Latin America News
U.S. Arrest Turkish Broker Linked to Venezuelan Oil Trade
The arrest of a prominent Venezuelan oil broker in the United States may signal turbulent times ahead for Nicolás Maduro’s administration following Donald Trump’s re-election. On November 2, Turkish businessman Taskin Torlak was arrested in Florida, on charges of conspiracy to transport sanctioned Venezuelan oil, the US Department of Justice reported. Torlak, who owns several shipping … Read more
Costa Rica Honors President Bukele with Top Diplomatic Award for Reducing Crime in El Salvador
Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves presented Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele with the highest distinction awarded by the Costa Rican nation to foreign heads of state. Bukele was awarded the Juan Mora Fernández National Order in the Degree of Grand Cross … Read more
Will Costa Rica Follow Ecuador’s Path? Examining the Rise of Crime in the Pura Vida Country
High levels of violence indicate how once-peaceful Costa Rica is feeling the tightening grip of cocaine trafficking. But is the Central American country on a similar path to Ecuador to the south? Costa Rica’s homicides have grown slowly over the last several years but spiked to reach a historic high in 2023 with 907 recorded killings or … Read more
This Is How Seven Universities From El Salvador Rank in the QS World University Rankings
Seven Salvadoran Universities were included in the World University Ranking of Latin America and the Caribbean universities for 2025, published in early October by the QS World University Rankings. The seven universities are the Central American University José Simeón Cañas … Read more
The State of Emergency Strategy: Why Latin American Leaders Keep Turning to It
Several Latin American countries have recently declared or prolonged states of emergency aimed at combating organized crime, even though the results of these efforts so far have been lackluster. In the first days of October, the governments of Ecuador, Honduras, and El Salvador extended their existing states of emergency. In general, this type of measure suspends civil rights such as … Read more
DEA Under Fire for Delaying Reports on Foreign Partners’ Security Abuses
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the main agency investigating organized crime and drug trafficking for the United States government in the region, repeatedly delayed reporting human rights violations by the Latin American security forces it was partnering with, adding to a series of scandals at the world’s most influential anti-drug agency. The newest findings came from an … Read more
El Salvador Tops Security Perceptions While Chile and Ecuador See Declines
Latin America and the Caribbean continue to be the region with the worst citizen perception of security according to an annual report, although the region has improved over the past three years. The Gallup Global Safety Report 2024 administers and analyzes a poll evaluating citizens’ experiences of violent crime (robberies, assaults, muggings), their perception of … Read more