WASHINGTON (AP) — Top U.S. military officials are meeting leaders of Caribbean nations this week as the Trump administration has escalated its firepower in the region as part of what it calls a campaign against drug trafficking.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and meet Wednesday with the country’s top leaders, including President Luis Abinader, Minister of Defense Lt. Gen. Carlos Antonio Fernández Onofre and other officials, the Pentagon said Tuesday.

The announcement came the same day that Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and President Donald Trump’s primary military adviser, met with Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

They “exchanged views on challenges affecting the Caribbean region, includi

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