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During a Senate Committee on Foreign Relations business meeting, several bills authored or co-lead by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) were favorably reported out of Committee and now head to the full Senate.

• “Congress must continue to closely monitor our region as far-left Marxist regimes undermine democratic order and illegally enrich themselves through corrupt enterprises. At a time when the Caribbean faces unprecedented security challenges, it’s in our national security interests to prioritize accountability and transnational cooperation.” — Senator Rubio

Earlier this year, Rubio wrote a bilingual op-ed for Americano Media where he highlighted his Foreign Policy plan for the Western Hemisphere. 

• United States Legal Gold and Mining Partnership Strategy Act: First introduced in November 2022, the legislation would prevent illicit gold mining in Latin America and multiple developing countries. The bill would require the President to establish a strategy to break linkages between artisanal and small-scale mining and illicit actors. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) is co-leading this bipartisan bill. 

• Haiti Criminal Collusion Transparency Act: First introduced in October 2022, the legislation would require the U.S. Department of State to investigate and provide Congress with annual reports to identify the relationships between criminal gangs and political and economic elites in Haiti. The bill would also require the President to impose robust sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act on individuals identified in the reports to hold these criminal gangs, as well as their elite backers, accountable. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) is co-leading this bipartisan bill, and Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Cory Booker (D-NJ) are original cosponsors. 

• Caribbean Basin Security Initiative: First introduced in March 2023, the legislation would codify and improve the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, which coordinates regional security cooperation, combats drug trafficking, strengthens the rule of law, and boosts disaster resilience. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) is co-leading this bipartisan bill.           

• Western Hemisphere Partnership Act: First introduced in April 2023 by Senators Risch (R-ID) and Menendez (D-NJ), the legislation directs the State Department to pursue collaborative efforts with Latin American and Caribbean nations to promote security, digitization, trade and democracy in the region. Senator Rubio successfully incorporated his Western Hemisphere Security Strategy Act into the legislation. Rubio first introduced the Western Hemisphere Security Strategy Act in February 2022, and would require the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to enhance bilateral and multilateral security cooperation in Latin America and the Caribbean to counter illicit narcotics trafficking and the malign influence of authoritarian states like China, Russia and Iran.
• Resolution Commemorating Russian Opposition Leader Vladimir Kara-Murza: First introduced in March 2023, this resolution marks the one year anniversary of Vladimir Kara-Murza’s detention in Russia for his opposition to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Senator Rubio also worked with Senator Cardin (D-MD) to pass a bipartisan resolution honoring Kara-Murza and other Russian opposition leaders.