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Latin American Program in the News: Central America struggles to unite for Obama trip

Director Cynthia J. Arnson and Associate Director Eric Olson comment on internal rivalries between Central American nations regarding security-oriented foreign aid and the concern that has gripped the White House concerning the region's deterioration in security. This was also published in the Hufftington Post, the Daily Journal, The Examiner, ABC News, Yahoo Finance, The Guardian, TimesOnline, Caribbean Business, and many other media outlets.

Guatemala and Belize maintain a border dispute. Honduras and El Salvador are fighting over the use of the waters and shores of the Gulf of Fonseca, and a conflict between Nicaragua and Costa Rica has been escalating over the San Juan River border. On top of that, Panama, Costa Rica and Nicaragua often feel excluded because Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras get the bulk of U.S. security aid, said Eric Olson, associate director of the Latin American program at the Wilson Center think tank in Washington.

"SICA has tried to build itself as the place where all these countries can come together and that can be the distribution point for that aid," Olson said. "But I think the rivalry between these governments gets in the way."

The White House doesn't plan to launch any new initiatives with this trip, said Ricardo Zuniga, the lead official for Latin America policy on the U.S. National Security Council. Rather, it wants to talk about better coordination and use of the aid that is already going to the region.

"Besides the United States expressing its deep worry over the deterioration of the region, there isn't much more to expect," said Cynthia Arnson, director of the Latin American program at the Wilson Center.

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Latin America Program

The Wilson Center’s prestigious Latin America Program provides non-partisan expertise to a broad community of decision makers in the United States and Latin America on critical policy issues facing the Hemisphere. The Program provides insightful and actionable research for policymakers, private sector leaders, journalists, and public intellectuals in the United States and Latin America. To bridge the gap between scholarship and policy action, it fosters new inquiry, sponsors high-level public and private meetings among multiple stakeholders, and explores policy options to improve outcomes for citizens throughout the Americas. Drawing on the Wilson Center’s strength as the nation’s key non-partisan policy forum, the Program serves as a trusted source of analysis and a vital point of contact between the worlds of scholarship and action.  Read more

Latin America Program

The Wilson Center’s prestigious Latin America Program provides non-partisan expertise to a broad community of decision makers in the United States and Latin America on critical policy issues facing the Hemisphere. The Program provides insightful and actionable research for policymakers, private sector leaders, journalists, and public intellectuals in the United States and Latin America. To bridge the gap between scholarship and policy action, it fosters new inquiry, sponsors high-level public and private meetings among multiple stakeholders, and explores policy options to improve outcomes for citizens throughout the Americas. Drawing on the Wilson Center’s strength as the nation’s key non-partisan policy forum, the Program serves as a trusted source of analysis and a vital point of contact between the worlds of scholarship and action.  Read more