STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, has been traveling in Central America - says he wants the United States to be a good partner. He's also delivered warnings to Panama about President Trump's bid to take over part of their country, and has been answering questions about the administration's bid to dismantle the U.S. International Development Agency. NPR's Michele Kelemen has been watching the way that Rubio has managed all this.
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MARCO RUBIO: (Speaking Spanish).
PRESIDENT NAYIB BUKELE: (Speaking Spanish).
MICHELE KELEMEN, BYLINE: Looking out over a mountain-rimmed lake in El Salvador, Secretary Rubio seemed in his element, speaking in Spanish with someone he calls a friend - President Nayib Bukele. Off in the distance, a boat with Bukele's cheering fans sailed by.
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BUKELE: 90% approval rating.
(LAUGHTER)
KELEMEN: Bukele points out that he has a huge approval rating. He's popular both in El Salvador and in Trump's circles for his harsh crackdown on gangs. Now he's offering to help the U.S. by taking back illegal immigrants who are gang members and criminals, not just from El Salvador but anywhere in the world - even U.S. citizens. Secretary Rubio told reporters later it was a great offer.
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RUBIO: Obviously, we'll have to study it on our end. There are obviously legalities involved. We have a constitution. We have all sorts of things, but it's a very generous offer. No one's ever made an offer like that. And to outsource, at a fraction of the cost, at least some of the most dangerous and violent criminals that we have in the United States.
KELEMEN: Working with countries in this region to stop illegal migration has been a key theme of his trip. So, too, has U.S. foreign assistance, which has been put on hold in most parts of the world.
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RUBIO: I have long supported foreign aid. I continue to support foreign aid, but foreign aid is not charity. It exists for the purpose of advancing the national interest of the United States.
KELEMEN: Rubio says he's issuing waivers to make sure programs on security and migration continue in the countries he's visiting, including Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.
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RUBIO: Every dollar we will spend, as long as I'm secretary of state and as long as President Trump is in the White House, is going to be a dollar that's advancing our national interest.
KELEMEN: All week, Rubio has been defending the administration's moves to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development, Salvadoran President Bukele complained on social media about democracy and human rights funding coming from USAID and said cutting that would be a big win. Rubio says he doesn't plan to lecture allies about human rights and will treat them better, but other partners in the region have faced tariff threats from President Trump. And Panama, the first stop on this five-country visit, has faced demands to give back the Panama Canal. Secretary Rubio didn't answer questions when he visited the canal, but he later described his talks with Panama's president as frank and good.
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RUBIO: Look, he's a friend of America. He is. He's a friend of America. Panama is a strong partner and ally of the United States.
KELEMEN: But he says the U.S. is concerned that Chinese companies control strategic ports along the canal.
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RUBIO: When we turned over the canal, we turned it over to Panama. We didn't turn it over to China.
KELEMEN: Rubio says he came away from his talks feeling good about the discussion, but says these issues will take time to resolve. Whether that will be enough for his boss is another question.
Michele Kelemen, NPR News, with the secretary in Guatemala City. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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