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Rubio Visits Central America Amid Trump's Panama Canal Threats

Rubio Visits Central America Amid Trump's Panama Canal Threats

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Marco Rubio is set to arrive in Panama on Saturday with a mission to potentially retake the Panama Canal, a U.S.-built waterway that President Donald Trump has lamented over. However, this is likely an opening negotiating position rather than a serious demand.

José Raúl Mulino
1. That is sealed. The canal belongs to Panama.
2. I cannot negotiate and much less open a process of negotiation on the canal.
3. We have to wait until that audit ends before we can reach our legal conclusions and act accordingly.
4. We spoke extensively about the problem of migration, with the understanding that Panama is a transit point.
Mauricio Claver-Carone
Inter-American Development Bank
1. Everyone thought that China was literally going to become the most influential force throughout the Americas.
2. And those extraordinary measures, which are frankly the envy of a lot of countries throughout the western hemisphere, has really made him one of the most consequential leaders not only on security but a great ally on migration.
3. This is a truly historic visit that Secretary Rubio will be paying to the region.
Donald Trump
Republican Party
1. I don't think troops will be necessary in Panama.
Marco Rubio
Republican Party
1. I think the president's been pretty clear he wants to administer the canal again.
2. An argument could be made that the terms under which that canal was turned over have been violated.
3. We cannot allow any foreign power — particularly China — to hold that kind of potential control over it that they do.
4. And, in fact, I have zero doubt that they have contingency planning to do so. That is a direct threat.
5. This increasingly creeping presence of Chinese companies and actors throughout the Canal Zone, in everything from ports and logistics to telecommunications infrastructure and otherwise, … is very concerning, not only frankly to the national security of the United States, but frankly to the national security of Panama and to the entire western hemisphere.
6. Secretary Rubio made clear that this status quo is unacceptable and that absent immediate changes, it would require the United States to take measures necessary to protect its rights under the treaty.
Tammy Bruce
US State Department
1. It's about making sure that if we're going to be safe and prosperous and in good shape, we've got to have an interest in our neighbors.
Adrian Hearn
Melbourne University
1. In less than two decades, China has transformed from a minor player in the region to the first or second-largest trade partner for most its countries, as well as a leading investor.
2. Chinese enterprises and banks have indicated their readiness to invest in projects that support Latin American manufacturers of cars, mobile phones, clean energy infrastructure, and other value-adding products.
3. Chinese military cooperation with the region in particular lags far behind that of the US.

Rubio Visits Central America Amid Trump's Panama Canal Threats

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