End of an affair?

FOR much of the past decade, relations between the United States and Latin America have been unusually cordial. Gone were the conflicts and confrontations of the cold-war years. In their place came talk of trade and partnership—and from George Bush, a smattering of pleasantries in endearingly bad Spanish and a promise to make the region a foreign-policy priority. Now, the cordiality has given way to uncertainty—with the potential for renewed tension, or mutual indifference.