Security & Strategic Review - May 2024

The militarisation of Ecuadorean security policy which was ordered on an emergency basis in January is now set to be made permanent.... Read More

More than six years after he became the subject of a criminal investigation, Colombia’s former president Álvaro Uribe (2002-2010) was called to trial on 9 April to face charges of witness tampering.... Read More

Peru’s congress has approved an agreement with the US that will see the two countries work together to intercept aircraft suspected of involvement in drug trafficking.... Read More

At a ceremony on 2 April commemorating the anniversary of the start of the 1982 war over the Falklands Islands (Malvinas) with the UK, Argentina’s President Javier Milei called for “a new era of reconciliation with the armed forces” in a speech paying tribute to the Argentine veterans.... Read More

Six years after the 2018 murder of Rio de Janeiro city councillor Marielle Franco and her driver Anderson Gomes, Brazilian police believe that one of the most high-profile political assassinations in recent years has been solved.... Read More

On 26 March Chile’s government led by President Gabriel Boric announced the promulgation of the country’s ‘Ley Marco sobre Ciberseguridad e Infraestructura Crítica’ (law for a framework on cybersecurity and critical infrastructure), which will create a new regulatory body for cybersecurity, the Agencia Nacional de Ciberseguridad (Anci).... Read More

Bertha Gisela Gaytán Gutiérrez, a candidate for mayor of Celaya in Guanajuato state, had just finished outlining her security strategy at a campaign rally when unidentified gunmen opened fire and killed her on 1 April.... Read More

Data from Mexico’s national meteorological service (SMN) has revealed that, as of 15 April, Mexico was experiencing its driest year since 2011-2012, when the country underwent a major drought.... Read More

Mexico’s lower chamber of congress approved a reform to the Ley de Amnistía or Amnesty Law on 24 April.... Read More

El Salvador recently marked the two-year anniversary of the state of exception declared by Nayib Bukele’s government as part of declared efforts to crack down on gangs – a move which suspended constitutional guarantees [SSR-22-05].... Read More

Guatemala’s President Bernardo Arévalo was recently compelled to declare a state of calamity in the country in response to 44 active wildfires – an issue which increasingly affects Central America and elsewhere as climate change accelerates.... Read More

In early April Honduras’ military (FFAA) announced that in the first quarter of 2024, authorities had destroyed over 2.9m coca bushes and nearly 1.4 tonnes (t) of cocaine.... Read More

The purge of the Nicaraguan judiciary which began in late October 2023 as part of efforts to shore up support for Vice President Rosario Murillo [SSR-24-02] has been ongoing, according to local media outlets such as Confidencial.... Read More

The US Department of State’s annual human rights report for 2023 was published on 22 April.... Read More

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has produced a report on the “Opportunities and challenges for agrifood trade between Central American Integration System (SICA) and Caribbean Community (Caricom) countries”.... Read More

*** SUPPORT FOR OIL DRILLING BAN IN THE BAHAMAS.... Read More