LatAm: Fertile ground for Putin's foray
By Christian Molinari
Business News Americas:
Russian President Vladimir Putin is due
to step foot in Latin America on a tour of
a region that seems to be getting cozier with the Kremlin's courting.
The approach is in stark contrast to US President Barack
Obama's lukewarm advances, as Washington
has disregarded its southern neighbors in favor of the Asia Pacific and Middle East regions.
Add to that US
secretary of state John Kerry's end-2013 announcement that "the era of the
Monroe Doctrine is over" and you have a forsaken emerging market region,
parts of which may be ripe for Putin's picking.
The Russian leader's serenades may largely fall on deaf ears
in Latin America's western countries grouped under the
Pacific Alliance, which remain fairly aligned with the US, but other
traditionally left-leaning nations are eager for attention.
First stop on Putin's
itinerary, unsurprisingly, will be Cuba – a
staunch ally with whom the relationship has just been sweetened by the Russian
parliament's agreeing to write off 90% of the US$35bn in Cuban debt, which was
racked up in Soviet-era times. (All the more magnanimous considering that Russia's government is looking to tighten its
belt to offset Western sanctions as a result of the Ukraine
crisis.)
The debt forgiveness will speak volumes in the next stop on
Putin's tour: Argentina,
where President Cristina Fernández is currently measuring
her options in whether to negotiate with bond holdouts or face another debt
default.
Putin will then end his tour in Brazil
to participate in the BRICS
summit to be held there, while at the same time President Dilma Rousseff
will hand-off World Cup
hosting responsibilities to the leader of Russia, home of the 2018
tournament.
The tour comes on the heels of news proclaimed by Russia's defense minister, Sergei Shogu, that Moscow is looking to build military bases in a number of
countries, including Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua. Testing the waters, so
to speak, a Russian warship docked at a Havana
naval base a few days after the February announcement.
What's clear is that for better or worse, US
influence is waning in Latin America.
With a single focus on its strategic economic interests in
the region, China
has stepped in to fill part of that vacuum. The Asian giant, however, is
facing an economic slowdown of its own – and slower Chinese growth will
have significant implications for Latin America.
Coming into its own with a vast emerging middle class,
regional giant Brazil
is also taking a historic place on the Latin American stage. But the country
has been plagued by high
inflation and low
growth.
And struggling for position, the Kremlin is eager to take
advantage of economic opportunities in the region. Russia's big oil and gas
companies want a piece of the Latin American pie, getting involved
in Venezuela but also
looking into the famous Vaca
Muerta shale play.
Perhaps he will fall short in his goals of restoring the
defunct Soviet Union's reach and glory, but Putin's actions will at least serve
as a thorny, troublesome bush in 'Washington's backyard'.
July 08, 2014
