The Shield of the Americas: More Security or Less Sovereignty

On March 7, 2026, during a summit held at Trump National Doral, Miami, the United States government formally presented the Shield of the Americas: a multinational coalition aimed at coordinating the fight against drug trafficking, transnational organized crime, and irregular migration in the Western Hemisphere. Since then, the initiative has gained progressive adherence Argentina, Costa Rica, Colombia, and Peru, among others and has sparked a debate that runs through foreign ministries, congresses, and think tanks across the region. That debate is not new. It is, at bottom, a contemporary variation of a tension that runs through two centuries of inter-American relations: how to cooperate with a hegemonic power without diluting the capacity to decide one’s own destiny. This document gathers and contrasts the main arguments that have been put forward for and against the Shield, with the aim of offering a balanced and rigorous reading of its implications.