Big Panama Win

Panama Says It Will Not Renew ‘Belt and Road’ Agreement With China After Rubio Visit

Secretary of State Rubio meeting with Panama's President

The announcement followed President Jose Mulino’s meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Panama City on Sunday.

Panama President José Raúl Mulino said on Sunday that his country will not renew its memorandum of understanding with China to be a part of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Speaking to reporters, Mulino said the agreement is due for renewal in two years and his government is looking into the possibility of terminating it earlier, according to local media reports.

“We are going to study the possibility of whether it can be finished earlier or not. I think it is due for renewal in one or two years,” he said in Spanish.

Mulino added that Panama would expand its July 2024 memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to assist U.S. authorities on illegal immigration issues.

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