Can Central America Break the Cycle of Drugs, Corruption and Gang War?

As the Trump Administration proposes cutting aid to Central America – and as American, Central American, and Mexican leaders met in Miami last week to discuss development and security in the region – The Cipher Brief’s Kaitlin Lavinder asked Michael Shifter and Ben Raderstorf of the Inter-American Dialogue why Central America is so violent and why the U.S. has an interest in stabilizing its southern neighbors.

The Cipher Brief: Central America – particularly the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras – is highly violent. Why? What are the driving factors of violence and instability in the region? Has this improved or worsened over the past years?