MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Trump to gather 12 aligned Latin American leaders in Florida, with Mexico, Brazil and Colombia absent

The summit follows a week in which senior Trump officials sharpened their rhetoric on Latin America

U.S. President Donald Trump will host leaders from 12 Latin American and Caribbean countries in Doral, Florida, on March 7 for the so-called Shield of the Americas Summit, a meeting the White House is framing as a forum on security, migration and hemispheric cooperation. The gathering comes amid a broader U.S. diplomatic and military push in the region and just weeks before Trump is expected to travel to China.

According to the attendee list disclosed by the White House, those expected to attend include Javier Milei, Nayib Bukele, Daniel Noboa, Rodrigo Chaves, Luis Abinader, José Raúl Mulino, Santiago Peña, Mohamed Irfaan Ali, Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Nasry Asfura. Also on the list are Bolivia’s Rodrigo Paz and Chile’s president-elect José Antonio Kast, while Gabriel Boric remains formally in office until March 11. On the U.S. side, Trump will be joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jameson Greer.

The most notable absences are Mexico, Brazil and Colombia, three of the region’s most influential countries. Venezuela, Uruguay, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Peru are also not on the confirmed list. The exclusion of several left-leaning governments has reinforced the view that Washington is seeking to consolidate a bloc of ideologically aligned partners.

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump would speak with leaders “who have formed a historic coalition to work together to combat gangs and criminal cartels” and to address “illegal and mass migration” across the Western Hemisphere. White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the summit is expected to produce the Doral Charter, intended to affirm the right of the hemisphere’s peoples to shape their own future “free from interference.”

Karoline Leavitt confirmed President Trump is still hosting his Anti-China summit with Latin American leaders called the “Shield of Americas Summit.”

”This weekend I’m pleased to announce the President will welcome the heads of state from 12 nations across our western hemisphere… https://t.co/g8eJSvd7yT pic.twitter.com/C19wRXX2o8

— JJ (@jesseyjay94) March 4, 2026

The summit follows a week in which senior Trump officials sharpened their rhetoric on Latin America. Reuters reported on Thursday that adviser Stephen Miller argued cartels can only be defeated through military force, while Hegseth urged regional allies to go on the offensive. AP had earlier described the summit as part of a wider effort to counter China’s influence across the hemisphere.

The mix of invitees, the agenda and the broader context suggest the meeting is likely to serve less as a broad regional dialogue than as a display of political and strategic alignment with the White House.