Objective/context:

The objective of this article is to analyze the policy of constructive cooperation put in place by republican governments under Harding, Coolidge and, especially, Hoover, as a solution to the Chilean-Peruvian dispute over the Tacna and Arica regions between 1925 and 1929.

Originality:

Existing historiographical research has approached the Chilean-Peruvian border dispute in the Tacna and Arica regions from predominantly national perspectives and with documentation from one country or another, and there has not been a more complete and in-depth analysis of US actions and cooperation related to the dispute. The use of US documentation not only affords a more balanced perspective of the border problem, but also illuminates the role played by a number of American presidents.

Methodology:

Documentation provided by the State Department, held at the National Archives and Records Administration, together with other materials obtained at the Historical Archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile and the Chilean press of the period, led to a narrative and critical analysis of information pertaining to constructive cooperation by republican US governments to address the Chilean-Peruvian dispute between 1925 and 1929.

Conclusions:

During the 1920s, the United States pursued a foreign policy that would improve its image in Latin America. To this end, Hoover launched the Constructive Cooperation Doctrine, a US diplomatic effort to offer peaceful solutions to existing disputes in Latin American countries. The solution achieved for the Chilean-Peruvian border problem was one of its greatest triumphs in the continental scope.

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