Under U.S. pressure, Panamanian President Mulino announced on Thursday that Panama’s embassy in China has officially notified Beijing of its decision to withdraw from China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.
On February 7, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded, stating that China firmly opposes the U.S.’s coercive tactics to smear and undermine Belt and Road cooperation. China also expressed deep regret over Panama’s decision not to renew the memorandum of understanding.
During his visit to Panama on Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Rubio warned that if the Panamanian government did not immediately terminate China’s influence over the Panama Canal, the U.S. would take action against Panama. In response, Panama pledged not to renew its Belt and Road cooperation agreement with China upon its expiration and even considered terminating the agreement ahead of schedule.
