As the United States implements a new foreign policy approach, Guatemala has surfaced as a case study in how international engagement can unfold under this administration. In February, during his first official trip since taking office, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced an agreement between the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Guatemalan government to modernize Puerto Quetzal, the country’s main port on the Pacific Ocean.
This week, a US Army Corps of Engineers mission arrived in Guatemala to advance plans for a $63 million feasibility and design phase, part of an estimated $600 million project fully financed by the Guatemalan government. This project aims to double the port’s capacity by adding four new berths and upgrading logistics infrastructure. A second phase will address logistical capacity and improve operations to handle expected demand increases. Additional potential plans include improvements to Puerto Santo Tomás de Castilla, Guatemala’s key port located on the Atlantic coast, as well as to the railway infrastructure linking both ports.
More than an infrastructure upgrade, this agreement is part of a broader US strategy to deepen economic ties with reliable partners in the region while creating jobs, strengthening supply chains, and boosting regional trade.
Why this matters
The United States is Guatemala’s main trading partner at a time when several countries in the region are deepening their ties with China. In 2024, trade in goods between the United States and Guatemala reached $14.7 billion, with a $4.7 billion surplus in favor of the United States. Yet, Guatemala’s weak infrastructure remains a bottleneck for smoother trade and increased flows.
Puerto Quetzal is the country’s main entry point for imports, handling 47 percent of inbound goods. These include corn, wheat, cement, gasoline, and fertilizers. This makes it central for trade and food security, as well as the operation of the country’s transport, agricultural, and construction sectors. Major exports from the port include agroindustry products such as sugar, bananas, and coffee.
In recent years, Puerto Quetzal has faced congestion and operational delays, with wait times stretching up to ninety days. Each day of delay costs vessels an estimated $20,000 to $25,000, potentially adding up to more than one million dollars per vessel in some cases. The US-Guatemala project has the potential to change that. More berths and enhanced logistics can make trade cheaper and more reliable for Guatemalan exporters, US businesses, and regional users. Puerto Quetzal is strategically located between Mexico’s Port of Manzanillo, the largest Pacific port in the region, and the Panama Canal, positioning it to become a major hub in the Americas.
Beyond the port project’s economic benefits, it can also contribute to strengthening regional security, with enhanced customs supporting efforts to curb illicit trade flows. And geopolitically, the project reaffirms the United States’ role as a partner in strategic infrastructure investment in Latin America at a time when China continues to expand its regional footprint through Belt and Road Initiative projects.
Steps already underway
Just weeks after Rubio returned to Washington, US Army Corps of Engineers technical teams visited Guatemala to begin feasibility studies, meeting with public- and private-sector leaders to assess national infrastructure needs.
In May, Admiral Alvin Holsey, the head of US Southern Command, joined Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo and Defense Minister Henry Sáenz alongside US Army Corps of Engineers representatives to sign a cooperation agreement. Under the agreement, design work is set to begin as part of the upcoming visit, with construction beginning by December 2027. With the Guatemalan president limited to one term and a new administration expected in early 2028, this timeline shows that the project is not a short-term political initiative. Instead, it represents a long-term effort to modernize critical infrastructure and deepen US-Guatemala relations.
Guatemala is also working on reforms to accompany the upgrades. In late May, Arévalo introduced Bill 6541 to restructure the national port system, joining proposed legislation that had already been introduced in Congress. Lawmakers must now align these efforts to accompany the port modernization that will soon be underway.
Beyond this project, Guatemala’s broader cooperation with the United States has stood out in recent months. Rubio and deputy secretary of state Christopher Landau have commended the country on its efforts to curb migration, enhance border security and counter Chinese influence in the region, through its longstanding diplomatic relationship with Taiwan.
The success of this project, and the broader US-Guatemala relationship, could serve as a model for how the rest of the region seeks to engage with the Trump administration, offering lessons for strategic infrastructure projects.
What success will require
Guatemala must advance its port governance reforms and consolidate the different proposals now under debate in Congress. While representatives have said this effort should focus on taking the best parts of each proposal, it should also emphasize consulting with port users and setting a clear system for public-private cooperation. Without legal certainty and accountability, the same inefficiencies and delays that currently hinder business will persist, no matter how big and modern the port becomes.
Just as important will be ensuring political continuity, especially through the transition to the next government. Securing broad political and private sector backing, both in Guatemala and the United States, will be key to seeing the project through.
If successful, this partnership will do more than expand a port. At a time when infrastructure investment is shaping geopolitical alignments, Puerto Quetzal’s experience could serve as a blueprint for how the United States can continue to work with regional allies to address shared economic and security concerns.
Isabella Palacios is a program assistant at the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center.
Jose Echeverría is a nonresident fellow at the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center and the executive director of the US-Guatemala Business Council.
Further reading
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Image: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo arrive to give a joint news conference at the National Palace in Guatemala City, February 5, 2025. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS.
