El Salvador

Mexico

United States

Venezuela

Economics

Politics

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Feb. 20 issued a statement confirming that the Trump administration designated eight transnational criminal groups as Specially Designated Global Terrorists, or SDGTs, in addition to their designations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, or FTOs, which Rubio announced on Feb. 19.

U.S., Latin America: Criminal Groups Designated as Specially Designated Global Terrorists

Military & Security

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a notice designating eight transnational criminal groups as foreign terrorist organizations, Reuters reported on Feb. 19. 

U.S., Latin America: U.S. Declares Eight Transnational Criminal Groups Foreign Terrorist Organizations

The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has increased drone flights over Mexico to surveil the area for cartel activities, including fentanyl labs, the New York Times reported Feb. 18, citing anonymous U.S. officials. 

U.S., Mexico: Reports of Increased U.S. Surveillance Flights Over Mexico

Colombia

The Trump administration reportedly plans to designate eight Latin American criminal groups as foreign terrorist organizations, though the list has not been made official yet, The New York Times reported on Feb. 13, citing five anonymous U.S. officials. 

U.S., Latin America: Report Indicates Eight Criminal Organizations To Be Designated as Terrorist Groups

Mexican authorities said the U.S. military aircraft and vessels reported near the Baja California peninsula were in areas designated for international transit and did not enter Mexico's territorial waters, La Jornada reported on Feb. 4.

Mexico, U.S.: U.S. Military Operations Unlikely to Trigger Diplomatic Crisis but Indicate Anti-Cartel Efforts

Canada

China

Europe

Energy

U.S. President Donald Trump said he would impose tariffs on a wide range of imports in the coming months, including steel, aluminum, copper, pharmaceuticals, oil, natural gas, and semiconductors, adding that oil and gas tariffs would likely begin by Feb. 18, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 31. 

U.S.: Trump Announces Tariffs on Chips, Metals, Oil and the European Union

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to announce by Feb. 1 that he will impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada starting March 1, but will include a process for the countries to seek exemptions for certain imports, Reuters reported on Jan. 31, citing three sources.

U.S.: Trump Expected To Impose Tariffs on Mexico, Canada on March 1

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum presented six secondary bills to regulate a constitutional energy reform Congress approved in October, El Heraldo de Mexico reported Jan. 29.

Mexico: Energy Reform Regulation Confirms Government's Interventionist Approach to the Sector

Assessments

Shipping containers are seen at the Port of Montreal in Montreal, Canada, on Feb. 3, 2025. 

Sustained U.S. tariffs on Canada and Mexico would undermine North American economic growth and integration, and Trump's apparent willingness to accept these costs raises the risk of his other large tariff proposals being implemented.

The High Stakes of U.S. Tariffs on North American Trade

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Rwanda

Israel

United Kingdom

Trucks wait to enter United States on Nov. 26, 2024, at the Otay crossing port in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Trump's Tariffs, Congo Braces for More Fighting in the East

Migrants from Mexico and Guatemala are apprehended by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers after crossing a section of the U.S.-Mexico border in Ruby, Arizona, on Jan. 4, 2025.

Such designations would harm Mexico's economy, business climate and ties with the U.S., as well as potentially its security environment if they lead to unilateral U.S. action on Mexican soil. 

The Impacts of U.S. Terrorist Designations Targeting Mexican Cartels

Costa Rica

Dominican Republic

Guatemala

Panama

Lebanon

Hungary

Russia

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his wife Jeanette Rubio arrive at the State Department in Washington, D.C., to speak to employees on Jan. 21, 2025. 

The Weekly Rundown: Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Expires, Rubio Tours Latin America

U.S. President Donald Trump holds up an executive order after signing it during an indoor inauguration parade at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C, on Jan. 20, 2025.

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

While some will face legal challenges, Trump's initial orders on immigration, trade, energy and climate issues lay the groundwork for his ambitious agenda.

What To Make of Trump's Day 1 Executive Orders

Mozambique

South Korea

Security personnel walk on a road with buses blocking an entrance gate to protect impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol from a possible second arrest in Seoul on Jan. 6. If Yoon is not arrested, the opposition could again seek to impeach the country's acting president due to his insufficient support for the arrest efforts, worsening foreign perceptions of political instability in South Korea.

The Weekly Rundown: Mozambique's President Takes Office, the U.K. Chancellor Visits China

Angola

Cote d'Ivoire

Ghana

Kenya

Nigeria

Argentina

Brazil

Ecuador

Algeria

Iran

Iraq

Jordan

Kuwait

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

Syria

Tunisia

Turkey

United Arab Emirates

Yemen

Taiwan

Ukraine

Belarus

Pakistan

World map on a dark digital background representing global communication and global finances.

Cyber

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

RANE's Top 10 Risks for 2025 highlights high-impact, low-probability risks and trends from the annual forecast presented in more extreme terms.

RANE's Top 10 Risks for 2025

Snapshots

NYSE workers during morning trading Nov. 26 in New York. Incoming U.S. President Donald Trump is unlikely to place large tariffs on Canada and Mexico immediately upon taking office, but the mere threat to do so will likely chill investment in North America amid growing uncertainty about U.S. trade policy.

Though tariffs are unlikely, threats alone will likely chill investment amid growing uncertainty about U.S. trade policy.

Trump's Tariff Threats Alone Likely to Chill North American Investment

Americas

Chile

Cuba

Honduras

Nicaragua

U.S. border patrol officials drive near the wall along the Mexican border in Sasabe, Arizona, on Dec. 8, 2023. 

The fallout from Trump's pledged tariffs and mass deportations could worsen living conditions in countries like Mexico, though countries with like-minded leaders, like Argentina, may fare better.

What Trump's Focus on Immigration, Trade and Ideology Means for Latin America

A combination of photos shows U.S. President-elect Donald Trump (left) speaking at an event in West Palm Beach, Florida, and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum (right) holding a press conference in Mexico City, Mexico.

Global Elections

Trump will increase pressure on Mexico to curb immigration and drug trafficking by threatening tariffs and other economic retaliation, harming the country's investment climate.

What Another Trump Term Means for Mexico

Former U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak during an election event in the early hours of Nov. 6, 2024.

U.S.-China Relations

U.S.-Iran Relations

Trump will place more tariffs on U.S. trade partners and reduce support for Ukraine, but he will largely maintain Biden's approach to the U.S. tech rivalry with China and the Middle East conflict.

Trump's Win Will Ripple Across the World

National Action Party Sen. Miguel Angel Yunes Linares (L) addresses lawmakers in the legislature's upper house about the judicial reform proposed by the government in Congress in Mexico City, Mexico, on Sept. 10, 2024. 

Social Issues

A series of interventionist constitutional reforms is putting Mexico's private sector on edge, but global de-risking will likely continue to attract foreign investment in the long term.

Interventionist Constitutional Reforms Unlikely To Deter Foreign Investment in Mexico 

Mexico is defined by dramatic geographic features that have shaped the country's politics. Forming the southern portion of North America, Mexico borders the tropical Central American isthmus, a broad band that defines Mexico's northern border with the United States. To the east and west, the Sierra Madre Occidental and the Sierra Madre Oriental dominate the Pacific and the Caribbean coasts, forming highlands that cradle of the modern heart of Mexico. The desolate Baja California peninsula shields approaches from the western sea. To the east, the tropical limestone outcropping named the Yucatán peninsula dominates entry from the Caribbean into the Gulf of Mexico. Mexico's central valley, which includes Mexico City and the adjacent Veracruz region, form Mexico's core.     To control Mexico City is to control Mexico, and the greatest conventional threats to Mexico City have traditionally come from the deepwater Port city of Veracruz. Since the 16th century, Spain, France and the United States &mdash; not to mention numerous mutinous factions of the Mexican military &mdash; have used Veracruz to threaten and even conquer what is now Mexico City. Mexico's mountains and frontier territories are traditional hotbeds of unrest. From the rebels of Chihuahua to the drug kingpins of Tierra Caliente and Sinaloa, the historical and ongoing challenge for Mexico is to subdue and incorporate far-flung, geographically-isolated communities. The modern expression of this struggle can be seen in today's war with drug trafficking organizations, but it is a pattern that has been repeated throughout history and has been shaped by Mexico's physical geography. 

SITUATION REPORTS

U.S., Latin America: Criminal Groups Designated as Specially Designated Global Terrorists

U.S., Latin America: U.S. Declares Eight Transnational Criminal Groups Foreign Terrorist Organizations

U.S., Mexico: Reports of Increased U.S. Surveillance Flights Over Mexico

U.S., Latin America: Report Indicates Eight Criminal Organizations To Be Designated as Terrorist Groups

Mexico, U.S.: U.S. Military Operations Unlikely to Trigger Diplomatic Crisis but Indicate Anti-Cartel Efforts

U.S.: Trump Announces Tariffs on Chips, Metals, Oil and the European Union

U.S.: Trump Expected To Impose Tariffs on Mexico, Canada on March 1

Mexico: Energy Reform Regulation Confirms Government's Interventionist Approach to the Sector

Forecasts

ANALYSES

SECTIONS

Explore

Subscribe

Help & Support