Since the December 2012 inauguration of President Enrique Peña Nieto, Mexico has implemented a series of reforms that could forever change Mexican governance and its economy’s competitiveness.

As one who had the honor of serving 35 years in the U.S. military, my experience has convinced me that America’s interests are inextricably linked to the prosperity and security of other nations and their people. Today’s global crises frequently do not have a military solution, but require a comprehensive American engagement that strengthens the civilian tools of development and diplomacy that are essential in enabling countries around the world to address the challenges threatening their security and prosperity as well as ours.

Russian President Vladimir Putin began a six-day Latin American tour aimed at boosting trade and ties in the region with a stop Friday in Cuba, a key Soviet ally during the Cold War that has backed Moscow in its dispute with the West over Ukraine. The two countries signed about a dozen accords in areas such as energy, industry, health and disaster prevention. Russian companies will participate in petroleum projects around Boca de Jaruco on the island's north coast, and that cooperation will extend to offshore oil deposits, Cuban government website Cubadebate said.

As Narendra Modi heads to Brazil for the BRICS Summit, Team Niti Central takes a look at India’s Soft Power in Latin America – the incredible popularity of Bollywood. A distant memory of a shared colonial past and a demographic dividend hungry for unbounded economic aspirations are not the only unifying factors between India and Latin America. India’s film industry is hugely popular in the region and has gone places where direct Indian diplomacy is perhaps yet to venture.

Governments in South America have turned their back on US financial aid. Central Americans have seen tens of thousands of minors depart for the US under the pressure of poverty and violence. And the Caribbean is turning increasingly violent as drug cartels have reclaimed abandoned trafficking routes. Aside from more economic aid, Biden could be left with little more than rhetoric to offer a region that in 2011 ranked President Obama the most popular leader in the Americas.

US Vice President Joe Biden begins a four-nation trip across Latin America on Monday, starting with some World Cup action at the US-Ghana game in Brazil. Biden will fly directly to the flood-stricken city of Natal to cheer on the United States as they face the Black Stars in their first Group G clash on Monday.

In spite of ongoing tensions in Ukraine, which have seriously soured relations between Russia and the U.S. & Europe, Moscow has not altogether forgotten the Western Hemisphere. While Lavrov’s trip did not end in any particularly major deals between Moscow and his Latin American hosts, the visit came months after declarations by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu that the Russian armed forces require some form of overseas military facilities.