Latin America in the 21st Century Nations, Regionalism, Globalization

by Gardini, Gian Luca

• ISBN13: 9781780320885
• ISBN10: 1780320884
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-04-15
• Publisher: UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO PRESS

Summary

Twenty-first century Latin America is rich in history, culture, and political and social experimentation. In this fascinating and insightful analysis, Gardini looks at contemporary developments at three interconnected levels: the state, the region, and the international position of Latin America. At the state level, leaders such as Evo Morales of Bolivia or Chavez of Venezuela embody a renewed intellectual autonomy in the continent but even so, there are significant discrepancies between their discourse and their actions. At the regional level, while a consensus has emerged over Latin American unity as the only way towards development, the existence of several competing schemes of regional economic and political integration, such as MERCOSUR, ALBA, and UNASUR reflect the actual diversity of the area. At the global level, elements of change such as the rise of Brazil and the availability of non-traditional partners like China coexist with traits of continuity such as the crucial political, economic, and ideational role of Washington. Overall, Gardini argues, Latin America has never been so well-off, so autonomous, so effective in its quest for endogenous development and so well positioned in the world as it is at the beginning of the twenty-first century.

Author Biography

Dr. Gian Luca Gardini is Lecturer in International Relations and Latin American Politics at the University of Bath. His works have been published in the UK, Europe, the United States, and South America. His most recent books are The Origins of Mercosur and, together with Dr. PW Lambert, Latin American Foreign Policies Between Ideology and Pragmatism. Dr. Gardini has also acted as a practitioner of international and EU affairs: he was Representative to the EU of the Italian Confederation of Industry, and International Trade Advisor to EUROCHAMBRES, the European Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Table of Contents

1. Latin American States between Rhetoric and Pragmatism * Introduction * Brazil * Argentina * Chile * Venezuela * Bolivia * Overview on other Latin American countries * Conclusions * 2. Latin American Regionalism between Unity and Diversity * Introduction * The Origins of Latin American Regionalism and its Evolution * Latin American Regionalism during the Cold War * From ‘Open Regionalism’ to the Search for New Paradigms * MERCOSUR * NAFTA * The Andean Community * The Inter-American System * Latin American Regionalism in the New Millenium * Conclusions * 3. Latin America and the World between Change and Continuity * Introduction * US-Latin American Relations: Historical and Philosophical Bases and their Evolution * Inter-American Relations in the 21st Century * The Impact of the Pink Tide: Present and Future * Relations with the European Union * Relations with China * Relations with Other Emerging Powers and  International Organizations * Conclusion * Conclusion