U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that he as been appointed as the "acting director" of the U.S. Agency for International Development as he arrived in El Salvador on Monday (February 3) to meet with President Nayib Bukele.
USAID is not an independent organization and needs to "take direction from the State Department," Rubio told reporters after his tour of the aeronautical company, Aeroman.
U.S. President Donald Trump is considering merging the USAID with the State Department to boost its efficiency and ensure its spending is in line with his administration's agenda, a senior White House official speaking on the condition of anonymity said on Monday.
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Hundreds of USAID programs covering billions of dollars worth of lifesaving aid across the globe came to a grinding halt after Trump on Jan. 20 ordered a freeze of most U.S. foreign aid, saying he wanted to ensure it is aligned with his "America First" policy.
Rubio started Monday in Panama, where he watched 43 Colombian migrants who had crossed the Darien Gap, likely bound for the U.S., board an Air Panama charter flight back to Colombia.
On Sunday (February 2), Rubio held talks with Panamanian officials over China's presence around the Panama Canal as well as migration.