This event has completed.

4/10/2024
12:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST

All those interested in Latin America and the Caribbean are welcome to attend LAC Luncheons. Discussions are organized around theme, country, region or on a selected speaker’s interests and occur monthly. The DACOR cash bar opens at 12 noon and the group moves to a reserved room at 12:30 pm. The luncheon served with the event costs $35. Registrations are required for all participants. 

March's topic is "Transnational Crime:  How is it impacting the region and how can the United States tackle this challenge while protecting human rights?" with Ambassador Todd D. Robinson, Assistant Secretary of the State Department's Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement; Mr. Gaston Schulmeister, Director of the OAS's Department Against Transnational Crime; and Dr. Paul Angelo, Director of the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies.

Ambassador Todd D. Robinson was sworn-in as the Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs on September 30, 2021. Ambassador Robinson last served as the Director of the International Student Management Office at the National Defense University. Prior to his assignment at NDU, he served as Senior Advisor for Central America in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs in Washington, DC. Ambassador Robinson was previously Chargé d’Affaires in Caracas, Venezuela from December 18, 2017 to May 22, 2018, when he was expelled by President Maduro. He was previously U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Guatemala from September 16, 2014, to September 20, 2017. Ambassador Robinson is a career diplomat with the rank of Career Minister.

Ambassador Robinson previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. From 2009 until 2011, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala. Prior to that, he was Consul General and Principal Officer at the U.S. Consulate in Barcelona, Spain and Chief of the Political and Economic Section in the U.S. Embassy in Tirana, Albania. Other overseas postings include the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Vatican City, Italy, El Salvador, and Colombia. In Washington, DC, Ambassador Robinson served in the Department’s Operations Center and as a Special Assistant to former Secretary of State Albright. He is the recipient of the Presidential Rank Award and two Department Superior Honor Awards.

A native of New Jersey, Ambassador Robinson was a professional journalist before joining the Foreign Service. He is a graduate of the Georgetown University Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Class of 1985.

Mr. Gastón H. Schulmeister is currently the Director of the Department against Transnational Organized Crime of the Organization of American States (OAS DTOC). OAS DTOC was created in 2016 and its main purpose is to provide technical and legislative assistance to OAS Member States to confront and respond to Transnational Organized Crime in its different manifestations across the Western Hemisphere.

Prior to this assignment, Mr. Schulmeister served as National Director of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Security of the Argentine Republic. In addition, as per his background with International Organizations, Mr. Schulmeister worked on technical assistance and security investment projects, where he performed as a consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Argentina and Paraguay; for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Paraguay; and for the International Juvenile Justice Observatory (IJJO) in Mexico. Earlier in his career, Mr. Schulmeister also got experience managing the police force in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.

Mr. Schulmeister has a Bachelor’s in Political Science from the Universidad de Buenos Aires and Master’s in International Studies from the Universidad Torcuato Di Tella.

To develop his specialization in security affairs, Mr. Schulmeister has been awarded fellowships from the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies at the National Defense University in Washington DC; the Chevening Program of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office at the University of Bradford; and the Fulbright Program of the United States Department of State at the University of Delaware.

In May 2017, Mr. Schulmeister was awarded by the President of the Italian Republic with the title of Cavaliere dell’Ordine della Stella d’Italia; for the contributions and work on international cooperation against Organized Crime, during his period as an officer of the government of the Argentine Republic.

Paul J. Angelo, PhD, assumed his position as Director of the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies on June 21, 2022, following his selection by the Office of the Secretary of Defense. His previous work at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) included roles as Fellow for Latin America studies and as an International Affairs Fellow. There he focused on US-Latin American relations, transnational crime, security assistance, and immigration.

During his tenure as an International Affairs Fellow, he also represented the US Department of State at the US Embassy in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, where he managed the ambassador's security and justice portfolio.

His previous service in the Navy included tours in a United Kingdom-based NATO position, on board a destroyer deployed to the Asia-Pacific region, and as an instructor at the US Naval Academy, where he taught Spanish and Latin American politics courses. During his naval career, Angelo deployed to Colombia on three occasions over the course of more than a decade.

He was directly responsible for the planning of inter-agency missions focused on improving local governance, rule of law, and security in support of Plan Colombia.

In 2022, President Biden appointed Angelo to the US Naval Academy Board of Visitors in Annapolis, Maryland. He continues to serve as a Commander in the US Navy Reserve. Angelo's written commentary has appeared in Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and the Miami Herald. He is also the author of From Peril to Partnership: US Security Assistance and the Bid to Stabilize Colombia and Mexico (Oxford University Press, 2024).

Angelo holds a BS in political science (with honors) from the US Naval Academy, where he was awarded the Harry S. Truman Scholarship, an MPhil in Latin American studies (with distinction) from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar, and a PhD in politics from University College London. In 2022, the Guatemalan government awarded Angelo the "Monja Blanca" (White Nun Orchid) medal (second class) for meritorious service in support of the Guatemalan people.