The Pentagon should turn to Paraguay and Guyana

The Iran war might dominate headlines, but for President Donald Trump’s long-term strategic vision, it remains a diversion. The November 2025 National Security Strategy designated the Western Hemisphere as America’s strategic priority. “After years of neglect, the United States will reassert and enforce the Monroe Doctrine to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere,” the document declared.

Trump’s targeting of drug cartel speedboats, his capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, and the tightened embargo against Cuba demonstrate the White House is not merely posturing. But the Pentagon must create an infrastructure for action.

While the United States has, over the past half-century, built up an infrastructure in the Middle East with both permanent basing and turnkey facilities, in an age of ballistic missiles and drones, these facilities are now as much liabilities as assets. With aircraft carriers, amphibious assault vessels, and more secure basing options in Greece, Cyprus, and Somaliland, the Pentagon could shutter its facilities