Recent Publications

Toward a New Strategy for Engagement in the Americas
November 19, 2025 — “With the arrival of the Gerald Ford Carrier Battle Group in the Caribbean last week, the public report about the briefing of President Trump on military options, and the President’s statement that he had “decided” on the course of action he plans to take, and the new State Department designation of Cartel de los Soles as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (following a similar designation by the U.S. Treasury Department on July 25), the U.S. seems on the course of decisive military action in the Caribbean…until the President indicated that he is open to talking again to Venezuelan Dictator Nicholas Maduro.” ... MORE

Legado a las Americas' Toward a New Strategy for Engagement in the Americas by Dr. Evan Ellis

Leveraging Latin America’s Embrace of the United States
November 4, 2025 — "In recent months, the assertive policy of the Trump administration toward Latin America, from Panama to Mexico to Venezuela to Colombia, has received significant media attention. Ironically, for reasons largely unrelated to that engagement, a confluence of political currents in the region is giving rise to a group of governments, almost unprecedented in number, aligned with and interested in strengthening relations with the United States."... MORE

Screenshot of CSIS' Leveraging Latin America’s Embrace of the United States

Preparing for PRC Military Actions in Latin America in the Context of a War in the Indo-Pacific
October 16, 2025 — Within the new book by the U.S. Military Academy Modern Warfare Institute, “Expecting the Unexpected: Essays on Strategic Surprise in the 21st Century” comes a chapter from Dr. R. Evan Ellis: “Preparing for PRC Military Actions in Latin America in the Context of a War in the Indo-Pacific.”... MORE

Evan Ellis - Preparing for PRC Actions in Latin America in the Context of a War in the Indo-Pacific

SSI Live 115 – Argentina Under Milei: Success, Failure, or Something in Between?
July 30, 2025 — A year and a half ago, Javier Milei shocked Latin America by winning a landslide election in Argentina. His libertarian approach and dogmatic style worried many as he assumed the presidency starting in December 2023 – so how have things turned out so far? Dr. Evan Ellis, SSI’s Research Professor of Latin American Studies, joined SSI Live host Dr... MORE

Academic Year 2025–26 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment
July 9, 2025 — The United States faces a complex and ever-changing global environment. The Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment is designed to guide the collective defense community to research and write about critical national security challenges to help the Army prepare for a wide range of potential conflicts and threats... MORE

Slide for the Academic Year 2025–26 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment

China’s Coming Diplomatic Blitz in the Americas
May 8, 2025 — The next few months will bring a series of high-profile multilateral engagements between China and Latin American countries, as Beijing seeks to capitalize on discontent with Trump.In the coming three months, China will have a number of opportunities to advance its multilateral engagement with the Americas, leveraging discontent among many... MORE

China’s Coming Diplomatic Blitz in the Americas | R. Evan Ellis

Toward a More Effective DoD Contribution to Strategic Competition in the Western Hemisphere
February 21, 2025 — Innovative new thinking is needed on the security challenges the People’s Republic of China poses in Latin America and the Department of Defense’s role in the US response, including (1) enhanced security cooperation that helps key democratic partners succeed and provides the United States leverage and situational awareness, and (2) anticipating how the People’s Republic of China may exploit its commercial and other activities in the region in times of war... MORE

Toward a More Effective DoD Contribution to Strategic Competition in the Western Hemisphere | R. Evan Ellis

2025: Possibilities for the Year to Come
December 27, 2024 — 2025 is likely to be a transformative year for Latin America and the Caribbean, and its relationships with the United States, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and other actors. Although it is impossible to predict with certainty the complex interaction among interdependent events and factors, it is important to recognize the substantial number... MORE

2025: Possibilities for the Year to Come | Dr. R. Evan Ellis

Strategic Implication of the Chinese-Operated Port of Chancay
November 7, 2024 — This article examines the Port of Chancay from a strategic perspective, with a focus on how COSCO (China Ocean Shipping Company) achieved unprecedented control over the operation of the new Peruvian megaport, the impact that the port is likely to have on the global logistics system, and its strategic implications in time of war with the United States. It argues that the project is illustrative of how the PRC... MORE

Strategic Implication of the Chinese-Operated Port of Chancay | R. Evan Ellis for La Red China y América Latina

Re-Asserting the Value of the Individual for Latin America’s Security and Prosperity
October 15, 2024 — Empowerment of the individual, not the state, is the key to innovation, prosperity, physical and political security for Latin America, as the region engages with an unprecedented array of challenges and new partners. ... MORE

Re-Asserting the Value of the Individual for Latin America’s Security and Prosperity | Dr. R. Evan Ellis

Bolivia and US Dilemmas in Engaging with Problematic Regimes in Latin America
September 12, 2024 — I recently had the opportunity to engage with a senior Bolivian colleague connected with the government of Luis Arce regarding the country’s economic and political difficulties and its relationship with the United States. Their fundamental question was, “Why can’t Bolivia’s relationship with the United States be better?” The instinctive response... MORE

The Impact of the Political Orientation of Latin America, on the Advance of the People’s Republic of China in the Region
August 27, 2024 — Latin America is currently undergoing unprecedented political shifts. This phenomenon is characterized by the recent electoral victories of left-ofcenter candidates in Mexico in 2018; Argentina in 2019; Peru, Honduras, and Chile in 2021; and in Brazil and Colombia... MORE

The Impact of the Political Orientation of Latin America, on the Advance of the People’s Republic of China in the Region
R. Evan Ellis