Rubio’s stop in the Eastern Caribbean is scheduled for this week, with a one-day agenda in St. Kitts that the State Department said is meant to “reaffirm” U.S. commitment to working with CARICOM member states. The visit, announced by the department, is also framed as part of an effort to keep the Western Hemisphere in focus even as the Trump administration’s foreign-policy attention has shifted toward the Middle East.
The timing places the trip about a month after the U.S. military operation that removed then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from power, according to the Associated Press. The AP report said Rubio is traveling against a backdrop in which American forces are massing in the Middle East and President Donald Trump has threatened potential military action involving Iran.
State Department officials said Rubio would participate in a summit of leaders from CARICOM and will do so during a Wednesday visit to St. Kitts. The department did not provide details on which specific officials Rubio would meet with during meetings held in Basseterre, the capital of the two-island nation, beyond noting that the outreach is conducted in connection with CARICOM.
Rubio has pushed for what the AP described as a greater U.S. role in the Western Hemisphere, and the department’s statement tied this week’s travel to that broader approach. In the State Department’s description of the trip, Rubio’s discussions with CARICOM leaders are expected to include ways to promote regional security and stability as well as trade and economic growth, the department said.
The AP report also described the administration’s Western Hemisphere strategy as drawing a parallel to the Monroe Doctrine, a historical policy notion associated with rejecting outside influence and asserting U.S. primacy in what the administration calls “America’s backyard.” In that framing, the AP said Trump and others have also referred to a “Donroe Doctrine” connected to U.S. actions aimed at drug trafficking and illegal migration.
Caribbean and regional security concerns are central to the agenda the department outlined, but the U.S. interest in CARICOM extends beyond immediate safety issues, the AP said. The report highlighted that St. Kitts and Nevis is among the few countries that still maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, a self-governing island Beijing considers part of Chinese territory.
The AP said the U.S. does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan but does sell it weapons. It added that the U.S. is seeking to counter Chinese influence in Latin America and the Caribbean built through loans and trade, and that this has become a relevant factor in U.S. engagement with CARICOM members that recognize Taiwan.
The AP report said CARICOM includes 15 island nations and mainland littoral states in South and Central America. Mexico and Venezuela have observer status in the grouping even though neither is a full member, according to the report, and Rubio’s meeting schedule at the CARICOM summit would cover both group and bilateral talks.
The AP also noted that Trump has invited Latin American leaders to take part in a summit in Florida next month, positioning it as part of the administration’s continuing outreach beyond the Caribbean. For Rubio, the immediate focus in St. Kitts and Nevis is described by the State Department as reaffirming U.S. commitment to stability and prosperity throughout the hemisphere in partnership with CARICOM states.