Shoppers flocked to stores over the weekend even as Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez warned companies against price increases. Caracas announced a devaluation of the bolivar in a move that sparked a rally on Venezuelan debt—as well as inflation worries.

"Of all the developments in Latin America over the past decade the consolidation of power in Venezuela by Hugo Chavez who was first elected in 1998 and the advancement of the 'Bolivarian Revolution' is clearly among the most significant," writes COA's Eric Farnsworth for The Huffington Post.

A Venezuelan cabinet member resigned in recent days after authorities arrested his brother in connection to a banking scandal. Caracas shuttered seven small banks in recent weeks.

Colombia's Defense Minister Gabriel Silva indicated that a pending U.S.-Colombian military deal could be signed this week. The pact allows U.S. military troops access to seven bases in Colombia and has drawn concern from some South American countries, particularly neighboring Venezuela.

"Countries where democracy is weak...have proven, time and time again, to be the most likely portals through which unhelpful influences such as Iran are introduced into the region," explained COA's Vice President Eric Farnsorth in testimony to U.S. Congress.

Leaders from the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of the Americas met October 16 and 17 in Cochabamba, where they charted a course for implementing a virtual currency that could replace the dollar in commercial transactions. ALBA also imposed a blockade on Honduras.

Venezuela's new plan to make a $2.2 billion arms purchase from Russia stoked U.S. fears that the deal could lead to an arms race in the Americas. While Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez took a whirlwind tour including the Moscow stop, France and Brazil signed their own multi-billion-dollar arms pact.