As America’s top diplomat, Rubio will not need to be briefed on the state of play. His views were forged in Miami, which has its own foreign policy and serves as the de facto capital of Latin America. It is a Latino-dominated city of exiles, where political shake ups in Latin America can lead to the eruption of local protests.

China's expanding footprint in Latin America is expected to be high on the agenda when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits Panama next week on his first overseas trip since taking office, according to observers.