Panama has agreed to back out of an investment deal with China, dealing a blow to Beijing's influence in the Americas as President Trump threatens to take back the Panama Canal.
As reported by Breitbart, following a visit from Secretary of state Marco Rubio, Panama agreed not to renew its involvement in the Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure project that China has used to expand its reach in developing nations.
During his first trip abroad, Rubio echoed Trump's concerns about China's influence over the Panama Canal and the Trump administration's belief that Panama is in violation of its treaty obligations with the United States, which handed over control of the strategic waterway decades ago. A 1977 treaty enables the U.S. to intervene militarily to enforce the neutrality of the canal.
"Secretary Rubio made clear that this status quo is unacceptable and that absent immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights under the Treaty," State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said.
Following a meeting with Secretary of State Rubio, President José Raúl Mulino said Panama would no longer renew its agreement to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative. It's a significant reversal after Panama became the first Latin American country to join the infrastructure project in 2018, a year after Panama severed ties with Taiwan to kowtow to China.
"We’ll study the possibility of terminating it early,” Mulino said, according to Reuters.
While appearing to bend somewhat to U.S. pressure, Mulino insisted that control of the canal is not up for negotiation.
"I do not feel that there is any real threat at this time against the (neutrality) treaty, its validity, and much less the use of military force to make the treaty," he said.
The Panama Canal links the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, providing a crucial shortcut for global trade. Chinese influence over the trade route could cripple the U.S. in the event of a geopolitical confrontation between the two powers, Rubio has warned.
A subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings operates two ports on either side of the Panama Canal, raising concern with the White House.
Rubio's trip to Panama was the first time in a century that a Secretary of State has visited Latin America on their first foreign trip, reflecting Trump's desire to shift American foreign policy toward safeguarding American interests close to home.
Trump's "America First" approach channels past presidents who expanded American power at the dawn of the 20th century, such as Willam McKinley and Teddy Roosevelt, the latter of whom oversaw the construction of the Panama Canal. Trump has said America made a mistake by ceding control of the canal and that Panama has "violated" its obligations to keep shipping neutral.
“China is running the Panama Canal that was not given to China, that was given to Panama foolishly, but they violated the agreement, and we’re going to take it back, or something very powerful is going to happen,” Trump told reporters Sunday.
