Rubio demands Panama Curb Chinese influence around the canal: NPR

Panama’s Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha (r) shakes the hand of the American State Secretary Marco Rubio while leaving a meeting at the presidential palace in Panama City, Panama, on Sunday.

Mark Schiefelbein/Pool/AFP via Getty images

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Mark Schiefelbein/Pool/AFP via Getty images

The American State Secretary Marco Rubio told Panama’s leaders on Sunday that the Midden -American country should take immediate action on curbing the influence of China in the Panama Canal area or the United States.

Rubio is on his First overseas trip As the best diplomat in America. In addition to Panama, he is planned this week to visit El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.

On Sunday, Rubio spoke with Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino and Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha. He told them that President Trump “has made a provisional determination that the current position of influence and control of the Chinese Communist Party on the Panama Canal area is a threat to the channel” the presence of China in the channel area spends a treaty that in 1977 by the US and Panama have been signed and ensure that the channel would be neutral and be open to all nations.

“Secretary Rubio has made it clear that this status quo is unacceptable and that absence of immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights under the Convention,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson in one rack.

Mulino told reporters that his conversations with Rubio were “respectful” and “positive” and said that he did not “feel that there is a real threat to the treaty and its validity,” The Associated Press has reported.

The Panama Canal, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, is vital for global trade. The United States is the largest user of the Waterweg, but other large users are Chile, China, Japan and South Korea, according to the Council for Foreign Relations.

A company established in Hong Kong has managed ports on the Atlantic and Pacific Coasts since 1997, but there is “no evidence” that the Chinese government controls the channel, the CFR said. However, in recent years, Chinese companies have been strongly involved in infrastructure projects in the channel, According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Rubio has said that in the case of a Chinese companies conflict, the channel may be able to turn into a choke point.

Trump has increasingly spoken about wanting to recapture the channel and claims that Panama has given control of the Waterweg to China. During his inauguration speech last month, the president said: “We didn’t give it to China. We gave it to Panama and we take it back.”

The US checked the channel between 1903 and 1977, but President Jimmy Carter Signed treaties to gradually give control of the narrow channel zone to Panama. Fully property was given to Panama in 1999.

It remains unclear with what kind of consequences that Panama can have to do if it does not follow at Rubio’s request. Leland Lazarus, who studies the role of China in Latin -America at Florida International University, said NPR That rubio will have his work cut, because China is an important trading partner in Latin -America.

Prior to Rubio’s trip, the President of Panama had already excluded conversations about the control of the Panama Canal and said that their conversation should concentrate on trade and migration.

Michele Kelemen from NPR contributed reporting.