US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino that US President Donald Trump has determined China’s influence threatens the Panama Canal and that immediate changes were needed or the US would act, the State Department said on Monday.
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Rubio told Mulino that Trump “has made a preliminary determination that the current position of influence and control of the Chinese Communist Party over the Panama Canal area is a threat to the canal and represents a violation of the Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal”, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said.
The Panamanian government has vehemently denied ceding operation of the canal to China and insists it administers the canal fairly to all shipping.
Though the canal itself is operated by Panama, the two ports on either side are run by publicly listed Hong Kong company CK Hutchinson, while other ports nearby are operated by private companies from the United States, Singapore and Taiwan.
Rubio met Panama’s president on the opening stop of his first foreign trip as America’s top diplomat as Trump increased pressure on Washington’s neighbours and allies, including a demand for the Panama Canal to be returned to the United States.
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A day after Trump announced he was imposing major tariffs on Canada and Mexico, prompting retaliation from those countries, Rubio was taking perhaps a less confrontational and more diplomatic approach cordially greeting Panama’s foreign minister.