Tim Padgett

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos went to a small town south of Bogotá Tuesday to mark a major milestone in the country’s peace process – but now the hard part begins in Colombia.

In the central Colombian town of Mesetas, Santos joined leaders of the Marxist guerrilla army known as the FARC. Along with representatives from the U.N., they declared the historic completion of the FARC’s disarmament — including the delivery of more than 7,000 weapons now padlocked away.

Greilys arrived in South Florida two months ago from Los Teques, Venezuela, south of Caracas, with “a few dollars and four suitcases” – hounded out of her job and her country, she says, by an increasingly brutal socialist regime.

President Trump’s Cuba speech in Miami last Friday offered chest-thumping, cold-war nostalgia sound-bites like:

“Now we hold the cards.”

“We challenge Cuba to come to the table with a new agreement.”

President Trump brought a fiery taste of the Cold War back to Miami today when he announced his new Cuba policy. But is his Cuba crackdown likely to leverage the democratic changes he promised?

Central American leaders and U.S. Cabinet members are in Miami to figure out how to curtail illegal immigration from Central America. But the big question is whether President Trump is behind the effort to help the beleaguered region.

Central America is a major source of two problems that greatly affect and divide the U.S. – drug trafficking and illegal immigration. Which is why the U.S. and Mexico are hosting a major conference here this week on rebuilding Central American prosperity and security.

President Trump will be in Miami Friday to unveil his new Cuba policy, which will reverse some of his predecessor’s normalization measures. The main targets are Cuba’s military – and wannabe American tourists.

Illegal immigration from Central America remains a big U.S. concern - enough so that a conference begins in Miami Thursday at which Central American leaders and U.S. cabinet members will try to hash out how to pull the region out of its violent and impoverished tail spin.

Puerto Ricans want to become America’s 51st state. But right now it's doubtful America – at least President Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress – feels the same way.

In a non-binding referendum on Sunday in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 97 percent of those who voted chose statehood over the two other options: remaining a U.S. territory or becoming an independent country.

Puerto Rico held a referendum Sunday on whether to remain a U.S. commonwealth, be independent – or become the 51st U.S. state. Those Puerto Ricans who voted gave statehood a big victory, but it’s not as big a win as it first looks, largely because turnout was far lower than anticipated.

More than 97 percent of Puerto Ricans who cast ballots in the non-binding plebiscite chose statehood. Now they take the issue to the U.S. Congress, which has the final say on whether U.S. territories like Puerto Rico become states.

In Miami-Dade County, Airbnb has become a big business and political controversy. But across the Florida Straits in Cuba, there are few complaints about the online lodging service.

In fact, Airbnb is urging the Trump Administration not to roll back normalized relations with Cuba. And it’s stepping into Cuba politics because it’s doing so well in Cuba business. This week Airbnb reports that Cubans have netted $40 million the past two years by using the online service to rent their homes and rooms to short-term visitors.

Today there’s rarely if ever good economic news from Venezuela. But the country’s already collapsing economy may be closer to outright crashing. And that has serious repercussions for South Florida.

Italian tire maker Pirelli announced Tuesday it’s suspending operations in Venezuela. United Airlines this week stopped service to Venezuela. General Motors said last month it’s leaving Venezuela. The reason: Venezuela is suffering the world’s worst economic implosion.