S010-EEUU CUMBRE ESCUDO DE LAS AMERICAS

STORY: Latin American leaders arrived in Doral, Florida on Saturday (March 7) for U.S. President Donald Trump's "Shield of the Americas" summit.

A focus of the summit is expected to be on China's influence in the region. The gathering comes as Trump prepares for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing at the end of March. The Trump administration hopes to pull Latin America closer to Washington after years of growing Chinese trade, lending and infrastructure investment in the region.

The summit brings together conservative leaders aligned with Trump on security, migration and economics, reflecting a broader rightward shift in parts of Latin America. Among those attending are Argentine President Javier Milei, Chile's president-elect Jose Antonio Kast and Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, whose gang crackdown, criticized by human rights groups, has become a model for parts of Latin America's right. Also expected are Honduran President Nasry Asfura, who narrowly won a disputed election with Trump's backing, and Ecuador's President Daniel Noboa, who has echoed parts of Trump's economic agenda and recently announced joint operations with the U.S. in a military crackdown on drug trafficking.

Saturday's gathering, dubbed the "Shield of the Americas," also gives Trump a chance to project strength closer to home even as the conflict in the Middle East leads to consequences he may not fully control, such as rising prices for oil and gas. Kristi Noem will be special envoy for the "Shield of the Americas," Trump posted Thursday. Noem was Homeland Security secretary until Trump removed her from that post this week after mounting criticism of her from Congress.