Rubio, Noem Speak at Shield of Americas Summit Lunch

U.S. officials outline goals for new regional security and economic cooperation initiative

Published on Mar. 8, 2026

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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem addressed attendees at a lunch event for the newly launched Shield of the Americas summit, highlighting the administration's priorities for increased security, economic, and diplomatic cooperation across the Western Hemisphere. Rubio emphasized the initiative's focus on both security and economic prosperity, while Noem detailed her role as a special envoy to lead the effort and outlined key objectives like combating transnational criminal organizations and countering foreign adversarial influence in the region.

Why it matters

The Shield of the Americas represents a major foreign policy push by the U.S. to strengthen ties and coordination with its regional partners on issues of shared concern, from public safety to economic development. It signals a shift away from unilateral approaches to regional challenges in favor of a more collaborative, multilateral framework.

The details

In his remarks, Secretary Rubio welcomed attendees and stressed that the initiative goes beyond just security, also encompassing economic, trade, energy, and other areas of cooperation. He announced the appointment of Secretary Noem as a special envoy dedicated to leading the Shield of the Americas effort on a day-to-day basis. Noem, a former governor and Homeland Security Secretary, outlined key priorities for the initiative, including destroying transnational criminal cartels, securing borders, combating foreign adversarial influence, and promoting economic prosperity across the hemisphere. She emphasized the importance of the U.S. working closely with regional partners to achieve these goals.

  • The lunch event took place on March 8, 2026.
  • President Trump was en route to Dover Air Force Base to receive the remains of six Americans killed in an operation against Iranian terrorism.

The players

Marco Rubio

U.S. Secretary of State.

Kristi Noem

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, appointed as special envoy to lead the Shield of the Americas initiative.

President Trump

The U.S. President who launched the Shield of the Americas initiative.

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What they’re saying

“This Shield of Americas will be a powerful example to the rest of the world about what's possible. There is nothing like this happening today anywhere else in the world, and the way that we cooperate on our shared ideals of freedom and of democracy and safety and security will be a shining light to all of those who wish to be more like all of us.”

— Kristi Noem, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security (Mirage News)

“Secure borders has changed everything for our country. It's allowed us an opportunity to focus on business and investment relationships with other countries and has ended the crisis that our country was going through in the years previous to President Trump's leadership.”

— Kristi Noem, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security (Mirage News)

What’s next

Secretary Noem plans to provide her personal contact information to the summit attendees so they can reach her directly on an ongoing basis to continue building relationships and advancing the Shield of the Americas initiative.

The takeaway

The Shield of the Americas represents a major shift in U.S. regional policy, moving away from unilateral approaches in favor of increased multilateral cooperation and coordination with partners across the Western Hemisphere on shared security, economic, and diplomatic priorities.