AMER0018: The International Politics of Latin America

Module tutor: Dr Par Engstrom

Outline

This module examines the international politics of Latin America, with primary emphasis on the period since 1945 but with attention to the legacies of earlier political, economic, and strategic developments affecting the region.  It does not presume a prior knowledge of international relations theory or Latin American politics, history or economics.

The module begins with an overview of key concepts and issues from the general international relations literature. It then turns to a consideration of broad phases in Latin America's international relations during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries; long-term trends in relations between Latin American countries and the United States (including case studies of Cuba and the Central American crisis of the 1980s); Latin American relations with the former Soviet Union, the European Union, and East Asian countries (especially China); case studies of the foreign relations of Brazil, Southern Cone countries, and Mexico; and economic regionalism in the Western Hemisphere.