Latin America Roundtable

Director: Julia E. Sweig, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies and Director for Latin America Studies
October 1, 1999 - December 31, 2009

The Latin America Roundtable provides updates on breaking economic and political events in Latin America. The seminars are designed to provide prompt, thoughtful analysis of rapidly changing political and economic developments in the region. Although the seminars may be treated as discrete topics, taken together, the series provides a broad overview and a comparative perspective on the major issues, events, and debates in the Americas. Seminars have examined prospects for Colombia's future; the Chávez regime in Venezuela; Argentinean presidential elections; the politics of Mexican economic and political transition; Latin America's response to the global economic crisis; and the problems of development and regional integration in the Caribbean.

The roundtable also expanded its activities in Washington, D.C., to examine such topics as the consolidation of democracy, U.S.-Latin American relations, and a country focus on Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico and Cuba.

This roundtable is made possible by the generous support of the Ford Foundation.

Meetings

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ Washington, DC

Latin America Roundtable: Brazilian National Security and Defense Strategy

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig

Speaker:

Sergio W. Etchegoyen, Special Adviser to the Minister of State for Defense, Federative Republic of Brazil
September 17, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ Washington

Latin America Roundtable: Expansion of the Panama Canal - Implications for Trade and Security

Speaker:

Samuel Lewis Navarro, Vice President of Panama

Presider:

Stephen Donehoo, Kissinger McLarty Associates
May 19, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Latin America Roundtable: Energy in the Western Hemisphere

Speaker:

Sidney Weintraub, Center for Strategic and International Studies

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig, Council on Foreign Relations
April 10, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

View All Meetings

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Latin America Roundtable: Race and Inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean

Speaker:

Epsy Campbell Barr, Legislator, Costa Rican National Assembly

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies and Director for Latin America Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
March 23, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Latin America Roundtable: Latin America's Horizon with Arturo Valenzuela

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Latin America Studies and Director of Latin America Studies, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Arturo A. Valenzuela, Georgetown University, Pat Maher, National Intelligence Council
November 1, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Latin America Roundtable: Justice in Latin America

Speakers:

Judge Juan Guzman, U. Centro de Chile, Jose Miguel Vivanco, Human Rights Watch

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig, Council on Foreign Relations
October 24, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Latin America Roundtable: Latin America Round Up Discussion

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig, Council on Foreign Relations
October 11, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Brazil: The Political and Economic Challneges Facing the President Elect and Implications for U.S. Policy in Latin America

Presider:

Eli Whitney Debevoise, Arnold and Porter

Speakers:

Walter Molano, BCP Securities, Kenneth R. Maxwell, Council on Foreign Relations
October 30, 2002

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The Crisis in Argentina

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speakers:

Rosendo Fraga, Centro de Estudios Union para la Nueva Mayoria, Felipe de la Balze, Consejo Argentino para las Relaciones Internacionales, Mark Falcoff, American Entreprise Institute for Public Policy
March 25, 2002

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The Middle East and South America: Is There a Terrorist Connection?

Speaker:

Alberto R. Coll, Naval War College
March 14, 2002

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Cuba

Presider:

Julia E. Sweig

Speakers:

Piero Gleijeses, Johns Hopkins University, School for Advanced International Studies, William LeoGrande, American University
February 28, 2002

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Where Geography Is Not Destiny: The Wider Caribbean in the 21st Century

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Victor Bulmer, Director, Royal Institute of International Affairs
October 30, 2001

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

America’s Response to Terrorism: Cooperation and Tension in the Transatlantic Relationship—Which Force will Prove Stronger?

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Victor Bulmer, Director, Royal Institute of International Affairs
October 30, 2001

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

A Conversation with Lincoln Gordon

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Ambassador Lincoln Gordon
May 30, 2001

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Dinner with Governor Tasso Jereissati of Brazil

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Tasso Jereissati
January 22, 2001

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The Politics of Mexican Economic and Political Transition

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Luis Rubio, Director, Center of Research for Development (CIDAC)
December 10, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Argentina: Economic and Political Prospects in a Post-Menem Era

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Rosendo Fraga, Executive Director, Centro de Estudios Unión para la Nueva Mayoría, Felipe de la Balze, Centro Argentino para las Relaciones Internacionales (CARI)
December 9, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Presidential Election Series: PAN Presidential Candidate

Speaker:

Vicente Fox, PAN Presidential Candidate, PAN
December 2, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Mexico's Presidential Succession: Implications of the Recent Primary Elections

Speaker:

Wayne A. Cornelius, Professor, Princeton and University of California, San Diego
November 18, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Religion in Latin America

Speaker:

Carlos Manuel De Cespedes, Monsignor
November 3, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Update on Colombia (October 1999)

Speaker:

Michael Shifter, Inter-American Dialogue
October 27, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Political, Constitutional, Economic, and Regional Implications of the Current Venezuelan Reform Process

Presider:

Elliott Abrams

Speakers:

Moises Naím, Editor, Foreign Policy Magazine, Terry Karl, Director, Center for Latin American Development Studies, Stanford University, David Myers, Professor of Political Science, Pennsylvania State Unviersity, Ricardo Hausmann, Chief Economist, International American Development Bank
June 29, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

I. Introduction

Speakers:

Robert Graham, Member, U.S. Senate (D-Flor.), Angel Corcostegui, United States-Spain Council, Thomas F. McLarty III, McLarty International, Kenneth R. Maxwell
June 21, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

II. Perspectives on the Brazilian Economy

Speaker:

Pedro Sãmpaio Malan, Minister of Finance, Brazil
June 21, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

III. Integration of Capital Markets

Speakers:

Richard Grasso, Former Chairman, New York Stock Exchange, Antonio Zoida, Madrid Stock Exchange, Alfredo Rizkallah, São Paolo Stock Exchange, Richard Syron, American Stock Exchange
June 21, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

IV. Credit Market Integration

Speakers:

Angel Corcostegui, Secretary of Finance and Public Credit, Citigroup, William R. Rhodes, Mexico, Guillermo Ortiz, Banco Bilbao-Viscaya, Juan Palacios
June 21, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

The Regional Relevance of the Organization of American States

Presider:

George A. Dalley, Partner, Holland & Knight

Speaker:

Cesar Gaviria, Secretary-General, Organization of American States
June 17, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

USAID in Latin America: Priorities for Democratic Consolidation

Presider:

Tara D. Sonenshine, Senior Adviser, U.S. Institute of Peace

Speaker:

Mark Schneider, Assistant Administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean, U.S. Agency for International Development
June 14, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

II. The Challenges of Mercosur Beyond the Year 2000

Speaker:

Felix Pena, Ministry of Economy, Public Works, and Services, Argentina
June 11, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

III. Europe and the United States in the External Agenda of Mercosur

Commentators:

Paolo Wrobel, The Royal Institute of International Affairs, London, Andrea Stochhiero, Istituto di Affari Internazionale, Rome

Panelist:

Renate Rennie

Speaker:

Roberto Bouzas, Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales
June 11, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

I. Welcome.

Speakers:

Martha T. Muse, Institute for European-Latin American Relations (IRELA), Madrid, Kenneth R. Maxwell, Wolf Grobendorff
June 11, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

IV. Mercosur from a European Perspective

Commentators:

Aldo Ferrer, Univeristy of Buenos Aires, Clodoaldo Hugueney, Ambassador of Brazil to the European Union

Panelist:

Wolfgang Wessels

Speaker:

Victor Bulmer, Institute for Latin American Studies (ILAS), London
June 11, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

V. U.S. Policy Options on Mercosur

Commentators:

Wolf Grobendorff, Ministry of Economy, Public Works, and Services, Argentina, Felix Pena

Panelist:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Riordan Roett
June 11, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Conference Panel Session

VI. Conclusions

Panelist:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Albert Fishlow
June 11, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

Venezuela's New Agenda

Presider:

George W. Landau, former U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela

Speaker:

Hugo Chavez Frias, President, Venezuela
June 9, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Is the Worst Really Over? Latin America and the Global Economy

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Inter-American Studies, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Stephen Fidler, U.S. Diplomatic Editor, The Financial Times, Robert D. Hormats, Vice Chairman, Goldman Sachs International, Francisco Gros, Chairman, Morgan Stanley Latin America, Arturo C. Porzecanski, Managing Director and Americas Chief Economist, ING Barings, Joyce Chang, Managing Director, International Emerging Markets, Merrill Lynch & Co.
May 26, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The New Book Series: Chocolate, Piratas e Outros Malandros and A Construcao da Democracia em Portugal

Commentators:

Jeremy Adelman, Princeton University, Daniel Piza, Gazeta Mercantil, Sao Paolo

Presider:

Susan Kaufman Purcell, Council of the Americas

Speaker:

Kenneth R. Maxwell
May 25, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The View from the Venezuelan Business Community

Presider:

Elliott Abrams

Speakers:

Pedro Palma, Heptagon, Antonio Herrera, Venezuelan-American Chamber of Commerce, Jorge Redmond, Chocolates El Rey/Venezuelan-American Chamber of Commerce
May 4, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Independent Task Force Meeting

Brazil: Edging Toward Recovery?

Presider:

Carla A. Hills, Chairman and C.E.O., Hills & Co.; former U.S. Trade Representative

Speaker:

Pedro Sãmpaio Malan, Minister of Finance, Brazil
April 29, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Toward a New Financial Architecture

Presider:

Daniel A. Sharp, Royal Institution World Science Assembly

Speaker:

Jose Antonio Ocampo, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Latin America and the Carribean (ECLAC)
April 15, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The Internal Armed Conflict and the Peace Process in Colombia

Presider:

Linda Robinson

Speakers:

Juan Manuel Santos, Journalist/Fundacion Buen Gobierno, Juan Manuel Santos, La Nota Economics, Bogota, Maria Teresa Ronderos, Journalist/Fundacion Buen Gobierno, Rafael Pardo
March 24, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

The Crisis in Brazil

Speakers:

Albert Fishlow, Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics, Council on Foreign Relations, Kenneth R. Maxwell, Nelson and David Rockefeller Senior Fellow for Inter-American Studies, Council on Foreign Relations, Henrique de Campos Meirelles, President and COO, BankBoston
March 4, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Democracy Through Latin American Lenses

Presider:

Marta B. Varela

Speaker:

Roderic Camp, Claremont McKenna College
February 26, 1999

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Religion and Society in Latin America: A Catholic Perspective

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speakers:

John Cardinal O'Connor, Archbishop of New York, Oscar A. Rodriguez, Metropolitan Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras/President, Latin American Council of Bishops
November 30, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

Mexico: Whither Its Global Race?

Presider:

Lynn de

Speaker:

Rosario Green, Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Mexico
September 25, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

Can Brazil Emerge as an International Leader?

Presider:

Arminio Fraga, Pacifico Universidade Catolica, Brazil

Speaker:

Luiz Felipe Lampreia, Minister of Foreign Relations, Brazil
September 24, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

Colombia: Prospects for Peace

Presider:

William R. Rhodes

Speaker:

Andres Pastrana, President, Colombia
September 23, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

A Conversation on Brazil

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Riordan Roett, The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, The Johns Hopkins University
September 20, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

A Conversation on Venezuela

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell
September 13, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Crossing the Border: Understanding Mexican-U.S. Migration

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speakers:

Jesus Reyes Heroles, Ambassador of Mexico to the United States, Sidney Weintraub, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Francisco Alba, Colegio de Mexico
April 23, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Toward a Mexican Fundamentalism

Presider:

Robert B. Silvers

Speaker:

Enrique Krauze, Editorial Clio
March 16, 1998

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Mexican Generals: Marching to a New Political Tune?

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Roderic Camp, Tulane University
December 2, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Mediating Democracy in the Americas

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Robert A. Pastor, The Carter Center
October 30, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Mercosur and the E.U.: A New Alliance

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Wolf Grobendorff, Institute for European-Latin American Relations (IRELA)
October 23, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Cardoso: The Causes and Limits of Personal Political Change

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Elio Gaspari, Political Columnist, Brazil
September 18, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Cuba and Religious Institutions in the Run-Up to the Papal Visit

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speakers:

Anthony M. Stevens, Program for the Analysis of Religion among Latinos (PARAL), Yolanda Prieto, Ramapo College, Gustavo Benavides, Villanova University
September 4, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Mexico: The PRI, the Electoral Reforms, and the Upcoming Elections

Presider:

Clint E. Smith

Speaker:

Humberto Roque Villanueva, Partido Revolucionario Institucional, Mexico
May 20, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Colombia, the United States, and Decertification

Presider:

Sergio J. Galvis

Speakers:

Juan Carlos Esguerra, Embassy of Colombia to the United States, Robert Gelbard, U.S. Department of State, Carlos Lleras de la Fuente, Fundacian Presencia, Alfonso Valdivieso, Office of the Prosecutor General, Colombia
February 18, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

U.S. Interests in Latin America and Emerging Trends

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

L. Ronald Scheman, International Development Bank
January 28, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Update on Brazil

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Alfred Stepan, Gladstone Professor of Government and Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford University
January 17, 1997

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

Update on the Mexican Economy

Presider:

E. Gerald Corrigan

Speaker:

Guillermo Ortiz, Secretary of Finance and Public Credit, Mexico
December 9, 1996

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Colombia: The Guerrillas, the Military, and Issues of Institutional Stability

Presider:

Kenneth R. Maxwell

Speaker:

Enrique Umana, Ministry of Defense, Colombia, formerly
November 21, 1996

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Update on Chile

Presider:

Juan C. Cappello

Speaker:

Pablo Halpern, Office of the Presidency, Chile
October 22, 1996

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Update on Venezuela

Presider:

Andrea Bonime
October 17, 1996

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Update on Mexico

Presider:

Susan Kaufman Purcell, Council of the Americas

Speaker:

Jose Angel Gurria Trevino, Foreign Ministry, Mexico
October 1, 1996

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Drugs and the U.S. Border

Presider:

Renate Rennie

Speaker:

Ana Arana, Journalist
September 10, 1996

This meeting is not for attribution.