For centuries, states in Latin America have faced considerable security challenges. Most of these are not related to conventional threats from other states, but to social, economic, and political conditions derived from the states’ own institutional weakness. These include armed groups and criminal gangs, which have challenged the security of individuals, communities, and the state for decades. The COVID-19 pandemic is demonstrating that in this clash between state institutions and armed groups, the state is showing significant weaknesses, whereas non-state actors seem to be exploiting the context in their favor. This raises different sorts of security challenges that the state will likely have to address during and after the pandemic
