Keith Mines is vice president of the Latin America program at USIP.

Mines joined USIP after a career at the State Department, where he was most recently director for Andean and Venezuelan affairs. In 32 years of diplomatic and military service, he has worked on governance and institution building in Central America and Colombia; Middle East peace in Israel and the West Bank; post-conflict stabilization in Haiti, Iraq and Afghanistan; global financial stability and the environment in Brazil; security sector reform in Hungary; famine relief and tribal reconciliation in Darfur and Somali; and creating a culture of lawfulness as the first director of the Merida Initiative in Mexico City.

A frequent contributor to publications such as the Foreign Service Journal and Orbis, Mines has written extensively on post-conflict stabilization, peacebuilding and negotiations, and the roots of civil conflict. His book, “Why Nation Building Matters: Political Consolidation, Building Security Forces, and Economic Development in Failed and Fragile States,” was published by the University of Nebraska Press in 2020. Mines has a bachelor’s in history from Brigham Young University and a master’s in foreign service from Georgetown University.

Publications By Keith

Un travail ardu à venir : le gouvernement haïtien cherche à restaurer la sécurité avec le soutien international

Un travail ardu à venir : le gouvernement haïtien cherche à restaurer la sécurité avec le soutien international

Thursday, June 20, 2024

De nombreux Haïtiens ont exprimé une sympathie sincère et un sentiment de perte partagé lorsque des gangs ont tué un couple de missionnaires américains, Davy et Natalie Lloyd, ainsi que Jude Montis, le directeur local de l'organisation Missions en Haïti où ils travaillaient. À la suite de quelques heures confuses d'attaques et de contre-attaques entre gangs rivaux le 23 mai, les fusillades tragiques et la brûlure ultérieure des corps masculins ont rapidement fait la une des journaux nationaux aux États-Unis, en partie en raison de la notoriété du couple — Natalie Lloyd est la fille du représentant de l'État du Missouri, Ben Baker, et la famille de Davy Lloyd est éminente en Oklahoma.

Type: Analysis

Democracy & GovernanceJustice, Security & Rule of Law

Hard Work Ahead: Haiti’s Government Seeks to Restore Security with International Support

Hard Work Ahead: Haiti’s Government Seeks to Restore Security with International Support

Thursday, June 20, 2024

Many Haitians expressed genuine sympathy and shared loss when an American missionary couple, Davy and Natalie Lloyd, were killed by gangs alongside Jude Montis, the local director of the Missions in Haiti organization where they were working. Following a confusing few hours of attacks and counter-attacks by rival gangs on May 23, the tragic shootings and subsequent burning of the male bodies quickly made national news in the United States, in part because of the prominence of the couple — Natalie Lloyd is the daughter of Missouri State Representative Ben Baker and Davy Lloyd’s family is prominent in Oklahoma.

Type: Analysis

Democracy & GovernanceJustice, Security & Rule of Law

Keith Mines on the Latest from Haiti

Keith Mines on the Latest from Haiti

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

While Haiti’s Transitional Council has appointed a prime minister to lead a temporary government and the Kenyan-led international security mission is expected to deploy soon, “[Haiti’s] gangs are still pretty strong,” says USIP’s Keith Mines. “There’s really going to be a fight for power … over the coming months.”

Type: Podcast

Cómo sacar a Venezuela de su ciclo de conflicto

Cómo sacar a Venezuela de su ciclo de conflicto

Thursday, May 30, 2024

Si la esperanza fuera una mercancía, estaría cotizándose alto en Venezuela actualmente. Desde que el enfoque internacional hacia la crisis venezolana se transformó de maximizar la presión sobre el régimen de Maduro mediante sanciones, amenazas y aislamiento diplomático hacia una solución negociada del conflicto, el pueblo venezolano ha permanecido firme en su determinación de llevar el proceso hasta una elección, ahora programada para el 28 de julio.

Type: Analysis

Global Policy

How to Get Venezuela Out of its Cycle of Conflict

How to Get Venezuela Out of its Cycle of Conflict

Thursday, May 30, 2024

If hope were a commodity, it would be trading high in Venezuela this season. Since the international approach to the Venezuelan crisis shifted from maximizing pressure on the Maduro regime through sanctions, threats and diplomatic isolation to a negotiated solution to the conflict, the Venezuelan people have remained firm in their determination to see the process through to an election, now set for July 28th.

Type: Analysis

Global Policy

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