Panama’s president José Raúl Mulino stressed that sovereignty over his nation’s namesake canal is not up for debate, after talks with US secretary of state Marco Rubio on Sunday, but he outlined the possibility of repatriating more migrants.
The canal has emerged as a flashpoint between the two nations, as US president Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that the US must retake the waterway key to global trade due to his claims of undue Chinese influence.
Mr Rubio told Mr Mulino that immediate changes were needed against Chinese influence or the US would act, a state department spokesperson said.
The Panamanian government has vehemently denied ceding operation of the canal to China and insists it administers the canal fairly to all shipping.
Holocaust, the 1978 TV series that helped Germany break the silence about its past
Auschwitz survivors to visit home of former camp commander Rudolf Höss
Trump’s Panama Canal seizure threat revives memories of 1989 US invasion
Trump’s blunderbuss strategies on climate and energy may backfire in ways he has not envisaged
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 US, Singapore and Taiwan.
In remarks to reporters, Mulino suggested a possible expansion of an existing agreement with the US from last July that could pave the way for direct deportations of non-Panamanian migrants who cross the Darién Gap jungle on Panama’s southern border with Colombia. He insisted, however, that the US government would need to cover the cost.
Over the past few years, the area has seen a surge of US-bound migrants.
The Panamanian leader noted that such an expanded deal could potentially allow for the deportation of migrants from Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador.
[ Trump’s Panama Canal seizure threat revives memories of 1989 US invasionOpens in new window ]
“We spoke extensively about the problem of migration, with the understanding that Panama is a transit point,” said Mr Mulino, after his meeting with Mr Rubio.
Mr Mulino’s talks with Mr Rubio, Mr Trump’s top diplomatic envoy, mark a first stop for the secretary of state on a tour of several Central American nations as well as the Dominican Republic over the next few days. – Reuters
