Leslie Wehner

Overlapping regional security institutions in South America: The case of OAS and UNASUR

The Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) has positioned itself as a regional security organization aimed at reducing the influence of the Organization of American States (OAS) in South America. At the same time, the OAS paradoxically serves as a model for UNASUR because of its operational capacity and its legitimacy as a regional organization. This article analyzes the seemingly contradictory tendencies of replication and dissociation that UNASUR exhibits towards the OAS in terms of security conceptions and practices. In the first part of the paper, we will draw on recent debates on international regime complexity to develop a framework to study institutional overlap. The second part analyzes to what extent and in which respects UNASUR, and particularly its Defense Council, overlaps with the OAS in terms of security conceptions and practices, while the third part examines the causes of the emergence of a “competitor” for the OAS in South America.

From Rivalry to Mutual Trust: The Othering Process Between Bolivia and Chile

Bolivia and Chile live in a culture of rivalry as a consequence of the Nitrate War (1879-1883). In each country’s case, the construction of the other as a threat, a rival and/or inferior has shaped the discursive articulation of the bilateral relationship. Whereas the culture of rivalry is more evident in Bolivia because of its aspiration to alter the border, Chile’s statusquo position, which stresses that there are no pending issues with Bolivia, as well as its construction of itself as superior, also represents rivalrous behavior. The perception of Chile as a threat and rival became especially evident in Bolivia during these two countries’ bilateral negotiations to export gas to and through Chile (gas crisis from 2001-05). However, since Evo Morales and Michelle Bachelet took office in Bolivia (2006-present) and in Chile (2006-10), respectively, they have sought to change this culture of rivalry to one of friendship by constructing discursive articulations of self and other based on the principle of building mutual trust. Such a change in the form of othering is only possible to understand within the context of a crisis of meanings. The new approach of othering the counterpart as a friend has filled the void of meaning left by the crisis of discursive articulations of othering the counterpart as a rival, a threat and/or inferior.

Power, Governance, and Ideas in Chile’s Free Trade Agreement Policy

Why is Chile following such a proactive FTA policy and at the same time promoting the benefits of these type of agreements to other Latin American countries? There is a pre-dominance of economic explanations to analyze why countries pursue an active FTA policy. Yet within an FTA policy, understood as an essential component of a country’s foreign policy, strategic and ideational goals are also important. Without downgrading economic explanations, I argue in this article that Chile’s proactive FTA policy can also be understood using variables from “traditional” international relations such as power, governance, and ideas. A framework based on such political-economic strategic issues and value-based ideas provides a better understanding of the country’s motivations in implementing such a proactive FTA policy.

Developing Mutual Trust: The Othering Process Between Bolivia and Chile

Abstract Bolivia and Chile do not trust each other as a consequence of the Nitrate War (1879–83). The construction of the other as distrustful has shaped the discursive articulation of their bilateral relationship. However, since Evo Morales and Michelle Bachelet took office in Bolivia (2006-present) and Chile (2006–10) respectively, they have sought to change this culture of enmity to one of amity by constructing discursive strategies and articulations of Self and Other that are based on the principle of building mutual trust. Such a change is only possible to understand within the context of a crisis of meanings. The new approach of othering the counterpart as a friend has filled the void of meaning left by the crisis of discursive articulations of othering the counterpart as untrustworthy, distrustful, and even rival. Studying discursive strategic changes, from distrust to trust and reversions from trust to distrust, may also illuminate the material and social nature of the contemporary relationship between Bolivia and Chile.

Role Theory and Geopolitical Thinking in South America

Geopolitical thinking has a long tradition in Latin America. This chapter analyzes the development of current geopolitical thinking in South America in particular, and how this influences the development of security conceptions and practices at the state and at the regional levels. It develops an analytical approach based on role theory with the objective to understand the type of geopolitical roles policy-makers seek to advance on behalf of the state and regional groups of states in order to confront pressing security challenges. Empirically, the chapter analyzes the traditional geopolitical narratives, their evolution and how they merge with new geopolitical issues/narratives such as the geopolitics of regional integration and natural resources protection and extraction.

Emerging Powers in Foreign Policy

Emerging powers are usually referred to as states whose increasing material capacities and status-seeking strategies may potentially have an impact on the international system and also affect the dominant position of the hegemonic powers therein. The rising of new powers is a recurrent phenomenon in international relations. When talking about emerging powers, scholars associate the words with the so-called BRICS states: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The emergence of BRICS, and especially of China, poses the question of whether the rising process is a peaceful one. Realism, institutionalism, and constructivism have all dealt with the possible systemic impacts of the BRICS states. BRICS nations seem to be reformist rather than disruptive, meaning that they are pushing for the better representation of their self-perceived new status in multilateral institutions rather than challenging the current system per se. In terms of foreign policy, BRICS states interact with well-established powers such as the United States and European ones—herein they display balancing or bandwagoning strategies, as they do also toward each other. Moreover, well-established powers either accommodate or contest the rising process and status claims of these emerging powers. However, BRICS states are also regional powers. Regional peers contest the rising processes of BRICS and particularly claims to global powerhood. While BRICS can be seen as striving for the reform of multilateral institutions, the traditional view of BRICS as a homogenous force, comprising countries with similar interests, is sometimes misleading. Even though BRICS states have their own institution with a new bank, they also pursue different interests within traditional institutions. Therefore, the existing literature on BRICS is tilted toward systemic and institutional concerns. Although works taking into consideration the interplay between the domestic and international levels in foreign policy analysis do exist, they are not necessarily related to emerging processes and rarely go beyond foreign economic policy issues. People, leaders, and governmental institutions are decision makers or are part of the decision-making process in foreign policy, and thus they form perceptions and act according to how the rising process of the state is unfolding. An integration of the systemic, state, and personal levels captures the essence of the foreign policies of BRICS states in the context of rising and can take into consideration the ups and downs and stalemates of rising-process trajectories in international politics.

Los TLC de Chile. Estrategias y tácticas de negociación

En el nuevo milenio, Chile ha consolidado su modelo economico de apertura a los mercados externos. Esto se ve reflejado en el numero de tratados de libre comercio (TLC) que ha firmado con distintos paises y grupos regionales. Pero, ?bajo que parametros negocia sus TLCs? El clarificar esta pregunta es el objetivo central de este ensayo.