malign influence requires a whole-of-society approach.”
Information from an alleged leak from the U.S. Embassy in Bolivia suggests the U.S. government seeks to isolate non-aligned countries like Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela and collaborate with “three bastions of U.S. support,” namely Peru, Ecuador and Argentina.
More:
https://www.counterpunch.org/2024/05/03/reactionaries-and-us-military-backers-prevail-in-latin-america-for-now/