Rubio raises concerns over China’s detention of Panama-flagged ships

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Paris last month.

Photo: Reuters US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has voiced “serious concerns” over China’s intensified inspections of Panama-flagged vessels, vowing that the US “stands firmly” with Panama amid the Latin American country’s escalating fallout with Beijing.

Rubio said China’s recent actions “raise serious concerns about the use of economic tools to undermine the rule of law in Panama, a sovereign nation and vital partner for global commerce”. “Detentions, delays, or other impediments to the movement of vessels undermine the stability of global supply chains, increase costs for businesses and consumers, and erode confidence in the international trading system,” the top US diplomat said, according to a State Department statement. “The United States stands firmly with Panama and looks forward to increasing our economic and security cooperation with this important partner.” The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Rubio’s statement.

Washington has accused Beijing of ramping up inspections of and detaining Panama-flagged container ships in retaliation for Panama’s decision to strip Panama Ports Company – a subsidiary of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison – of concessions to operate ports at both ends of the Panama Canal.

Panama’s Supreme Court declared the concession unconstitutional in January, and the government took control of both terminals in February, designating US-linked operators APM Terminals and Terminal Investment Limited as interim administrators for 18 months.

The decision followed sustained US pressure on Panama to limit what it saw as growing Chinese influence over the canal, a vital waterway handling around five per cent of global maritime trade, turning the domestic legal spat into a new front in the broader rivalry between Washington and Beijing. “The Panama case will be closely watched over by other countries to see what happens when a Latin American government chooses the US over China in one of these disputes,” said Benjamin Gedan, Senior Fellow and Director of the Stimson Centre Latin America programme. “If a country is left vulnerable to Chinese retaliation, as appears to be happening in Panama, does the United States seek to protect that country from the consequences of those decisions and give special treatment in investment or other areas?” In January, following the Panama court decision,

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