Chile's President-Elect Kast Confirms Participation in Miami Summit

Chile's elected president, the far-right José Antonio Kast, confirmed this Sunday his participation in a regional summit led by U.S. President Donald Trump, next March 7 in Miami, to address 'the advance of organized crime and terrorism, massive illegal immigration, and foreign interference in the Western Hemisphere.' According to the Chilean press, Kast's team does not rule out a meeting between the future Chilean leader and Trump, as well as with other U.S. government officials. The meeting will take place at Trump National Doral Miami in the state of Florida, four days before Kast assumes the Presidency of Chile, and will add to the long list of trips— to countries in the region and ideologically aligned in Europe—that the future president has undertaken since he won the elections in December. President of the Republican Party, Arturo Squella, in statements collected by the local press, highlighted the 'great opportunity' of Kast's attendance at the Miami summit to meet with leaders of countries 'that face similar threats to ours, particularly organized crime,' among which he mentioned allied governments such as that of Ecuador, with Daniel Noboa, and Argentina, with Javier Milei. The confirmation of the event comes amid diplomatic tensions between Chile and the United States after, on Friday, the Donald Trump administration revoked the diplomatic visas of three government officials, including the Minister of Transport and Telecommunications, Juan Carlos Muñoz, over a project to build a submarine fiber optic cable to connect China and Chile. Furthermore, in the four months that the U.S. ambassador, Brandon Judd, has been in Chile, there have also been several diplomatic tensions. However, the victory of Kast and the far-right Republican Party in the December elections was celebrated by the U.S. president, who sees him as another of his allies in the region. During his term, Boric has publicly criticized Trump for issues such as tariff hikes, his statements about reclaiming control of the Panama Canal, his role in the war in Ukraine, or the bombings of Iran. The U.S. sanction prompted the progressive Gabriel Boric's administration to file a protest note with the United States through its ambassador in the South American country. The OPE explained that Kast, who will take power on March 11, received the invitation to the event on February 16 from the U.S. Government and will be accompanied by the designated future Minister of Foreign Affairs, Francisco Pérez Mackenna. The Office of the President-Elect (OPE) also stated in a press release that one of the issues of 'maximum interest' to be discussed is 'the new context that presents itself today in Venezuela, as an opportunity for the return of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants who are in Chile.'