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HELSKRANSCO RUBIO upon arrival at Panama on Sunday. Photo: Mark Schiefelin/AP/TT
US Foreign Minister Marco Rubio has landed in Panama, his first stop on his premiere as part of Donald Trump’s new government. Trump has threatened to take over the Panama Canal.
Rubio’s journey begins at the same time as his boss in the White House introduced hard customs tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico, an aggressive maneuver that formed a key part of Trump’s election campaign.
As far as Panama is concerned, the newly appointed president has controversial plans in sight in the form of a takeover of the Panama Canal, something he threatened on several occasions.
“Marco Rubio is going there and talking to the gentleman who decides,” Trump said last Friday before the Foreign Minister’s journey.
Panama President Jose Raul Mulino has excluded to negotiate the channel’s ownership at all.
“The channel is Panamas,” he said on Thursday.