Boris Johnson, Brexit, and Latin America

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson traveled to Latin America (which itself was a circus) and has quite the op-ed describing it. He has two main arguments. The first is that despite the occasional problem with cannibalism, Britain has a long shared history with Latin America. The second is that the European Union distracted Britain from its proper relationship with the region.

Did you know – I bet you did not – that thanks to mining interests the UK is the second biggest global investor in Peru? The very boundaries of Peru were once mapped by Col PH Fawcett (identified by my mother as a distant relative), who later disappeared, presumed eaten. 

In spite of this difficult experience, the people of the region retain, as one of our excellent ambassadors put it, a keen and growing appetite for all things British. 

So Latin America gets pulled into the Brexit debate. This is not a compelling argument. It is indeed true that when you hear about extra-hemispheric trading partners, Britain is not often mentioned. However, the EU is. Britain could easily increase its presence in Latin America within the EU, and in fact it might actually be easier because so much work has already been done.