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The new US Secretary of State has chosen America’s “backyard” for his first official state visit
U.S. secretaries of state don’t just show up anywhere, especially on their first foreign trip. Marco Rubio («Rubio» in Spanish means «Blondie») made a rather calculated choice: a region where a nation that claims to be «above all» can demonstrate its full power and strength. Central America is the «backwater» where one would least expect hidden pitfalls. Rubio explained his choice in the dignified words of a great power’s secretary of state: «I wanted to visit a warm place for the first time».
Over the course of six days, Marco Rubio visited Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic — deliberately ignoring Nicaragua and Honduras, where he might have received a cool reception — but he still failed to find that «warm place».
Peruvian lawyer Katya Salasar believes that «this trip was not about how we can work together, it was about a deal: either you support me, or the U.S. won’t be on your side — which means less investment, less support, less purchases, and less recognition for your exports».
In the end, the U.S. secretary of state returned with a portfolio of agreements that «serve Washington’s interests in terms of Latin America’s role in the fight against illegal immigration and the processing of deportees, in the fight against illicit drug trafficking, and in countering China’s growing influence in the region».
«One of my priorities is to ensure that U.S. foreign policy is one where it’s better to be a friend than an enemy; better to be an ally than a troublemaker», Rubio sternly warned during a joint press conference with Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves.
But not everything went as smoothly as planned. The first disagreement with a stalwart ally — the Panamanian government — emerged before Rubio had even left the region.
During the final leg of his tour in the Dominican Republic, Rubio was forced to respond to Panamanian President José Raúl Molina, who denounced as an «unbearable lie» the U.S. State Department’s claim that U.S. government and military ships would not have to pay for transit through the Panama Canal. «It seems absurd that we should have to pay for transit through an area that we are obligated to protect during a conflict», Rubio retorted.
Panama had been eagerly awaiting the American after several weeks of threats from Trump — who, after entering the White House, had expressed his desire to strip the country of its sovereignty over the canal, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Trump claimed, without providing any evidence, that China was running the Panama Canal (built by the US and handed over to the Central American country in 1999) and declared that it was time to «take it back».
That, then, was Rubio’s main message to President Molina, accompanied by an additional warning: «If there are no immediate changes, the U.S. will take the necessary steps to protect its rights».
«Panama’s sovereignty is not in question. The canal is and will continue to be operated by our country», the Panamanian president declared.
Molina’s government was willing to go to virtually any length — even agreeing not to renew the New Silk Road agreement with China, the credit initiative aimed at promoting and financing infrastructure and development projects.
But the Panamanian authorities never received Washington’s help on another «canal» — the Darién Gap, through which migrants flow to the U.S. — even though such assistance would benefit both nations.
Perhaps the most hospitable host turned out to be the president of El Salvador, whose political views are closely aligned with Trump’s. In Nayib Bukele — whom Trump called «the coolest dictator in the world» — the American leader found what he was looking for: a «sanctuary» for his own criminals. Moreover, Bukele himself proposed to take in deported migrants — both domestic and foreign — who had committed serious crimes. «We are ready to accept only convicted criminals (including American citizens) into our mega-prison. The fee would be relatively low for the US, but significant for us, and it would make our entire prison system sustainable», Bukele wrote on his social media. «No country has ever made such an offer of friendship», Rubio responded.
In Costa Rica — often hailed as the «Switzerland of Central America» for its lush mountain landscapes, prosperity, and neutrality (qualities Washington had unsuccessfully tried to turn against Nicaragua since the Sandinista revolution) — Rubio did not find «complete understanding». Costa Rica remained the «rich coast», far from political storms and tempests. And what did the United States offer? A well-trained, modern army. But San José has no need for that, preferring to live in peace and neighborly harmony. In short, Rubio spent his time in this «warm place», ate a meal, exchanged pleasantries, and left — leaving behind empty assurances of cooperation. Meanwhile, Costa Rica, which has become a major transit point for cocaine to the U.S., will position itself as a key ally in the war on drugs.
Then there’s Guatemala. The most populous country in Central America — where the US carried out the bloodiest coup in the Western Hemisphere in 1954, ordering its air force to bomb peaceful towns and villages — Guatemala today became the first Latin American nation to accept US military planes carrying deported migrants, validating Trump’s claim that migrants are criminals best dealt with by force.
«For us, the most important thing is to present ourselves to the U.S., to the new administration, as a reliable and strategic partner in the region», said Guatemalan Foreign Minister Carlos Ramiro Martínez. According to the Pew Research Center, some 675,000 undocumented Guatemalans live in the United States, making Guatemala a major source of illegal migrants after Mexico, India and El Salvador.
Among the agreements reached with Guatemala was a commitment to send a team of U.S. military engineers to expand the country’s ports, along with the possible construction of a military base. In return, President Bernardo Arevalo de Leon is said to have received «substantial support in his fight against corruption and defense of democracy» from Rubio.
The last stop was Santo Domingo. The Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, is slated to become a «hub» for the deportation of Haitians, according to the new White House administration. All attempts by previous U.S. administrations to stem the flow of Haitian «refugee drug addicts» into the United States have met with little success. It is far from certain that the construction of a U.S.-style wall along the border with Haiti will succeed, or that the government of this Caribbean nation will be able to deport 10,000 Haitians per week.
According to the International Organization for Migration, about one million Haitians have left their homes, many crossing the «porous border» and ending up in the Dominican Republic.
But Marco Rubio did not come out of interest or sympathy for Haitians. He came to observe the seizure of a Venezuelan government Dassault Falcon 200 aircraft. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security timed the operation to coincide with the visit of its top diplomat. The plane was undergoing maintenance at the Santo Domingo airport and was the second government aircraft seized by the United States. Venezuela called it a «brazen theft of an aircraft».
In an article published in the Wall Street Journal on the eve of the visit, Rubio said that mass migration, drugs and hostile policies by Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela have created chaos — and that port facilities at both ends of the canal are controlled by a Chinese company, making the waterway vulnerable to pressure from Beijing.
«These three regimes that exist — Nicaragua, Venezuela and Cuba — are enemies of humanity and have created the migration crisis; if it weren’t for these three regimes, there would be no migration crisis in the hemisphere», he declared. Far from being a «nice liar», he is merely laying the groundwork for tension.
Analysts interpret the meetings between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Central American presidents as «reconnaissance visits» designed to test the waters and identify allies and opponents of U.S. imperialism. The new twist in the return to the logic of the Monroe Doctrine is that now «the internal politics of Latin American countries do not matter as long as they are US allies — they can be authoritarian or democratic regimes».
«It has become clear that alliances are empty rhetoric if they do not serve U.S. interests», said Christopher Sabatini, a researcher for the Latin America, U.S., North and South America programs at the Chatham House research center.
For now, the White House has thoroughly vetted Central America. South America is a different story, but it will be addressed eventually. Before seeking a new global hegemony, one must clear one’s own backyard.