US Secretary of State Rubio makes debut in Panama as Trump threatens to take canal

PANAMA CITY - Mr Marco Rubio arrived in Panama on Feb 1 on his debut trip abroad as US secretary of state, as he looks for how to follow up on President Donald Trump’s extraordinary threat to seize the Panama Canal.

Mr Rubio’s mission came as Mr Trump imposed steep tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China – another step showing a far more aggressive US foreign policy.

Mr Rubio will travel later to four other small Latin American countries for an agenda focused on migration, a highly unusual first trip for the top US diplomat, whose predecessors were more likely to start the job with language of cooperation with major allies.

Mr Trump has refused to rule out military force to seize the Panama Canal, which the US handed over at the end of 1999, saying that China has exerted too much control through its investment in surrounding ports.

In his inaugural address, Mr Trump said that the US will be “taking it back” – and he refused to back down on Jan 31.

“They’ve already offered to do many things,” Mr Trump said of Panama, “but we think it’s appropriate that we take it back.”

He alleged that Panama was taking down Chinese-language signs to cover up how “they’ve totally violated the agreement” on the canal.

“Marco Rubio is going over to talk to the gentleman that’s in charge,” Mr Trump told reporters.

Mr Rubio will tour the Panama Canal and meet President Jose Raul Mulino on Feb 2, a US official said.

Mr Mulino, generally considered an ally of the US, has ruled out opening negotiations after complaining to the United Nations about Mr Trump’s threat.

“I cannot negotiate, much less open a process of negotiations on the canal,” Mr Mulino said on Jan 30.

The issue “is sealed. The canal is Panama’s”, Mr Mulino added.

Mr Mulino’s government, however, has ordered an audit of CK Hutchison Holdings, the Hong Kong company that operates ports on both sides of the canal.

What does ‘taking it back’ mean?

Mr Trump’s more aggressive foreign policy postures come as his administration also upends foreign aid, with the US media characterising recent firings at the nation’s international development agency as a “purge”.

Amid the upheaval, which has seen swathes of humanitarian funding frozen, the United States Agency for International Development’s websites were down over the weekend, with Democratic Senator Chris Murphy criticising the “total destruction” of the agency.

The State Department has also altered its travel advisory language to get rid of references to trans people, changing LGBTQ to LGB.

In Panama, it remains to be seen how Mr Rubio carries out Mr Trump’s threat. Some experts believe that Mr Trump was simply applying pressure and could declare a win by the US ramping up investment in the canal – an outcome that most Panamanians would welcome.

Mr Rubio has played down the military option but also did not contradict his boss.

“I think the President’s been pretty clear he wants to administer the canal again. Obviously, the Panamanians are not big fans of that idea,” Mr Rubio told SiriusXM radio in an interview before the trip.

He acknowledged that Panama’s government “generally is pro-American” but said that the Panama Canal is a “core national interest for us”.

“We cannot allow any foreign power – particularly China – to hold that kind of potential control over it that they do. That just can’t continue,” Mr Rubio said.

The canal remains the crucial link between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and coasts, with 40 per cent of US container traffic going through it.

Trump administration officials said they were blaming not Mr Mulino but previous Panamanian president Juan Carlos Varela, who in 2017 – during Mr Trump’s first term as president – moved to sever ties with Taiwan in favour of China.

Mr Mauricio Claver-Carone, the US special envoy on Latin America, charged that Panama unfairly raised costs for US ships while also seeking assistance from the US for canal upkeep. Panama attributes rising costs to the effects of a drought, exacerbated by climate change. AFP