Friday Reading List - 20 February 2026
What's your over/under for how many more presidents Peru has before Daniel Ortega leaves power?
Good morning from a rainy Vienna, VA.
This week’s articles and newsletters
WPR - Venezuela’s Governance Is What Makes Its Oil Industry ‘Uninvestable’
Monday - How old are the presidents of Latin America? - The map is already out of date. Thanks, Peru!
Tuesday - Five ways AI impacts geopolitical risk in Latin America
Wednesday - Secret talks to promote regime change in Cuba; open attempts to prevent regime change in Peru
Thursday - Peru has another new president
I’m speaking on a panel at a Johns Hopkins SAIS event in DC next Thursday. Event info is here.
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Reading List
Bloomberg - Latin America’s Munich No-Show Was a Big Mistake
Bloomberg - Trump’s Caribbean Surge Nears $3 Billion Price Tag So Far
WOLA - The “Boat Strikes” Are Still Happening. Five Things You Need to Know.
InSight Crime - US Sanctions in Latin America Have Increased. But Can They Be Enforced?
Bloomberg - Tequila Capital Seeks to Curb Extortion After Alleged Shakedown
The Guardian - Disappearances in Mexico Surge by 200% Over 10 Years
México Evalúa - Propuestas para la paz: análisis de los datos de violencia en México
Bloomberg - Mexico’s Fuel-Smuggling Crackdown Hobbles Nation’s Auto Industry
LaPatilla - La Fiscalía de EEUU acusa a Maduro de vender pasaportes diplomáticos a narcos en México
Bloomberg - Mexico Can Call Trump’s Bluff on Trade
New York Times - Trump Pressures Canada and Mexico Over USMCA Trade Pact
Bloomberg - Mexico’s Cuba Obsession Puts Its President in a Bind With Trump
MXPE - The battle for Mexico’s mobile phone future
Financial Times - The Crypto-Loving Billionaire and the $400mn ‘Perfect Fraud’
The Economist - The Battle to Save South America’s Skull-Crushing Big Cat
Vox - Brazil’s Democracy Under Trump and Bolsonaro
Bloomberg - Brazilians Scour Florida for Art, Mansion Tied to Fallen CEO
La Silla Vacía - Delcy Rodríguez les dio contratos petroleros a empresarios del círculo de Petro
Bloomberg - Colombian Candidates Retreat as Violence Shakes 2026 Election
Caballeros - The Hessians of Latin America - On Colombian mercenaries
Extra - Perú entra al club más exclusivo de EE.UU. y compra F-16
Economist - Peru ousts a president under the shadow of Chinese meddling
World Politics Review - The Western Hemisphere’s Most Polarizing Bromance - Milei and Trump
Al Jazeera - In Argentina, Locals Are Taking Loans to Buy Food
AP News - Nationwide Union Strike in Argentina Tests Milei’s Flagship Labor Overhaul
Prensa Libre - Arévalo declara estado de prevención y lanza el Plan Centinela Metropolitano
El Faro - How Bukele Bankrolls His MAGA Lobby
Crashout Media - Four Years of Bukele’s Gang Crackdown
ProPublica - Amid Mass ICE Arrests, Trump Pardon Recipient Juan Orlando Hernández Given Special Treatment
The Economist - Nicaragua Has So Far Dodged the Fate of Cuba and Venezuela
Journal of Democracy - What Nicaragua Teaches Us About Saving Venezuela’s Democracy
Artículo 66 - Nicaragüense deportado de Estados Unidos es encarcelado por la dictadura de Ortega
La Prensa - U.S. Senate Bill Takes Aim at Illegal Gold Networks, Puts Nicaragua Under Sanctions Spotlight
Sulaco Times - Six Panama Stories for 2026
AP - Inside the Bribery Plot That Led to a DEA Supervisor’s Downfall in the Dominican Republic
Bloomberg - Rubio Says Cuba’s Only Path Forward Is to Open Its Economy
Bloomberg - Much of Cuba Goes Dark as Trump Chokes Oil Supply
Financial Times - The Private Sector Elite Enjoying Steak Through Cuba’s Crisis
New York Times - A New U.S. Blockade Is Strangling Cuba
Americas Quarterly - Canada’s Alternative to Trump’s Doctrine for the Americas
Politico - Trump’s Ultimatum for Latin America: It’s Me or Xi
Wall Street Journal - Woke AI Spat Escalates Between Pentagon and Anthropic
Sports Illustrated - Multiple Cubs Players Miss Camp Arrival Due to Visa Issues
PWS - Why the Pope declared war on capybaras
Venezuela stuff
Caracas Chronicles - Key Stress Points Over Venezuela’s Local Management
Atlantic Council - Venezuela’s public opinion in the post-Maduro era - Poll results are available on the page
The Guardian - ‘Big Step Forwards’: Emboldened Activists Take to the Streets of Venezuela
Wall Street Journal - Venezuela’s Feared Regime of Repression Is Slowly Loosening Its Grip
BBC - Under pressure from Trump, Venezuela’s new president has aces up her sleeve
Financial Times - Venezuelans Optimistic After US Intervention, Poll Finds
New York Times - Venezuela’s Natural Gas, Not Oil, Might Be a Big Early Prize
Lawfare - What Will It Take to Rebuild the Government in Post-Maduro Venezuela?
Luis Carlos Díaz - 10 formas de ponerle fin a la dictadura en Venezuela
BBC - Trump Eyes Venezuela Visit – but Obstacles to His Oil Plan Remain
Bloomberg - Venezuela’s Cisneros to Raise $1 Billion for Reconstruction Fund
Reuters - Oil Companies Jostle for Projects to Boost Venezuelan Output Quickly, but Real Grind Awaits
New York Times - Venezuela Passes Amnesty Bill Denounced by Some as ‘Unjust’
David Smolansky on Twitter - Después de inventarte un delito, te perdono...
Politico - My Family Helped Build Venezuela’s Oil State. Now I’m Reckoning With It.
Thanks for reading
Today’s Friday Reading List was compiled using a different process than usual. I don’t know if readers noticed any difference in formatting or article selection, but I disliked it. I’ll try something different again next week.
Have a good weekend!