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Historical antecedents and post-WWII regionalism in the Americas

31 January 2018, 5:00 pm

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UCL Institute of the Americas

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UCL Institute of the Americas, 51 Gordon Square, London WC1H 0PN

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Professor Tom Long (Warwick) - This paper brings new evidence and argument to the debate on the emergence of multilateral regional security agreements after World War II, encapsulated in Hemmer and Katzenstein's question, 'Why is there no NATO in Asia?'  This discussion on regional orders has overlooked the experience of the inter-American system at the same historical conjuncture. The inter-American experience casts doubt on the generalizability of prominent explanations of regional formation. Drawing on an historical institutionalist approach, this article illustrates how historical trajectories condition the bargains between great powers and secondary states over the natures of emerging regional bargains. In short, we argue that existence or absence of shared historical antecedents of regionalism (SHAR) is essential to explaining cross-regional variations in security cooperation, beyond existing explanations of threat, power, burden-sharing, or identity.

In the postwar critical juncture, SHAR allowed Latin American states to make claims on the United States for the continuance, expansion, and deepening of the inter-American system. They served as precedent and shortcut for the new regional order. The inter-American system was Latin America's best bet to keep the Americans in (regional politics), out (of internal affairs), and down (proscribed from intervening), all at once.

Tom Long is an Assistant Professor in New Rising World Powers at the University of Warwick and an Affiliated Professor at the Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE) in Mexico City. His research primarily focuses on U.S.-Latin American relations and the dynamics of asymmetry in International Relations. He has previously been on the faculties of the University of Reading, CIDE, and American University's School of International Service, where he completed his doctorate in 2013. He has been named a 2017-2018 Fulbright Scholar at the Pontificia Universidad Católica in Santiago, Chile. His first book, Latin America Confronts the United States: Asymmetry and Influence (Cambridge University Press) was named one of the best books of 2016 by Foreign Affairs. Tom has published articles in International Security, International Studies Review, Latin American Research Review, Diplomatic History, International Politics, Foro Internacional, and The Latin Americanist. His research has been or is currently being supported by grants from the Fulbright Program, Tinker Foundation, British Council, the British Academy and Leverhulme Trust, and the Truman Library Institute.