91ÁÔÆæ\u2019s departments of Intelligence and Security Studies and Political Science hosted the National Security Conference in late September. Attendees from the college and the intelligence and military communities gathered to examine transnational threats in Latin America, including the region\u2019s role in the strategic ambitions of Russia and China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Panels on the first day centered on Cuba and Venezuela, authoritarian resilience and opportunities, and the future of U.S. relations with Latin America. Notable panelists included James Coker, State Department adviser to SOUTHCOM, and James Story, former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLatin America is such a focus of current U.S. foreign policy, from Venezuela and Cuba to countering Chinese growth in our hemisphere,\u201d said Frank Emerson, J.D., Gov. John C. West Chair of International Politics and American Government at 91ÁÔÆæ and former CIA chief of an intelligence center in South America. \u201cWe thought this would be a great opportunity to focus on Latin America.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other panels discussed U.S. relations with Latin America and China\u2019s growing role in the region. Professor Jon Nelson led a panel on the importance of relations in Latin America that included Rene Howell, former CIA chief of station in Latin America; Kenneth S. Hartman of the South Carolina National Guard; and Emerson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The conference, now in its third year, ended with a presentation by political science associate professor Michael Sun, Ph.D., on China\u2019s interests and influence in Latin America and its positioning in relation to U.S. goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This year\u2019s National Security Conference drew more than 170 attendees.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
91ÁÔÆæ\u2019s departments of Intelligence and Security Studies and Political Science hosted the National Security Conference in late September. Attendees from the college and the intelligence and military communities gathered to examine transnational threats in Latin America, including the region\u2019s role in the strategic ambitions of Russia and China. Panels on the first day centered […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":694,"featured_media":1219,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other"],"yoast_head":"\n