Three issues to learn about Rubio’s first worldwide journey

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has set off on his first worldwide journey. Rubio is scheduled to go to El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama and the Dominican Republic.

His journey comes as President Trump has triggered two main diplomatic spats within the area. First suggesting america ought to retake the Panama canal after which by launching a quick commerce conflict with Colombia over immigration.

Listed below are three issues to learn about Secretary Rubio’s first overseas journey

Latin America has not often been entrance and heart

It’s uncommon for an American secretary of state to start their travels by going to Latin America. Again in 2001, Colin Powell, opened his tenure by touring to Mexico to accompany President George W. Bush for a gathering with the Mexican president. It was a at some point journey and Powell shortly moved on to the Center East.

To discover a secretary of state who started their time period with a whirlwind tour of Latin America like Rubio is doing, you’d must look again a century when in 1912, Philander Chase Knox traveled to Panama after which spent a month crisscrossing Latin America — from Nicaragua to Venezuela.

“This is a really interesting moment for US relations with Latin America,” mentioned Benjamin Gedan, of the Wilson Heart previewing Rubio’s journey. “Threats of tariffs against Mexico, threats of tariffs against Colombia have all raised questions about what the nature of inter-American relations will be over the next four years, and we’ll get some important signals from what Secretary Rubio says publicly and privately.”

A demonstrator burns a U.S. flag to protest the upcoming go to of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Panama Metropolis, Friday, Jan. 31, 2025

Matias Delacroix/AP

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Matias Delacroix/AP

This journey is about Latin America, however actually about China 

Chatting with reporters, Rubio paused on President Trump’s threats to retake the Panama Canal.

“This is not a joke,” Rubio mentioned, including he is involved that Chinese language corporations now management main ports on the entry and exit to the canal. Rubio mentioned in case of battle, Chinese language corporations may have the “ability to turn the canal into a choke point.”

Leland Lazarus, who research China’s position in Latin America at Florida Worldwide College, says Rubio may have his work lower out, as a result of for some Latin American nations China has grow to be a main buying and selling associate. Certainly, China is now the No. 1 buying and selling associate for South America.

“I think he’s got to provide actual alternatives and not just tell countries China is bad,” Lazarus instructed NPR. “You can’t do business with China because that is just not feasible for many countries in the region.”

As Cuban-American, Rubio represents a primary, however he is in keeping with a mainstream American overseas coverage 

Rubio is the primary Latino secretary of state. He targeted a lot of his consideration as a senator on Latin America, which is uncommon for a secretary of state. However Alexander Aviña, who teaches Latin American historical past at Arizona State College, says his views are additionally very a lot in keeping with those that have come earlier than him.

“In terms of policy, there’s going to be more continuity than change,” Aviña instructed NPR.

For instance, Rubio rails towards authoritarianism and socialism relating to Cuba and Venezuela, however his first overseas journey will embrace a cease to El Salvador, the place President Nayib Bukele has grow to be a rising authoritarian determine in Latin America .

That, says Aviña, is in keeping with one of many central contradictions of American overseas coverage in Latin America.

“You can target certain countries as kind of convenient enemies,” he mentioned. “But then you also have to work with inconvenient allies to help project and maintain U.S. geopolitical power or influence in the region.”