Senator Marco Rubio is currently on a trip to South America. His main stop is Colombia. He is there to meet with the country's new leader.

Rubio wants the United States and Colombia to be better partners. He is focusing on two big goals: security and trade.

When he talks about security, he means working together to keep the region safe. This includes fighting crime and making sure countries help each other out if there is trouble.

He also wants to fix trade deals. Better trade deals mean it is easier and cheaper for Colombia and the U.S. to buy and sell things to each other. This is meant to help the economies in both countries grow.

Another big part of his trip is China. Rubio and other U.S. leaders are worried that China is getting too much power in Latin America. By visiting these countries, Rubio is trying to show that the U.S. is still the best partner for them. He wants to make sure these countries stay close to the U.S. instead of moving toward China.

Rubio even mentioned something called the 'Monroe Doctrine' during his trip. This is an old American idea that says countries in the Americas should look to the U.S. for help, not to foreign powers from across the ocean.

So far, the meetings seem to be going well. Both sides say they have made progress on talking about safety rules and taxes on goods that move between the two countries.

Source: Reuters