A Conferência Tricontinental em Havana : disputas e acordos na consolidação do terceiro-mundismo em tempos de Guerra Fria (1966)

Abstract

This thesis investigates the 1966 Tricontinental Conference of Havana, a meeting that brought together state and non-state representatives from 82 countries and territories in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to establish solidarity agreements based on anti-imperialist, anti-colonial, and anti-neocolonial principles. It analyzes the conference’s significance within the Cold War context and its role in shaping the Third World. The research is based on primary sources from Latin American and U.S. archives, exploring spaces of political, cultural, ideological, and solidarity networks among participants, while also considering the ambivalences and conflicts inherent in the process. For this reason, the political disputes and negotiations that preceded the conference in Havana were also examined, revealing the diversity of projects and the complexity of its organization in the 1960s. The delegations gathered in Havana aimed to strengthen international ties in search of alternatives to the resurgence of state models and the existing structure of international relations. They remained in constant engagement with Cold War issues and conflicts between capitalism and communism, while also navigating their own internal divisions. To deepen these discussions, the research applies and adapts the concepts of the Global Cold War, pericentric analysis, and the Inter-American Cold War, which expand the scope of the conflict beyond the U.S.-USSR bipolarity, incorporating the perspectives and actions of the Third World from a transnational standpoint. Additionally, the study highlights the role of cultural diplomacy in the Tricontinental Conference and examines how Havana’s urban space was strategically used to construct Cuba’s image, reinforcing the island’s efforts to establish itself as a key actor in the Cold War and a spokesperson for the Third World. Another important aspect analyzed in the thesis is the conceptual debates and struggles over meanings** that emerged during the conference’s proceedings. Participants were actively engaged in constructing and redefining key political concepts of the time, aiming to develop a shared understanding of fundamental terms for their struggle. Finally, the thesis argues that the conference played a pivotal role in shaping both the identity and political agenda of Global South countries. Through the concept of the Politics of Encounters, it underscores the agreements and disagreements within this globally articulated project of the 1960s, asserting that the conference was a landmark in the consolidation of the Third World and a significant event that challenged North-South international relations