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What Is Trump’s Latin America Policy?

Making sense of the latest U.S. moves in Venezuela and beyond.

By , a senior editor at Foreign Policy.
A person with glasses holds up a sign with Trump and Bolsonaro's faces, and the text: "INIMIGOS DO POVO." The person is surrounded by people holding up red flags.
A person with glasses holds up a sign with Trump and Bolsonaro's faces, and the text: "INIMIGOS DO POVO." The person is surrounded by people holding up red flags.
A man holds a sign with images of U.S. President Donald Trump and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, with text that translates as “Enemies of the People,” during a demonstration in São Paulo, Brazil, on July 10. Miguel Schincariol/AFP via Getty Images

As U.S. President Donald Trump has increasingly meddled in Latin American affairs in recent weeks—from ramping up military pressure on Venezuela’s regime to extending a $20 billion lifeline to support Argentine President Javier Milei—many analysts are speculating on his administration’s endgame in the region.

In determining his next move in Venezuela, for instance, Trump faces a choice: whether to use the “naval deployment to the Caribbean as a pressure tactic to advance U.S. interests and democratic reforms, or whether to roll the dice with military escalation and risk potentially destabilizing conflict,” Geoff Ramsey writes.

As U.S. President Donald Trump has increasingly meddled in Latin American affairs in recent weeks—from ramping up military pressure on Venezuela’s regime to extending a $20 billion lifeline to support Argentine President Javier Milei—many analysts are speculating on his administration’s endgame in the region.

In determining his next move in Venezuela, for instance, Trump faces a choice: whether to use the “naval deployment to the Caribbean as a pressure tactic to advance U.S. interests and democratic reforms, or whether to roll the dice with military escalation and risk potentially destabilizing conflict,” Geoff Ramsey writes.

This edition of the Reading List examines U.S. relations with Latin America in light of Trump’s recent moves and considers how his approach to foreign policy may be reshaping politics in the Western Hemisphere.

U.S. Marines unload from a V-22 Osprey aircraft at José Aponte de la Torre Airport in Ceiba, Puerto Rico.
U.S. Marines unload from a V-22 Osprey aircraft at José Aponte de la Torre Airport in Ceiba, Puerto Rico.

U.S. Marines unload from a V-22 Osprey aircraft at José Aponte de la Torre Airport in Ceiba, Puerto Rico, on Sept. 13. Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo/AFP via Getty Images

What’s the U.S. Endgame in Venezuela?

Three possible scenarios for Trump and Caracas, according to Geoff Ramsey.

Cranes extend into a yellow sky high above stacks of container ships at a port on the Panama Canal.
Cranes extend into a yellow sky high above stacks of container ships at a port on the Panama Canal.

The Port of Balboa, managed by CK Hutchison Holdings, is seen at at the entrance to the Panama Canal in Panama City on March 12. Martin Bernetti/AFP via Getty Images

Trump’s Panama Port Predicament

The deal to sever China’s ties to the Panama Canal could boost its influence elsewhere in the region, Aidan Powers-Riggs and Henry Ziemer write.

 

Donald Trump and Javier Milei, both wearing suits, talk to each other in a crowded room.
Donald Trump and Javier Milei, both wearing suits, talk to each other in a crowded room.

Argentine President Javier Milei walks past U.S. President-elect Donald Trump as they attend the America First Policy Institute Gala held at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on Nov. 14, 2024.Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The U.S. Should Not Bail Out Argentina

Rohit Chopra considers why the Trump administration is intent on rescuing Milei.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva leans on his left elbow while listening via an audio device on his left ear. He is wearing a striped tie and is seated at a green desk among other dignitaries.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva leans on his left elbow while listening via an audio device on his left ear. He is wearing a striped tie and is seated at a green desk among other dignitaries.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva listens as U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks to the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Sept. 23.Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Lula and Trump’s Backstage Breakthrough

The apparent thaw between the two leaders is a reminder of why the U.N. still matters, Andre Pagliarini writes.

Protesters wear masks of Trump (left) and Bolsonaro (right).
Protesters wear masks of Trump (left) and Bolsonaro (right).

Protesters wearing masks depicting U.S. President Donald Trump and former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro take part in a protest in defence of retail employment and national sovereignty in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on July 18.Nelson Almeida/AFP via Getty Images

Trump Is Ushering in the Era of the Strongman

The U.S. president is promoting iron-fisted rule throughout the Western Hemisphere, FP’s Howard W. French writes.

Chloe Hadavas is a senior editor at Foreign Policy. Bluesky: @hadavas.bsky.social X: @Hadavas

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