By Kanishka Singh and Simon Lewis
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s trip to Central America, including Panama, is partially about countering China, a State Department spokesperson told Fox Business, as new President Donald Trump is pushing to “take back” the Panama Canal.
KEY QUOTE
“Part of this trip is about countering China,” spokesperson Tammy Bruce told Fox Business on Tuesday.
Asked if Rubio would “lay down the law” with Panama over the canal, Bruce said: “It’s not about laying down any law. I think it’s clear this is an issue about developing a relationship … Not about bossing other nations around, but making it clear that a partnership with the United States is something that they can trust, something that comes with benefits just like any good relationship does.”
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
Trump has been pushing to “take back” the Panama Canal, the world’s second busiest interoceanic waterway, spurring concerns that the United States could invade the Central American nation.
Trump argues that Panama has broken a pledge of neutrality made when the United States transferred the canal to Panama in 1999, falsely claiming that China is now operating it. The canal is operated by an autonomous agency overseen by the Panamanian government.
China’s economic influence has been growing in Latin America, fueling worries in Washington that the resource-rich region will tilt to Chinese interests rather than those of the United States.
CONTEXT
Rubio was scheduled to visit Panama and four other countries in Central America and the Caribbean starting this week during his first overseas trip.
Trump has also put immigration from Central America through the U.S.-Mexico border at the center of his foreign policy agenda.
Washington and Beijing have been embroiled in a rivalry for years over a range of issues from technology and cybersecurity to trade and tariffs.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Simon Lewis in Washington; Editing by Chris Reese and Sandra Maler)
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