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After the large-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the sanctions imposed on Russia led it to shift its focus. Today, the Kremlin looks less and less toward Western Europe and increasingly toward other regions, where it has strengthened its presence through various forms of pressure. In this context of growing global polarization, significant sectors of Latin America are susceptible to becoming long-term dependent on raw materials and technologies from Russia. This economic-productive dependence leads to greater political influence.
For over a year, CADAL tracked and analyzed the mechanisms Russia has used to establish influence in Argentina over the past decades and which sectors have proven most vulnerable. It has also examined how this process has evolved, from the numerous agreements and treaties signed during the presidency of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner to current President Javier Milei’s refusal to join BRICS, an organization in which Russia is a member, including Mauricio Macri’s meetings with Vladimir Putin and Alberto Fernández’s administration, where he became the first Latin American leader to receive the Russian Sputnik V vaccine.
This research has become part of the "Global Reach: The Kremlin’s Playbook in Latin America" report, available here and published by the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD), a think tank founded in 1989 and based in Sofia, Bulgaria. It is the first comprehensive report and full evaluation of Russia’s economic and political influence in Latin America and the Caribbean, it compiles Moscow’s general strategies in the region, with a particular focus on Venezuela, Bolivia, Brazil, Panama, and Argentina, countries identified as increasingly vulnerable to foreign authoritarian coercion.
Fifteen individuals participated in this project, along with organizations like the Milenio Foundation from Bolivia and Gobierno y Análisis Político AC (GAPAC) from Mexico. Additionally, members from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil; the U.S. Department of State; the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) in Washington D.C.; and the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) in Helsinki, among others, contributed to the project. In the case of CADAL, the investigation was in charge of its advisory counsel Ignacio E. Hutin.
The most vulnerable sectors identified include defense, transportation, pharmaceuticals, and energy, considering oil in Venezuela and gas in Bolivia, but also nuclear reactors in Argentina, Mexico, and Brazil, where Russia has shown interest in providing technology. Russia’s participation in the agricultural market is also highlighted, particularly in the sale of fertilizers to Brazil, the world’s largest importer of this product. Panama’s role as a legal base for Russian companies aiming to avoid sanctions is also relevant.
Beyond investments and general commercial ties, the report also highlights the recruitment of elites and the imposition of pro-Russian narratives through media outlets, journalists, organizations, informal networks, and heavy use of social media.
The report is highly relevant in the current context and will be of great use to academics, students, NGOs, policy makers, and the general public.
