US President Donald Trump on Saturday hosted a group of Latin American and Caribbean leaders for what the White House called the “Shield of the Americas” summit, a gathering aimed at strengthening security cooperation and countering organised crime and migration in the Western Hemisphere.
The meeting comes as the Trump administration seeks to reassert Washington’s influence in the region while dealing with multiple global crises, including the conflict with Iran and tensions in the Middle East, according to the Associated Press.
The summit brings together leaders from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago, among others.
However, major regional powers such as Brazil and Mexico are not participating, AFP reported.
The event is being hosted at the Trump National Doral, the US president’s personal resort in Miami, Florida.
The “Shield of the Americas” initiative reflects what the White House describes as a tougher approach to regional security under Trump’s foreign policy, which seeks to counter drug cartels, curb illegal migration and push back against China’s growing economic influence in the Americas.
Defence secretary Pete Hegseth told regional leaders that previous administrations had neglected the Western Hemisphere, arguing that Washington had focused too much on other global theatres while ignoring challenges closer to home, news agency AP reported.
According to Axios, the summit is part of the US president’s broader effort to reassert American influence in the region through what his administration calls the “Donroe Doctrine,” a modern interpretation of the historic Monroe Doctrine aimed at limiting the influence of rival powers such as China.
Leaders attending the summit include Argentina’s Javier Milei, Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa and El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele, whose tough security policies have drawn attention across the region.
