Objective/context:

This article presents an analysis of the rise, consolidation and transformation of the counterinsurgency power bloc in Colombia and its leading role in the resurgence of the right in Latin America over the past five years. More specifically, it examines the strategic alliance with the United States, the presence of the Andean country in multilateral settings and Colombia's position against the “Bolivarian Revolution” in Venezuela.

Methodology:

The research was guided by a historical-materialist theoretical framework, inspired mainly by the works of Nicos Poulantzas, Bob Jessop and Joachim Hirsch, based on the concepts of capitalist state and peripheral state. In the empirical-analytical portion on Colombia we work with the notions of strong oligarchical state and counterinsurgency power block, developed by Raul Zelik and Vilma Franco, respectively.

Conclusions:

The counterinsurgency power block in Colombia has played an important role in containing the progressive trend and the destabilization of regional integration gambits built on the margins of US hegemony. The counterinsurgency strategy in the region has managed to change the correlation of forces in favor of the regional right, leading to the decline and possible closure of the progressive cycle with the deepening of the crisis of the “Bolivarian Revolution” in Venezuela.

Originality:

Most studies on counterinsurgency in Colombia have focused on the role of the State and paramilitarism, and analyze the counterinsurgency struggle mainly at the national level. This article proposes a critical class perspective to understand counterinsurgency in Colombia and Latin America in the context of the progressive cycle and the resurgence of the right in the region during the last five years.