Latin America: Perspective from Peru on Politics and Economics | Battlegrounds w/ H.R. McMaster

In this episode of Battlegrounds, H.R. McMaster and Julio Guzmán discuss Peruvian politics, increasing Chinese influence in Latin America, and political, security, and economic trends in the region.

Insights from a Peruvian policy scholar and practitioner shed light on political and economic trends in Latin America. Drawing on his experiences in the Peruvian government and as a presidential candidate, Dr. Julio Guzmán joins Hoover senior fellow H.R. McMaster to discuss Peruvian politics and instability, trends in Latin American politics and leadership, and the benefits and drawbacks to foreign investment in the region.

H.R. McMaster in conversation with Julio Guzmán, Former Secretary General of the Office of the Prime Minister, on Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Dr. Julio Guzmán is a Peruvian politician, founding president of the centrist political party Partido Morado, and a presidential candidate in 2016 and 2021. He served in government as secretary general of the Office of the Prime Minister and Vice Minister of Micro and Small Enterprises. Previously, Dr. Guzmán worked as trade economist at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington, DC. He holds a PhD in public policy from the University of Maryland and a master’s degree in public policy from Georgetown University. He has taught at Princeton University, the University of Maryland, and Georgetown University. He is a fellow at Yale and Stanford universities and joined the National Endowment of Democracy as a fellow in 2022. His current research focuses on the effects of China’s influence in Latin America on the economy, democracy, and the rule of law. He has published in Foreign Affairs magazine and briefed the US Congress and US State Department on China–Latin American relations.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

ABOUT THE SERIES

Battlegrounds provides a needed forum with leaders from key countries to share their assessment of problem sets and opportunities that have implications for U.S. foreign policy and national security strategy. Each episode features H.R. McMaster in a one-on-one conversation with a senior foreign government leader to allow Americans and partners abroad to understand how the past produced the present and how we might work together to secure a peaceful and prosperous future. “Listening and learning from those who have deep knowledge of our most crucial challenges is the first step in crafting the policies we need to secure peace and prosperity for future generations.”

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00:00 Introduction
05:16 Recent Peruvian history
14:09 What are the current politics of the Latin-American region more broadly?
20:44 Economic climate of Latin America: Democratic Depression?
26:40 What is the trajectory of China’s influence in the region?
32:33 What would be the impact of Chinese aggression in Taiwan on the region?
38:30 What is the Pacific Alliance and why is it important?
43:35 Predictions on important political milestones in the region
50:00 What can be done to improve education in the region?