US Envoy to Chile Clarifies Magellan Strait Remark

CHILE · POLITICS

A warning at a trade forum in Santiago became the latest diplomatic row between Chile’s government and the US ambassador.

US Ambassador to Chile Brandon Judd said on Wednesday evening that his Magellan Strait remarks were taken out of context. Hours earlier, he had linked US help in defending Chile’s rights over the waterway to cooperation on Washington’s priorities.

The clarification followed a sharp rebuke from Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna, who said Chile needs nobody’s help to defend its sovereignty. The row matters to Washington because Chile joined the US-led Shield of the Americas security pact on 22 September.

What Judd Said About the Magellan Strait

Judd spoke on Wednesday, 7 October, at Global Trade Day 2026, a Las Condes event run by Chilean shipping firm CSAV.

Judd said tariff talks were going well and that the US does not mind Chile trading with China. Asked about a planned undersea cable linking Hong Kong and Valparaíso, he drew a line at sovereignty.

“When I talk about trade with China, of course, that is commercial,” he said, according to BioBioChile and La Tercera. “But when we look at sovereignty, we will always be very, very concerned about sovereignty.”

He then said Chile would “have to work with us on the things that are important to us too.” He tied that to US anti-crime resources and to “a country that helps protect” Chile’s rights in the strait.

Chile’s Foreign Minister and Senate Push Back

Pérez Mackenna answered at Congress after a special Senate session on Chile’s place in the Shield of the Americas. The Foreign Ministry confirmed the session, which Defence Minister Fernando Barros also attended.

“The Strait of Magellan was, is and will always be Chilean,” the minister said. “We do not need anyone’s support to defend our sovereignty,” he added, noting Chile has done so for 200 years.

Asked about a formal protest note, he said: “I do not rule anything out until the evaluation is finished.” He also said relations with the US “have always been good and that will not change with this,” T13 reported.

Senate President Paulina Núñez and Vice-President Iván Moreira issued a joint statement saying Chile’s sovereignty “is not under discussion.” “Collaboration cannot be confused with dependence, nor support with sovereignty,” they wrote, according to Emol and La Tercera.

Gonzalo Winter, a deputy for the Broad Front, the left-wing party of former President Gabriel Boric, called the remark “shameful and humiliating.” Socialist deputy Nelson Venegas said conservative President José Antonio Kast should ask Donald Trump to withdraw Judd, El Mostrador reported.

Judd Says His Words Were Taken Out of Context

Judd’s written statement reached Chilean media on Wednesday evening. “I enjoy a good soap opera like anyone, but this drama is being twisted,” he said.

“My words were clearly taken out of context and at no time did I place conditions on Chile’s sovereignty,” he added. He thanked Barros and “all those who have recognised that context.”

He called his speech “a firm and positive endorsement” of the relationship. The statement did not appear on the US Embassy’s website by early Thursday.

A Month of Friction With the US Ambassador

Judd, a Border Patrol agent from 1997 to 2023, was confirmed by the US Senate on 7 October 2025. He led the agents’ union, the National Border Patrol Council, from 2013 to 2024, the embassy says.

On 8 September, amid a separate row with Argentina, Judd told Meganoticias that “the Strait of Magellan belongs to Chile.” He called that US policy, BioBioChile reported.

That row began when an Argentine Air Force general described the strait as Argentine, T13 noted.

After Judd commented on domestic politics, the government said on 10 September that he had been summoned. It ruled out a protest note, El Mostrador recalled.

On Tuesday, 6 October, Judd told a webinar that “there is no Antarctica that belongs to Chile” under the Antarctic Treaty system. Pérez Mackenna replied that Chile’s sovereignty is “perfectly defined.”

On 30 September, Judd denied refusing Communist Senator Daniel Núñez a visa, saying no application was filed, 24horas reported.

What It Means for You

For US shippers, the strait is the natural Atlantic-Pacific passage when the Panama Canal is restricted. Drought at the canal has pushed more ships through the strait this year, BioBioChile reported.

For US policy, the row tests the Shield of the Americas, a 15-country security pact against organised crime. Chile’s Senate held a special session on that cooperation the same day.

Chile and the US are also negotiating tariffs, talks Judd described as going well. Neither government has announced any trade, visa or travel measure linked to the dispute.

What Is Not Known

It is not known whether the Foreign Ministry will send Judd a written protest note. The minister said the formal reaction would depend on the merits of what was said.

It is also unclear what Barros said to recognise that context, and whether the State Department backs Judd.

What Comes Next

The Foreign Ministry is evaluating its response, Pérez Mackenna said, while stressing that ties with Washington remain historic. A protest note would be this government’s first to Judd; an earlier one was sent under the previous government, Emol reported.

The episode does not change the strait’s legal status, which Chile says its treaties have settled. It does add pressure as senators scrutinise Chile’s role in the US-led security pact.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did the US ambassador say about the Strait of Magellan?

Brandon Judd said Chile must work with the US on American priorities if it wants US help in the strait. He spoke on 7 October at a trade event in Santiago.

How did Chile respond?

Chile’s foreign minister said the strait "was, is and will always be Chilean" and that Chile can defend its sovereignty alone. He did not rule out a formal protest note.

Did Judd take back his remarks?

He said his words were taken out of context and that he never placed conditions on Chile’s sovereignty. He called his speech a firm endorsement of the relationship between the two countries.

Why does the Magellan Strait matter to the United States?

It links the Atlantic and Pacific at the tip of South America, an alternative when the Panama Canal is restricted. Chile also joined the US-led Shield of the Americas security pact in September.

Will Chile send a protest note?

The foreign minister said the government is evaluating its formal reaction and rules nothing out. No decision had been announced by early Thursday, 8 October.

Sources: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile, Senate session on the Shield of the Americas; US Embassy in Chile, Ambassador Brandon Judd; US Embassy in Chile, Shield of the Americas joint statement; Meganoticias; BioBioChile (remarks); BioBioChile (clarification); La Tercera (remarks); La Tercera (clarification); T13; Emol; Emol (28 September); El Mostrador; 24horas; BioBioChile (8 September); BioBioChile (Panama Canal drought) (all accessed 8 October 2026). Quotes translated from Spanish.