Panama's strong statement against the Trump administration: 'They can't manage on falsehoods'

The president of Panama expressed his strong opinion against the dealings of the Trump administration. José Raúl Mulino assured at a press conference that Panamanians will watch over the interests of their own country and he expressed his dissatisfaction with the United States for managing on the basis of "lies and falsehoods," behavior that they branded as "unacceptable."

The controversy began on the night of Wednesday, February 5, when the State Department reported that it had reached an agreement with Panama so that U.S. Navy ships would not pay fees for transiting the Panama Canal. However, the Central American country quickly denied this information. Specifically, they stated that it was an "absolute falsehood."

During his visit to the Dominican Republic, Marco Rubio condemned the charging of fees to the aforementioned vessels. "It seems absurd to me that we have to pay fees to transit an area that we are obligated to protect in time of conflict. Those are our expectations," he noted.

"Simply intolerable"

In this context, President Mulino strongly condemned the communication of the United States and assured that he will prioritize the interests of his country. His words were later published in an official communiqué.

"I am very surprised by the statement of the State Department yesterday (Wednesday), because they are making important, institutional communiqués of the entity that governs the foreign policy of the United States, under the President of the United States, based on a falsehood, and that is intolerable. It is simply intolerable," he said at a press conference.

"Today, Panama states, through you (the media) and to the world, my absolute rejection to continue exploring the path of managing the bilateral relationship on the basis of lies and falsehoods," he added.

The Panamanian leader also revealed that he had a "very good" telephone conversation with the Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth. The two discussed areas of cooperation between the Department of Defense and Panama, as well as the need to address the migration situation in the Darién gap. In turn, Mulino explained that, as president, he does not have the legal or constitutional authority to influence tariff-setting issues in the Canal.

"Panama has its interests very clear and will watch over them accordingly, in the bilateral arena, in the international arena (...) I do not have and do not want to have any differences beyond what is necessary with the United States, it is our main partner and I understand its specific weight as a nation," he concluded.