Latin America Flashcards
Prisoners of Geography - 2x main reasons
- In contrary to USA where after the formation of the nation states, the land taken away from its original inhabitants was sold or given away to small landholders, in LATAM the old world culture of powerful landowners was imposed which led to inequality.
- European settlers introduced another geographical problem that to this day holds many countries back from developing their full potential: they stayed near the cost (same for Africa)Most biggest cities and capitals where near the cost - often capitals and all roads from the interior where developed to connect to the capitals but not to each other.
% of inhabitants in metropolitan area of the capital city in Peru and Argentina
30%
Focus of the colonialists
Getting the wealth out of the region, to the cost and to foreign markets.
Mexico‘s Geography constraints
Desert wastelands in the north, mountains to the east and west (Sierras Madres)and its jungles in the south
All of these factors limit it’s economic growths
Brazil Geography constraints
its internal regions remain isolated from each other
Total LATAM population and GDP
600 mio inhabitants
GDP equals that of UK and France combined based on 125mio people
Longest continuous mountain chain of the world
Los Andes, 4,500 miles long
2nd longest river in the world
The Amazon river, 1st is the Nile
Treaty of Tordesillas
1494 btw Spain and Portugal where European colonialists drew lines on maps of faraway places they knew little or nothing about.
The two great European sea powers agreed that any land discovered outside Europe would be shared between them. The pope agreed.
War of the Pacific
btw Chile and Bolivia in 1879
where Bolivia lost a large chunk of its territory incl 250 miles coastline and has been landlocked ever since
Bolivia’s Natural reserve
3rd largest natural gas reserves in South America
will not supply any to chile
National pride and geographical need on both sides trump diplomatic compromise.
Border Disputes in the 19th Century
19th century:
British territory of Belize via straight lines to Guatemala who claims it
Chile and Argentins over the Beagle Channel
water route
Venezuela claims half of Guyana
Ecuador has historical claims to Peru, which led to three border wars over the past 75 years with the last one in 1995
Land Changes of 1847-8 Mexican War with the USA
Texas, California, New Mexico and Arizona was part of Mexico
Half of Mexican territory being ceded to the USA
Population Mexico City
20mio
Mexican Border Smuggler Business
developed in the last 20years
as direct result of the US Government’s policy in Colombia 1,500 miles away to tge south
President Nixon declared a war of drugs in 1970
In 1990 overt assistance to the Columbian government, closing down many air an sea drug routes from Columbia to the USA.
The cartels responded by creating a land route up through central America and Mexico into the American Southwest.
Panama Canal
1914 built, 50 miles long, American controlled, saving 8,000 miles long journey from Atlantic to Pacific
Since 1999 the canal has been controlled by Panama
is regarded as neutral international waterway which is safeguardedby USA and Panama
Venezuelas Oil Export
It supplies 10% of US oil imports
Nicaragua Grand Canal project
is funded by a Hong Kong businessman named Wang Jing
50bn US$ project
due for completion in 2020
4x the size if Nicaraguan economy
part of substantial investment in Latin America by China
In which year did the brazilian capital move and from where to where?
in the late 1950’s from Rio de Janeiro to Brasilia in order to develop the heart of Brazil
% of BrazilianPopulation living in favela slums
25%
Brazilian geography constraints
Grand Escarpement - Brazil lacks a coastal plain to connect its major coastal cities
No direct access to the rivers of the Rio de la Plata region.
UNASUR
South American version if the EU with 11 member states
headquarter in Equador but Brazil most powerful among the menber states
rather website than economic union
Argentinian battle with the UK
over the Falkland islands
called Los Malvinas by the Argentinians
have rich oil and gas resource.
are british since 1833
in 1982 the British led their guard down and the Argentinian military dictatorship under General Galtieri ordered an invasion of the island
They suceeded until the British Task Force arrived and reclaimed the territory which led to the fall of the dictatorship
Argentina has currently a window of opportunity as Britain does not have a functioning aircraft carrier but will have in 2020
Whoever probes in this area will face an extremy challenging environment, Antarctic Treaty and lack of obtainable and valuable resourcesi
BRICS
Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa
a group of major countries said to be on the rise both economically and politically
Argentinian Geographic Benefits I
foundation for its potential lies in the 19th century with military victories over Brazil & Paraguay
which resulted in control of the flat agricultural regions of the
Rio de la Plata
the navigable river system which led the commerce flow towards Buenos Aires and its port. > Amongst the most valuable pieces of real estate of the continent leading to Economic and strategic advantage
Argentina History
a hundred years ago it was amongst the 10 richest countries of the world. before france and italy
Failure of diversity, a stratified and undair society, poor education system, succession of coup d’etat and wildly differing economic policies in the democratic period of the last 30 years saw a sharp decline in its status.
Argentinian Geographic Benefits II
The dead cow, vaca muerta
for shale producd energy
is a shale formation which combined with the country’s other shale areas could provide Argentinas energy needs for the next 150 years with excess to export
situated in Patagonia and the size of Belgium
Current Columbian President
Ivan Duque Marquez since August 2018
Current Argentinian President
Mauricio Macri since 2015
1st Columbian President
Simon Bolivar
