by Ambaddador (ret) Patrick Duddy
The 9th Summit of the Americas(link is external) (SOA), “will be the Biden administration’s first opportunity to reset U.S. relations with the Latin America,” writes Patrick Duddy in a recent op-ed for The Hill. “These days,’ he adds, “China has become nearly as important to Latin America’s economies as the U.S.”
The summit is a triennial meeting of the heads of state and government of all of the countries of the Western Hemisphere sponsored by the Organization of American States. This year it will be hosted by the United States. “The April summit will give Biden a chance to speak frankly with fellow leaders about the challenges he faces at home and the reasons why their cooperation could be good for all,” Duddy concludes.
Patrick Duddy is a former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela. He is the director of Duke University’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and a fellow of the Rethinking Diplomacy Program (RDP) of the Duke University Center for International and Global Studies (DUCIGS.)
Read Patrick Duddy’s op-ed: https://thehill.com/opinion/international/534560-early-2021-summit-is-a-chance-to-reset-us-relations-with-latin-america(link is external)