Introduction to Latin American Foreign Policy: Latin American Governments as Actors in the International System

This chapter seeks to provide an overview of the political and economic context, to survey the principal theoretical approaches used in understanding Latin American foreign policies, and to assess contemporary challenges to Latin American policy makers. Contemporary Latin American international relations are shaped by the region's historical experiences--experiences which date back hundreds of years. Political instability and economic underdevelopment coupled with the overwhelming dominance of the United States (US) limited the region's ability to formulate independent policies. Reflecting the political and economic dominance of the US in the region, most theoretical approaches used in studying Latin American international relations were developed for analyzing US-Latin American relations. The literature of Latin American foreign policies is further characterized by unequal coverage by nation and by region. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.