Quito with el Pinchincha and el Panecillo in the background
Person in dimly lit restaurant sitting at a table with a cup and a dish.

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RealClearWorld

To Beat China, Latin America Should Consider Dollarization

Selected Defense & Strategic Writing

  • Rolled U.S. hundred-dollar bill on a world map background.

    Forthcoming

    Article: Ecuador’s Dollarization at 25: Latin America’s Monetary “Other Path”

  • Agile Acquisition Now: Lessons from Ukraine

    Proceedings

    Article: Agile Acquisition Now: Lessons from Ukraine


    Read
  • Three men standing in front of a Panama Canal building. One is wearing a suit, another is in casual clothes with a cap, and the third is in military uniform. The background features a sign with "Canal de Panamá" and a star logo.

    The Hill

    Op-ed: A Monroe Doctrine for the 21st century 


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  • A person in military camo gear inside a helicopter, observing a 3D printer secured to the floor.

    Seapower Magazine

    Article: How Marines are 3D Printing Lethality Behind Enemy Lines

    Co-authored with Col. Paul Gillikin and CWO3 Matthew Pine, USMC

    Read

  • Seapower Magazine

    Article: Reimagining the Monroe Doctrine Amid Great Power Competition

    Read
  • Article: Force Design 2030: Acquisition for the Future Battlefield

    Seapower Magazine

    Article: Force Design 2030: Acquisition for the Future Battlefield

    Read
  • Cover of SEAPOWER magazine with a silhouette of a soldier using binoculars on a ship, sunset in the background. The headline reads 'Is a New Monroe Doctrine Needed?' with additional articles mentioned. Issue number 24, February/March 2025 edition.
  • Magazine page discussing the Monroe Doctrine with an article by Johannes Schmidt, including a photo of two military personnel in combat gear. The text addresses geopolitical challenges posed by countries like Russia, Iran, and China in Latin America, emphasizing U.S. strategic interests. The image caption relates to a U.S. Marine during an exercise in Chile, September 2024.
  • Magazine article page discussing Russia and China's influence in Latin America and the Caribbean. The article highlights Russia’s military involvement with Venezuela and other countries, while detailing China's economic strategies and military ties in the region. A quote at the bottom emphasizes growing concern over U.S. influence loss. Published in SeaPower Magazine, February/March 2025.
  • Magazine article discussing Iran's involvement in Latin America and the impact on U.S. interests, featuring the 21st-century Monroe Doctrine and NATO operations in the Americas. Includes a photo caption referencing Chilean and U.S. naval officers.
  • Military personnel and exercises in Chile with related article text in Seapower magazine, Feb/Mar 2025 edition.

“Lo último”

A Cooperative Monroe Doctrine?

“The era of capitulating to coercion by the Communist Chinese is over.

Their growing and adversarial control of strategic land and critical infrastructure in this hemisphere cannot and will not stand. To accomplish this, our countries cannot face these shared threats alone. We have to face them together. America will confront, will deter and, if necessary, defeat these threats alongside all of you, our close and valued partners. To put America first, we will put the Americas first.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, opening remarks at the 2025 Central American Security Conference, Panama City, April 9, 2025.

The Dollar Under Siege

“The trade in local currencies is already underway, for example, between Brazil and China.” - Tatiana Rosito, Secretary for International Affairs at Brazil's Ministry of Finance

In April 2025, Fundación Andrés Bello’s China–Latin America Research Center highlighted reports that Brazil and China will trade in local currencies to reduce dollar reliance. Amid China-U.S. tensions, Brazil backs the shift to boost trade, cut costs, and support BRICS goals via the New Development Bank. The move signals growing momentum in Latin America toward financial diversification. It also underscores BRICS efforts to reshape the global economic order.

Learn more.

Caputo Pushes Argentines to Unstash Their Dollars

On May 5, 2025, Argentina’s Economy Minister Luis Caputo signaled plans to encourage Argentines to spend the dollars they’ve long kept hidden “under the mattress” out of fear of investigation, a legacy of the 2001 banking crisis. In an interview, Caputo said the country needs dollars to circulate to boost jobs and wages, especially since the government has stopped printing pesos. While he didn’t give details, he hinted at upcoming deregulations that would let people spend freely without scrutiny, aiming to spur loans, purchases, and economic activity without adding pesos to the money supply.

Ecuador's President Pushes to Cement Dollar Supremacy

On March 18, 2025, Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa issued an executive order reaffirming the U.S. dollar as the country’s sole currency, aiming to preserve the stability gained since dollarization began in 2000. The decree comes amid debate over new currency proposals like the “ecuadollar” and directs Congress to block the Central Bank from issuing alternative currencies.

According to the central bank of Ecuador, dollarization has “generated monetary and financial stability despite the external shocks that have affected the country over the last two decades,”

Learn more.