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Panama!

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I almost forgot that I wrote something earlier this week on the (lack of) wisdom of reappropriating the Panama Canal:

More broadly, the relative quiet that the United States has enjoyed in the Western hemisphere for the last century is critical to American national security.

As the cases of China and especially Russia should make obvious, there is tremendous danger in having neighbors who are so frightened of you that they seek friends across the sea to protect their security.

Latin American countries may not all be like the United States, but with only a few exceptions, they are willing to tolerate US leadership. The best way to ensure that Latin America remains friendly to US interests is to ensure that Latin American governments and civil society are comfortable within a US-led international order.

The Trump administration has threatened to upend this good fortune to no particular purpose, including triggering what may be an unnecessary trade war with Mexico and Canada while also threatening direct kinetic action against Mexican drug cartels.

Adding to this, a pointless conflict with Panama, which would reopen old wounds across the region, would be the height of diplomatic malpractice. If the United States wants to ensure that Latin American countries begin to look abroad for security assistance and security guarantees, it could do no worse than militarized intimidation of a long-time ally like Panama. 

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