Castro Joins Effort in Introducing Summit of the Americas Act

A bipartisan congressional effort wants the United States to have a more leading role in the Summit of the Americas. Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R), the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Chairwoman, led the effort in introducing the Summit of the Americas Act this week.

Rep. Salazar is joined by California Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D) and Texas Rep. Joaquin Castro (D) in introducing the bill that strengthens diplomatic relations with the United States' North American, Latin American, and Caribbean partners. The bill would authorize the Secretary to work with U.S. partners to organize Cities Summit of the Americas as part of the Summit of the Americas process. First pioneered in 2023, the Cities Summit of the Americas is a convening of a city and community leaders across the hemisphere. With this Summit, representatives from government, business, civil society, academia, youth, culture, arts, and indigenous and underrepresented groups would share best practices and exchange valuable lessons that extend a regional cooperation to the most grassroots level.

Rep. Castro weighed in on the effort, commenting that “more than any other part of the world, the future of the United States is intimately linked with that of our neighbors in the Western Hemisphere." "The Summit of the Americans Act sends a powerful message that the United States will continue to be an active, engaged partner with a steadfast commitment to multilateral progress that advances democracy, protects freedom, and builds opportunity across our hemisphere."

Rep. Salazar also commented that "China, Russia, and Iran are breaking their way into the Western Hemisphere while the United States' leadership fails to confront it." Because of this lack of leadership that she argues the Biden Administration is showing, the bill is meant "to inspire cooperation and build mutual prosperity in the Americas with the United States leading the charge."