R. Evan Ellis

Expertise: Latin American Studies with a focus on the region’s relationships with China and other non-Western Hemisphere actors.

Dr. Evan Ellis is a research professor of Latin American Studies at the U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute with a focus on the region’s relationships with China and other non-Western Hemisphere actors.

Dr. Ellis has published over 130 works, including the 2009 book China in Latin America: The Whats and Wherefores, the 2013 book The Strategic Dimension of Chinese Engagement with Latin America, and the 2014 book, China on the Ground in Latin America.

Dr. Ellis has presented his work in a broad range of business and government forums in 25 countries. He has given testimony on Chinese activities in Latin America to the US Congress on multiple occasions, and has discussed his work regarding China and other external actors in the region on a broad range of radio and television fora, including CNN International, CNN En Español, The John Bachelor Show, Voice of America, and Radio Marti.  His work on the subject is cited regularly in the print media in the U.S. and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Dr. Ellis holds a PhD in political science with a specialization in comparative politics.

April 20, 2022

The Struggle for the Soul of the Latin American Left

This report argues that the struggle between democratic elements and authoritarian populist elements of the increasingly dominant but diverse Latin American left will define the future of the region, with significant implications for the US.

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April 17, 2022

The Risks of Chinese Engagement in the Americas

This short work gives particular attention the increasing PRC presence in the digital economy and its technologies, as well as providing recommendations for US policymakers.

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March 03, 2022

Lessons from Russia's Latin America engagement over Ukraine

Russia’s engagement with Latin America after its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and the Latin American response to the invasion, illustrates the growing strategic challenge to the U.S. from the survival and proliferation of populist authoritarian regimes in the Western Hemisphere.

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October 13, 2022

Toward a Strategy for Responding to the PRC in Latin America

The work argues that the problem is not the “lack of a strategy,” but ensuring that the strategies that we apply are appropriate, adequately resourced and coordinated, and the tools we use are up to the task. In addition to concisely stating the nature of the risks to the US and the region arising from some dimensions of PRC engagement, the recommendations advanced by the work include: (1) holding the line for Western corporations, strategic technologies and liberal institutions, (2) helping our partners to strengthen their institutions to get a better deal from their work with the PRC and other actors; (3) fixing, rightsizing and better coordinating our institutional tools for competing, (4) improving our data supported messaging, and (5) advancing clear new strategic concepts for the military as part of a whole of government response, coordinate with our likeminded allies.

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Expert Information

Expertise

Latin American Studies with a focus on the region’s relationships with China and other non-Western Hemisphere actors.

Location

Washington D.C.

Experience

Current Experience

research professor of Latin American Studies at the U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute

Past Experience

  • Non-Resident Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and International Studies
  • Associate Professor, William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies
  • Adjunct Professor, University of Miami
  • Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton

Education

  • PhD, Political Science, Purdue University