WASHINGTON – Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) sat down to discuss his recent trip to Latin America as part of a bipartisan congressional delegation (CODEL). The group visited Panama, a principal partner, and major non-NATO allies Colombia, Argentina, and Brazil. The delegation investigated the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) growing influence in the region and supported U.S. Southern Command’s (SOUTHCOM) mission to strengthen U.S.-Latin America bilateral ties, security cooperation, and intergovernmental collaboration.

"China has made substantially more inroads than I had imagined," said Sen. Lee. "We know about China's predatory practices and how China wants to loop them in and make them more and more of an ally." Sen. Lee continued, "If we work with our Latin American partners, our partners in this hemisphere, we're going to be much more capable of not becoming dependent on China."