US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has begun a tour of three South American countries — Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru — meeting with newly elected conservative leaders who have closely aligned themselves with the Trump administration. The visit reflects a broader strategic push by Washington to deepen its influence across the Western Hemisphere as a wave of right-wing governments takes hold in the region.
Rubio's first stop is Barranquilla, Colombia, where he will meet President Abelardo de la Espriella, who took office just over a month ago. On the agenda is US support for Colombia's recovery from a devastating earthquake on 10 August that killed at least 330 people and left thousands homeless, as well as deepening cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking and armed groups. Unlike his predecessor, the leftist Gustavo Petro, de la Espriella has embraced Washington's militarised approach to narcotics, joining the Trump administration's "Shield of the Americas" — a 19-member coalition committed to using lethal military force against cartels and terrorist networks. He has also praised US military strikes on alleged drug smugglers in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, strikes that have killed at least 227 people and drawn condemnation from human rights groups, whose members say many of the victims were fishermen rather than traffickers.
From Colombia, Rubio travels to Ecuador, where President Daniel Noboa has built a record of close security cooperation with the US, including joint operations targeting drug trafficking networks. The two sides are expected to discuss further military and law enforcement collaboration. The final leg takes Rubio to Peru, where President Keiko Fujimori — daughter of former leader Alberto Fujimori, who controversially dissolved Peru's Congress and Supreme Court during his presidency from 1990 to 2000 — was inaugurated in late July. Discussions there are expected to focus on strengthening commercial ties, with trade agreements potentially on the table.
The tour fits into what the Trump administration has branded the "Donroe Doctrine" — a deliberate echo of the 19th-century Monroe Doctrine, which asserted US primacy in the Americas and opposed outside interference in the region. Beyond the three countries on this trip, Washington has also cultivated ties with newly elected right-wing presidents in Honduras and Bolivia, as well as with Argentina's Javier Milei and El Salvador's Nayib Bukele. Rubio has described the regional conservative trend as an "extraordinary achievement."
Why this matters: the political realignment in Latin America represents a significant shift in the geopolitical landscape of the Western Hemisphere. For Washington, a bloc of ideologically aligned governments offers expanded leverage on migration, drug policy, and trade — as well as access to strategic resources. Brazil and Mexico remain the notable exceptions, still governed by left-leaning leaders, though Brazil holds elections in October. The consolidation of US influence in the region also comes alongside growing ties between Israel and several Latin American governments, adding another dimension to Washington's hemispheric strategy.