"Past and Prospects of Imperial Geopolitics"
by Francisco López Segrera
Book Review of:
América Latina en la geopolítica imperial
by Atilio Borón
LUXEMBURG 2012
ISBN: 978-987-1709-19-9
Atilio Borón’s encyclopedic América Latina en la geopolítica imperial goes beyond what its title announces and, with Latin America as the epicenter of its analysis, ventures to assess the key problems of our times not only in our region but also worldwide. The combination of strong description and data with relevant and synthetic theoretical generalizations, the agile use of sources in various languages, and clear exposition in the direct and beautiful style of the best essays make the work a success despite the complexity of the task and the multitude of topics that it covers.
The book received the Premio Libertador al Pensamiento Crítico, instituted by President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela, in 2012 and was published by the Ministerio del Poder Popular in Caracas in 2013 and reprinted with a postface in Cuba in 2014. Its central theses are as follows: (1) The decline of the United States does not mean its imminent collapse. (2) The concept of imperialism is fully relevant to the current situation. (3) The notion that Latin America is not a priority for U.S. imperialism is fallacious. (4) Latin America’s great wealth in energy resources, raw materials, and biodiversity makes it a priority for imperialism, and it has enormous importance for U.S. military, strategic, and security concerns as the “backyard” of the United States. (5) U.S. military presence in the region has increased significantly in recent years. (6) Imperialism’s strategy is to defeat the radical popular projects of Venezuela and other countries of the region and reestablish its hegemony. (7) Since the defeat of the Free Trade Area of the Americas in Mar del Plata in 2005, imperialism has given its full support to the Pacific Alliance, involving Mexico, Peru, Colombia, and Chile, as a reflection of its mistrust of and hostility toward integrationist projects such …
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Latin American Perspectives
July 2015 42: 125-128
