Paper: GS – III, Subject: International Relations, Topic: Global Issue, Issue: Donroe Doctrine.
Context:
Recent US actions and rhetoric towards Venezuela and Latin America reflect the emergence of a new strategic doctrine termed the “Donroe Doctrine” blending the Monroe Doctrine (1823) with Donald Trump’s 21st-century worldview, signalling a sharper, more explicit assertion of American power.
Key Highlights:
What is the “Donroe Doctrine”?
The Donroe Doctrine represents a shift from indirect influence to explicit guardianship by the US over the Western Hemisphere.
Key Elements of the “Donroe Doctrine”: three key elements:
- Reassertion of a Sphere of Influence:
- The Western Hemisphere is treated as a privileged security space where external actors are viewed as intruders.
- Latin America is considered “our neighborhood,” and external engagement is seen as a trespass.
- Securitization:
- Issues like migration, narcotics, organized crime, and energy volatility are reframed as national security threats.
- This allows for the use of coercive tools and blurs the lines between domestic governance in another state and US internal security.
- Diplomacy and development are replaced by homeland protection.
- Shift in Normative Language:
- Democracy promotion is no longer central.
- Stability, predictability, and control take precedence.
- This operationalizes the US National Security Strategy, focusing on competition with major powers, control of strategic resources, and management of instability close to home.
Implications for the International Order:
The “Donroe Doctrine” has serious implications for the international order:
- Normalization of Spheres of Influence:
- If major powers insist on special rights in their neighborhoods, the framework of sovereign equality is weakened everywhere.
- Legitimacy:
- Latin America has a long history of external intervention and regime change.
- Any contemporary experiment in guardianship will be interpreted through that history.
- Force can alter governments, but it rarely manufactures consent.
- Precedent:
- Once accepted in one region, doctrines of supervision travel.
- Other powers will claim analogous rights in their own vicinity.
Venezuela’s Energy Dimension:
Venezuela’s energy dimension intensifies the stakes:
- The country holds one of the world’s largest proven oil reserves.
- US officials have spoken of a major role for American energy companies in revitalizing its oil sector.
- This reinforces the charge of resource imperialism.
- The humanitarian burden is already immense, with one of the largest displacement crises in recent history reshaping politics far beyond Venezuela’s borders.
- External stewardship may deepen internal polarization if it is perceived as imposed rather than owned.
Implications for International Law:
International law is directly implicated:
- Military action and external oversight of governance strain core principles of sovereign equality, non-intervention, and the prohibition on the use of force.
- The UN Charter limits the use of force to self-defense or collective action authorized by the Security Council.
The Donroe Doctrine signals a return to explicit spheres of influence and managed sovereignty. While it may offer short-term control, it risks eroding international law, legitimacy, and global stability posing complex challenges for countries like India that seek both partnership and autonomy.
Source: (The Indian Express)
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