U.S.–Latin America Relations: Policy Review and New Direction
This paper reviews the 2008 Council on Foreign Relations report "A New Direction for a New Reality" by Charlene Barshefsky and James T. Hill, which examines the evolving relationship between the United States and Latin America. The review summarizes the report's core thesis—that the U.S. must reframe its Latin American policy around four key challenges: inequality, poverty, energy security, and human mobility. It evaluates the primary and secondary evidence cited, including ECLAC economic data, trade statistics, and research on narcotics policy. The review concludes with an opinion on the report's argument that a multilateral, collaborative U.S. approach would better serve both American interests and Latin American development than traditional dominant-power strategies.
- Introduction and Thesis Overview: Report's core argument on U.S.–Latin America policy
- Key Challenges and Strategic Relationships: Four critical areas and strategic bilateral relationships
- Evidence and Data Sources: Primary and secondary sources supporting the report
- Narcotics Policy and the Drug Trade: Caulkins research on antinarcotics enforcement
- Opinion and Critical Assessment: Student evaluation of report's recommendations and relevance
✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾
What makes this paper effective
- The review is clearly organized around three distinct tasks—summarizing the thesis, evaluating the evidence, and offering an opinion—making it easy to follow the student's analytical process.
- The paper accurately identifies and explains multiple data sources (ECLAC, Hornbeck, Tejerina, OECD, Caulkins), demonstrating engagement with the report's evidentiary base rather than just its conclusions.
- The opinion section moves beyond summary to offer a genuine evaluative stance, acknowledging the report's strengths while noting the continued complexity of U.S. influence in the region.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper models source attribution within a review format, clearly distinguishing between what the reviewed authors argue and what secondary sources they rely upon. This layered citation approach—reviewing not just the report's claims but the data that supports them—reflects sound academic analysis of non-fiction policy writing.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a thesis summary of the Barshefsky and Hill report, then identifies the four critical areas and four strategic relationships the report foregrounds. A dedicated evidence section methodically surveys six cited sources. The review concludes with a critical opinion section that situates the report's recommendations within a broader geopolitical context. This three-part format (thesis, evidence, opinion) is maintained consistently throughout.
Introduction and Thesis Overview
This is a review of A New Direction for a New Reality, by Charlene Barshefsky and James T. Hill (2008), published by the Council on Foreign Relations, Inc.
This report takes into account the current state of affairs in Latin America along with the opportunities and challenges that govern relations between the U.S. and Latin American society. Latin America has in the recent past adopted many of the democratic values that characterize governance in the U.S. There is increased democratic space and a wider scope of economic activity, and many Latin American countries are actively pursuing these changes to strengthen their democracies, expand economic participation, and deliver better services to their citizens.
It is noted that Latin American nations face several daunting challenges in the course of integrating into global markets—challenges of great significance to the U.S. The economic and social ties that bind the U.S. to the region connect its future to the stability, development, and well-being of the entire hemisphere. The report is not an attempt to exhaustively study U.S.–Latin America policy relations, nor does it analyze the long-standing bilateral relations between the two entities in depth. It does not pursue any single U.S. approach to the complexities of Latin America through one dominant position or idea.
Create your account
Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.