The U.S. and the Latin American "axis of evil"

i've been posting on the evolving posture of the u.s. vis a vis latin america (here, here, here, and here)... too bad that, like so many important issues, it's getting precious little attention from the u.s. msm...

after the u.s. was thwarted in its choice for oas director general and then threw its support behind the popular choice, chile's insulza, on the condition that he back a u.s. proposal to the oas calling for unified "support" for democracy in the region, which insulza nominally embraced and then later recanted at the oas summit two weeks ago in miami, details began to emerge about what position the u.s. has been crafting toward latin america... no surprise, the cornerstone of the policy is the "war on terror," which translated reads, "the u.s. intends to maintain control of the world's energy resources..." it's a disturbing picture and one to keep an eye on...

Latin America is a continent that is drifting left, out of U.S. control. Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's outspoken president, embodies this continental drift with his anti-imperialist rhetoric. It's a shift away from Pax Americana that is occurring both at the ballot box and in the streets, as elected leaders in Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Argentina defy Washington and attempt to chart independent political and economic paths. [...] Soon after the launch of the war on terror, leading Republicans warned that the problem in Latin America came from a regional axis of evil that ran from Cuba through Venezuela and down to Brazil.

[...]

Porter Goss, warned the House Armed Services Committee the drift to the left might be even more pronounced following eight presidential elections scheduled in 2006 in countries with strong center-left candidates, like in Mexico.

Any ”destabilisation or a backslide from democratic principles,” said Goss, ”would not be helpful to our interests and would probably be threatening to our security in the long run.”

Meanwhile, Southcom -- one of the five U.S. military commands that span the globe -- is adapting to the changes in its ”Area of Responsibility”, which includes all of Latin America and the Caribbean. In the past few months, it has released a new ”theatre command strategy” and a new ”posture statement” by Southcom's commander.

[...]

Both statements frame regional security issues as part of the ”global war on terror.” But running through them is an evident, although not explicitly stated, concern that the United States is losing control of its own hemisphere.

Also evident are the politics of self-delusion -- seen in statements that ignore the reality of the failed drug war, the anti-democratic character of U.S. policy, and the simple fact that the U.S. government and its armed forces continue to be more part of the problems in Latin America than part of the solution.

[...]

In the near future, Southcom will focus on seven objectives, two of which remain classified.

The five unclassified objectives extend far beyond measures that directly or indirectly would bolster U.S. homeland security. Objective number one is to guarantee that ”regional energy supplies will flow freely into international markets and will not be targets of aggression.”

Essential to meeting this security objective, says Southcom, is improving the ability of ”partner nation security forces to protect critical infrastructure” of the energy industry in the region.

"improving the ability of partner nation security forces..." dontcha just love military-speak...? just say it, guys... we're gonna make sure you have the troops, the equipment, and the training to help us help you help us do what we want... are we all clear...? good...

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