WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Secretary of State will travel to the Caribbean country of St. Kitts and Nevis this week to reassert the Trump administration鈥檚 interests in the Western Hemisphere just a month after the U.S. military operation that from power.
With the eyes of much of the world on and President Donald Trump鈥檚 , Rubio will make a one-day visit to St. Kitts on Wednesday to participate in a summit of leaders from the Caribbean Community, the State Department said.
Rubio has long and aims to keep it in focus even as Trump’s Republican administration has now shifted to Iran. American forces are massing in even larger numbers in the Middle East than in the run-up to the Jan. 3 operation in Venezuela that .
Maduro was of working with drug cartels to facilitate the shipment of into the U.S. and has pleaded not guilty.
Trump鈥檚 action against Maduro, coupled with aimed at eliminating drug trafficking and illegal migration, have proven a concern for many in the region 鈥� although they have also won support from some smaller states.
Trump, Rubio and others have likened to the Monroe Doctrine, with its rejection of outside influences and assertion of U.S. primacy throughout what they consider to be 鈥淎merica鈥檚 backyard.鈥�
Trump has said his ouster of Maduro, military strikes on alleged drug-running vessels in the Caribbean, and tightened embargo of Cuba are key parts of a Trump corollary to the 19th-century policy that he refers to as the 鈥淒onroe Doctrine.鈥�
Most recently, that has manifested itself in U.S. intelligence support for weekend Mexican government operations that Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes and in several well-known tourist resorts.
Neither Mexico nor Venezuela is a full member of CARICOM, which includes 15 mainly island nations and South and Central American mainland littoral states. But like the United States, Mexico and Venezuela have observer status in the grouping.
In numerous group and bilateral meetings at the CARICOM meeting, Rubio intends to discuss ways to promote regional security and stability, trade and economic growth, the State Department said in a statement Monday. It was unclear which officials Rubio would meet with in Basseterre, the capital of the two-island nation.
“During his visit, the Secretary will reaffirm the United States鈥� commitment to working with CARICOM member states to enhance stability and prosperity in our hemisphere,鈥� the department said.
Besides the immediate safety and security concerns in the Caribbean, the U.S. has a vested interest in several CARICOM members, including St. Kitts and Nevis, that are among the few countries in the world to have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, a self-governing island that Beijing considers to be part of Chinese territory.
The U.S., which does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan but , wants to counter and the Caribbean built through massive loans and expansive trade.
Trump has to take part in a summit in Florida next month, coming ahead of his trip to Beijing.
St. Kitts and Nevis is among six countries in the Caribbean and Central America to still recognize Taiwan. U.S. lawmakers have introduced a bill that could provide $120 million over three years in assistance to Taiwan鈥檚 official and unofficial partners.
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Associated Press writer Didi Tang contributed to this report.
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