"Monroe Doctrine 2.0: The Donroe Doctrine"
by Nick Giambruno
"History shows that borders are often redrawn when global power structures shift. This could happen across Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and East Asia - and possibly even in the Western Hemisphere. Trump has made no secret of his desire to incorporate Canada, Greenland, and Panama into the US. In the emerging multipolar world order, Washington’s top priority is to secure its own perimeter.
Protected by two oceans, the Western Hemisphere gives the US a natural defensive advantage. Other great powers can’t directly threaten the US, but if they gain a foothold in Central or South America, that changes the equation. That’s why Washington is determined to keep Russia and China out of the Western Hemisphere. However, for over two decades, the US government has been consumed with the so-called "War on Terror," which has absorbed much of its bandwidth and diverted attention from other regions.
As a result, the US has neglected the Western Hemisphere in global geopolitics - to its detriment. China has capitalized on this distraction and made major inroads. In short, the most significant geopolitical development in the Americas over the past 20 years has been China’s expanding footprint. China has made major inroads across the Western Hemisphere while the US was preoccupied with conflicts in the Middle East. Today, China has become the largest trading partner of the region, and with trade comes political and military influence.
Across the board, the US is losing Central and South America to China - a situation that Washington finds unacceptable. Washington sees Beijing’s growing influence as a direct threat. Through projects under China’s Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing has poured billions into ports, telecommunications, and infrastructure across South and Central America - investments that come with strategic leverage. Dual-use infrastructure, such as deep-water ports, could eventually host military vessels as well as commercial shipping.
There is now a concerted effort by the US to roll back China’s inroads. Trump’s response has been a 21st-century revival of the Monroe Doctrine - what some have dubbed "Monroe 2.0" or the "Donroe Doctrine." The White House has framed these moves as protecting US independence from "expansionist foreign powers," echoing James Monroe’s 19th-century warning. This time, the focus isn’t on keeping European powers out of the Western Hemisphere, but on countering Chinese influence first - and Russian influence second.
The US aims to minimize Chinese influence using financial pressure, trade leverage, and military force. At the heart of this strategy is the idea that controlling the Western Hemisphere is essential to preserving American strength in a multipolar world. By consolidating influence close to home, the US can afford to scale back its global policing role while still safeguarding its industrial base, energy supply, and critical resources. In short, Trump seems to be reverting to what has long been America’s historic foreign policy, even before it became a great geopolitical power.
However, this renewed hemispheric assertiveness carries risks. Many in Latin America view the return of Monroe-style rhetoric as a revival of old imperial habits. Invoking the Monroe Doctrine could easily backfire, alienating regional partners and driving them closer to China, which offers loans and trade deals with no political strings attached. Even so, Washington appears willing to take that gamble. The Pentagon’s recent National Defense Strategy prioritizes homeland defense and Latin America, signaling that the US military and diplomatic focus is shifting firmly toward the Western Hemisphere.
What is clear is that Washington’s strategy has changed—from global policeman to regional gatekeeper. In Trump’s multipolar vision, the Western Hemisphere is not just America’s backyard—it is its fortress. Eventually, the US and China must agree on the boundaries of their respective spheres of influence - but that doesn't seem imminent. Therefore, the geopolitical competition between Washington, Beijing, and Moscow in Latin America - and beyond - is set to continue.
As Power Realigns Abroad, a Monetary Storm Builds at Home: As the US reasserts its dominance in the Western Hemisphere and attempts to freeze China out of the Americas, it’s easy to focus solely on the geopolitical maneuvering. But beneath this contest for influence lies a far more consequential struggle - one that will ultimately shape the future of every household and investor far more than shifting borders or diplomatic realignments.
Great-power politics always reflects underlying economic realities. Empires rise and fall not just because of armies and alliances, but because of monetary strength, fiscal health, and the confidence the world places in their currency. And while Washington is projecting power abroad, the financial foundations that support that power are being quietly eroded at home.
Debt is exploding. Money creation has spiraled beyond historical precedent. Inflation has become structural rather than cyclical. And nations around the world - especially the very regions the US is trying to hold onto - are accelerating moves away from the dollar. The monetary system that underpinned American dominance for nearly a century is straining under pressures it was never designed to withstand.
That’s why the geopolitical struggle unfolding across the Western Hemisphere is inseparable from the monetary reset now taking shape beneath the surface. One is the visible contest for influence; the other is the hidden contest for control of the global financial system - and the second will ultimately determine the outcome of the first."
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