"Imperial Laboratory": Alexander Aviña on the "Donroe" Doctrine & U.S. Intervention in Latin America
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖Former President Trump invoked the Monroe Doctrine, calling it the 'Donroe Doctrine,' to justify US actions in Latin America, including military threats against Venezuela, Cuba, and Mexico.
- ❖Latin American leaders, including the presidents of Colombia and Mexico, swiftly condemned US intervention in Venezuela, reaffirming principles of non-intervention and national sovereignty.
- ❖Professor Alexander Aviña asserts that US empire in Latin America is a bipartisan project, citing Obama's labeling of Venezuela as a national security threat.
- ❖Aviña posits that current US assertions of power in Latin America may indicate US weakness in other global theaters, leading it to reassert control closer to home.
- ❖The US has historically used Latin America as an 'imperial laboratory' to develop and refine its interventionist tactics.
- ❖The Monroe Doctrine, initially an anti-colonial statement, evolved into the Roosevelt Corollary, justifying the US as an 'international police power' in the Americas.
- ❖US intervention consistently targets Latin American leaders deemed 'intolerable' or 'antithetical to US imperial designs,' regardless of how they came to power.
- ❖Modern US tactics include using 'narco-terrorism' charges, a more recent development, to justify interventions.
Insights
1Trump's 'Donroe Doctrine' as a Modern Imperial Assertion
Former President Trump explicitly invoked and redefined the Monroe Doctrine as the 'Donroe Doctrine,' declaring that American dominance in the Western Hemisphere 'will never be questioned again.' This statement followed US military actions against Venezuela and threats to other Latin American nations, signaling a renewed, aggressive stance on regional control.
Trump's remarks on Saturday, stating, 'The Monroe Doctrine is a a big deal, but we've superseded it by a lot, by a real lot. They now call it the Donro document... Under our new national security strategy, American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.'
2US Imperialism in Latin America as a Bipartisan Project
Professor Aviña argues that US imperial control in Latin America is not confined to one political party but is a bipartisan endeavor. Methods may vary, but the underlying objective of asserting US power remains consistent across administrations, including Democratic ones.
Aviña states, 'the US empire in Latin America is a bipartisan project that involve both Republican and Democratic parties. just thinking about how President Obama is the one who labeled Venezuela n a threat to US national security back in 2015 is as one pertinent example.'
3US Weakness Drives 'Imperial Laboratory' Tactics in Latin America
The current aggressive US posture in Latin America, according to Aviña, can be interpreted as a sign of US weakness rather than strength. When the US faces challenges or defeats in other parts of the world, it historically re-focuses on Latin America as an 'imperial laboratory' to refine its tactics and project an image of power, both internationally and domestically.
Aviña explains, 'it's a moment to read it is a moment of US weakness, right? They they're basically conceding other parts of the world to peer rivals... they come back quote unquote home to the Western Hemisphere and they use Latin America as an imperial laboratory.'
4Evolution of the Monroe Doctrine: From Anti-Colonial to Police Power
The Monroe Doctrine, initially a declaration against European colonial powers in the context of Latin American independence, was later transformed by the Roosevelt Corollary. This corollary established the US as an 'international police power' in the Americas, justifying frequent military interventions based on perceived 'loosening of ties of civilization.'
Aviña details, 'Initially, this was not a law... an anti-colonial statement against European rival powers... The other the other important moment in this history is when uh with President Theodore Roosevelt invoked his own Roosevelt corollary... he essentially made uh the United States an international police power over the Americas.'
5Consistent US Overthrow of Latin American Sovereignty
The US has a long history of intervening to overthrow or destabilize Latin American leaders, regardless of their political ideology or how they came to power, if they are perceived as obstacles to US imperial designs. This pattern continues with new justifications like 'narco-terrorism' charges.
Aviña states, 'it doesn't matter what type of Latin American leader is in power and how they achieve that power. In the end, if they are deemed intolerable or antithetical to US imperial designs, they are going to be overthrown or destabilized by the United States.' He adds, 'The one new thing... is that they're using naroterrorism charges uh against President Nicolas Maduro.'
Key Concepts
Imperial Laboratory
The concept that the United States uses Latin America as a testing ground or 'workshop of empire' to refine its imperialist tactics abroad. When facing resistance or defeat elsewhere, the US often 'comes home' to the Western Hemisphere to reassert dominance and develop new methods of control, which can also serve to create internal domestic political cohesion.
Lessons
- Recognize the historical continuity of US intervention in Latin America, understanding that current actions often echo past patterns of asserting regional dominance.
- Analyze US foreign policy rhetoric and actions in the Western Hemisphere not solely as displays of strength, but also as potential indicators of underlying geopolitical or domestic vulnerabilities.
- Examine the evolving justifications for US intervention (e.g., anti-colonialism, police power, narco-terrorism) to understand how imperial designs adapt to contemporary contexts while maintaining consistent objectives.
Quotes
"The Monroe Doctrine is a a big deal, but we've superseded it by a lot, by a real lot. They now call it the Donro document. I don't know. It's uh Monroe Doctrine. We sort of forgot about it. It was very important, but we forgot about it. We don't forget about it anymore. Under our new national security strategy, American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
"Mexico's position against any form of intervention is firm, clear, and historic... We categorically reject intervention in the internal affairs of other countries. Latin America's history is clear and compelling. Intervention has never brought democracy, never generated well-being or lasting stability."
"the US empire in Latin America is a bipartisan project that involve both Republican and Democratic parties... what we're witnessing now is just a a quite visible and unabashed assertment uh assertion of US power over Latin America."
"when the US has forced resistance or defeat elsewhere in the world, they come back quote unquote home to the Western Hemisphere and they use Latin America as an imperial laboratory as they have since almost the founding of the United States."
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