Secretary of State Marco Rubio's first stop this weekend will be Panama City as Trump' administration shifts back Washington's focus to Latin America.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic from Feb. 1-6, the State Department said in a statement on Friday.

Envoy for special missions RICHARD GRENELL is in Caracas today and met with Venezuelan leader NICOLÁS MADURO. His trip comes as Trump has stated his continued interest in deporting thousands of Venezuelan migrants and addressing the major migration crisis the South American country’s political turmoil has created.

For a moment on Sunday, the government of Colombia’s Gustavo Petro looked like it might be the first in Latin America to take a meaningful stand against President Donald Trump’s mass-deportation plans.

Rift between US and Colombia, threats of tariffs on Mexico, designs on Panama Canal and mass deportations could encourage closer ties with Beijing

The U.S. president is resurrecting tactics from his first term and promising a more aggressive approach to migrant flows. Regional leaders are responding.

Critics say the new administration's harsh stance on the region risks opening the door for rivals like China to increase their presence there.