Newly minted Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be heading to Panama during his first trip as head of the Trump administration's State Department. President Trump, of course, has spoken at length about his desire to retake the Panama Canal, and Rubio mentioned the key trade route during his confirmation hearing earlier this month, NBC News reports. "An argument could be made that the terms under which that canal were turned over have been violated," he said, referring to Trump's assertions that China is controlling the canal—assertions both China and Panama deny. "I hope we can resolve this issue of the canal and of its security, and also continue to work with [Panama] cooperatively on a host of issues we share in common, including what to do with migration," Rubio said at the time.
In addition to Panama, Rubio will visit other Central American spots including Guatemala, El Salvador, and Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean. A State Department spokesperson said while announcing the trip, "If we're going to be safe and prosperous and in good shape, we have to have an interest in our neighbors and in today's world, it's certainly South and Central America." Immigration will be a main focus of the trip, which will take place later this month, Reuters reports. (More Marco Rubio stories.)