The shift to the right in Latin America comes as Washington promises to expand its influence and take a militaristic approach to cartels.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is visiting three South American countries whose recently elected leaders are closely aligned with President Donald Trump’s administration.
Rubio will visit Colombia on Tuesday to meet with newly elected President Abelardo de la Espriela. He will then visit Ecuador to meet with President Daniel Novoa, before heading to Peru to meet with the other newly elected leader, Keiko Fujimori.
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The State Department has not yet released a more detailed agenda for the trip, saying only that Rubio will discuss “U.S. support for Colombia’s earthquake response, increased cooperation in the common fight against narco-terrorism that threatens our hemisphere, and the benefits of a deeper commercial relationship between our two countries.”
The visit comes amid a shift to the right in Latin America, with several leaders aligned with Trump taking office. In addition to the three countries, Trump endorsed Honduras’ President Nasri Asufura, who won the presidential election in November, and Bolivia’s Rodrigo Paz, who was elected in October.
In addition to the new leaders, Trump has also worked closely with Argentina’s Javier Milei, who took office in 2023, and El Salvador’s Nayib Boucle, who took over in 2019.
US influence in the Western Hemisphere
Rubio’s visit comes as the Trump administration promises to increase its influence in the Western Hemisphere under what the president has dubbed the “Donroe Doctrine.” This is a reference to the 19th century Monroe Doctrine, which opposed European interference in the Americas.
It is moving toward a militaristic approach to security in Latin American countries, while broadly reframing efforts to combat drug trafficking as a fight against “narco-terrorists.”
In August, Colombia’s de la Espriela joined the Trump administration’s so-called “American Shield” initiative to strengthen cooperation with the United States.
The group’s 19 members jointly pledged “a commitment to use lethal military force to destroy violent cartels and terrorist networks.”
Unlike his predecessor, left-wing Gustavo Petro, Mr. de la Espriera also praises U.S. military strikes against suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. At least 227 people have been killed in these strikes, which rights groups have condemned as extrajudicial killings.
Families of those killed claim that the targets were fishermen, not drug smugglers.
The United States has proven to be Mr. de la Espriela’s main supporter after a devastating earthquake in Colombia last month that killed at least 330 people and left thousands homeless.
In March, the U.S. military, under Novoa’s leadership, announced it was working with Ecuador to target drug trafficking organizations in the country.
Ecuador’s Interior Minister John Reinberg last week defended U.S. attacks on ships suspected of carrying drugs in an interview with broadcaster Tele Amazonas.
Peru’s Fujimori, the daughter of former leader Alberto Fujimori, notorious for dissolving Congress and the Supreme Court to consolidate power during his 1990-2000 government, has also promised closer ties with the United States and a military crackdown on criminal organizations.
conservative shift
Rubio’s visit comes after the United States announced a controversial agreement with Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodriguez. The agreement, signed in response to the United States’ abduction of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, grants American companies access to 65 billion barrels of oil reserves over the next 100 years.
It also comes as the United States continues to step up its pressure campaign on Cuba, with Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez refusing on Monday any talks with the United States despite the island’s continuing fuel blockade.
Brazil and Mexico are the only regional powers with left-wing leaders. Mr. Rubio called the region’s conservative drift an “extraordinary accomplishment.”
This change comes as the relationship between Israel and Latin American countries has strengthened since President Trump took office.
Brazilians are set to go to the polls in October, when Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former right-wing leader Jair Bolsonaro, seeks to oust Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
President Trump remains a staunch ally of the elder Bolsonaro, who was sentenced to 27 years in prison for leading a conspiracy to stay in power.
The US president has also shown strong support for the younger Bolsonaro, inviting him to the White House in May.
