Rubio urges Latin American and beyond to step up support for Haiti

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday urged countries across Latin America and beyond to step up financial and personnel support for the multinational mission working to stabilize Haiti, saying the effort cannot succeed without broader international backing.

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Rubio made the appeal while hosting Kenyan President William Ruto at the State Department for a signing ceremony, praising Kenya’s “extraordinary, really heroic role” in leading the security intervention in Haiti. He said Washington is preparing to move into a new phase focused on establishing a “gang suppression force” to combat the country’s spiraling violence.

“We understand and believe they cannot do it by themselves,” Rubio said. “I wanted to use this as an opportunity to continue to encourage countries in the region and around the world to step up and contribute… We need their money. We need their funds, and we need their personnel as well to make this work.”

Rubio added that if “five or 10 countries” contributed even half of Kenya’s current support, “it would be an extraordinary achievement.”

Kenya has been at the forefront of the international push to stabilize Haiti, which has endured years of political instability, widespread gang control, and deepening poverty. The call for more support comes amid grim security and human rights assessments from the United Nations.

The UN Integrated Office in Haiti reported last month that 1,247 people were murdered and 710 injured between July and September. While 30% of the killings were attributed to gang violence, the report found that 61% resulted from operations carried out by Haitian security forces, including drone strikes, ground missions, and incidents involving excessive use of force and summary executions. Another 9% of deaths were linked to self-defense groups and lynch mobs.

The report also underscored the alarming exploitation of children by armed groups, describing it as one of Haiti’s most severe human rights crises. At least 302 children were recruited by gangs in 2024, though UN officials warn that the true figure is likely much higher.

Rubio said the stakes remain high and warned that restoring stability will take a collaborative international effort: “It needs to happen if we’re serious about it. It needs to happen.”