ABSTRACT
Argentine civil-military relations have fundamentally changed in a way that affects the nation's foreign policy decisions. Argentine political culture had traditionally tolerated and even condoned military intervention in politics. The armed forces of Argentina and Chile continue to harbor a profound distrust of each other. Prior to the democratic change, a general climate of mutual suspicion continued to persist between Argentina and its longtime rival, Brazil. The notion of mutual gain must seem peculiar to the armed forces of Brazil and Argentina, which have traditionally seen themselves as zero-sum competitors. The armed forces have begun to see the benefits that accrue to themselves from regional and international engagement. And with this change in behavior and mind-set, with soldiers ready to place themselves at the service of a constitutional regime's foreign policy, Argentina seems poised to enter the twenty-first century as a more stable and self-confident democracy.
