Parodi shows that boundary disputes have and continue to play a major role in creating tensions in South America. Of the 25 international territorial boundaries that exist in South America, eight were marked with major wars, eight with lesser wars, and five with some level of violence. As recently as 1995, the armies of Ecuador and Peru were at war to define a boundary. In 1982 Argentina went to war, inspired by the call to restore a piece of its mutilated national territory. Venezuela and Guyana, Guyana and Suriname, and Suriname and French Guiana have not completed boundary demarcation agreements. Bolivia's insistence on its right for sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean is a source of tension with Chile and Peru. Colombia and Venezuela have unresolved boundary issues in the Gulf of Venezuela. Clearly, boundary disputes have and continue to play a major role in creating larger conflicts within South America. Territorial boundaries are marks on the ground, but, as Parodi shows, their staying power or stability depends on their grip on consciousness. By examining the boundary theory of South American states and its implementation, he also explains how the symbolic system of South American boundaries is used to instill national identity, mobilize people to war, and control population and territory. This text will be of particular interest to scholars, students, and researchers involved with Latin American politics, diplomacy, and international relations.

Cover -- Half Title -- Title -- Copyright -- Contents -- Acknowledgements -- Glossary -- Introduction -- Inter-state conflict in Latin America -- Latin America's security architecture -- Significance of Latin American conflict -- Chapter One Sources of conflict -- Inter-state controversies -- The domestic drivers of foreign policy -- Conclusion -- Chapter Two The dynamics of militarisation -- Understanding militarisation -- Political-military strategies -- Strategic balance -- Characteristics of force -- Constituency's willingness to pay costs -- Leader's accountability -- Conclusion -- Chapter Three Latin American hot spots -- Colombia-Ecuador, with Venezuela contributing to tensions -- Nicaragua-Costa Rica -- Bolivia-Chile -- Dominican Republic-Haiti -- Argentina-United Kingdom -- Conclusion -- Chapter Four Preserving the illusion: managing conflict in Latin America -- United States: preoccupied elsewhere -- Brazil's paradox: global aspirations limit regional impact -- The multilaterals: going against the grain -- Conclusion -- Conclusion -- Appendix One Selected unresolved inter-state disputes in Latin America -- Appendix Two Memberships -- Appendix Three Latin America boundary settlements 2000-2011 -- Notes

Key countries of Latin America critically assessed as they move towards democracy.

Who—and what—moves from one country to another has real implications for security studies, international relations, and the ideal of democracy. In summer 2014, US agencies responsible for the border with Mexico were overwhelmed by tens of thousands of unaccompanied children arriving from Central America. Unprepared to address this unexpected kind of migrant, the US government deployed troops to carry out a new border mission: the feeding, care, and housing of this wave of children. This event highlights the complex social, economic, and political issues that arise along borders. In American Crossings, nine scholars consider the complicated modern history of borders in the Western Hemisphere, examining borders as geopolitical boundaries, key locations for internal security, spaces for international trade, and areas where national and community identities are defined. Among the provocative questions raised are: Why are Peru and Chile inclined to legalize territory disputes through the International Court of Justice, undermining their militaries? Why has economic integration in the "Tri-Border Area" of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay increased illicit trade supporting transnational terrorist groups? And how has a weak Ecuadorian presence at the EcuadorColombia border encouraged Colombian guerrillas to enforce the international borderline?