Historian Jeremy Adelman, professor emeritus at Princeton University and director of the Global History Lab at the University of Cambridge, said Chile "must maintain its autonomy to negotiate" after signing on to the Shield of the Americas (Escudo de las Américas), according to CNN Chile. The academic spoke on the channel's program Influyentes.
Adelman visited the country at the invitation of Universidad Diego Portales (UDP), a private university in Santiago. In conversation with journalist Paula Escobar, he analyzed the tensions between the United States and China and the room for maneuver that small economies have in the face of that rivalry.
As reported by CNN Chile, the Government signed the Washington-backed initiative under pressure from the White House, even though it had initially intended to attend as an observer. The historian called for downplaying the scope of the pact. "The Shield of the Americas is much less known as a model in the United States, where it was conceived, than in Latin America and in Chile," he said.
According to Adelman, the agreement "is not an enormous commitment" for those who sign it. He advised Chile to choose the opportunities that deliver the most for Chileans and not to lock itself into one model against another. "Power is always fluid," he said, urging people not to assume that the country lacks options.
The academic attributed the pact's wavering to the behavior of Donald Trump's administration. He described Trump as someone "very impulsive, very opportunistic," and added that for Washington "multilateralism is dead." In his view, the White House values each country for specific reasons: Venezuela for its oil, and Mexico and Central America for migration.
Asked about Trump's closeness to Argentine President Javier Milei, Adelman contrasted the two countries. He said Chile has institutional stability and an economic track record different from Argentina's, and that Milei's close relationship with Washington is partly aimed at strengthening him domestically, something that, in his view, is not needed in Chile.
On U.S. politics, the historian said it is "very likely" that the ruling party will lose the House of Representatives in the midterm elections. He raised the question of whether Trump would become even more impulsive if Congress and the judiciary put more obstacles in his way.
Adelman projected a two-year cycle of "a lot of uncertainty" in the United States. He warned that the Democratic Party lacks clear leadership and is going through "an internal struggle over the soul of the party" among its left wing, moderates and anti-Trump conservatives.
