Panama’s president hits back after China threat in canal ports row

President Mulino responds to China, insists his country upholds the rule of law and and has an independent court system.Published On 5 Feb 2026Panama’s President Jose Raul Mulino has rejected China’s threat to make the Central American country pay a “heavy price” after a Hong Kong company was evicted from two ports on the strategic Panama-canal" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="8414" data-entity-type="location">Panama Canal amid pressure from United States President Donald Trump.Writing on social media on Wednesday, President Mulino said he “strongly” rejected the Chinese government’s threat against his country, which followed after Panama’s Supreme Court invalidated a contract that had allowed the Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison to operate two ports on the canal.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Panama court rules Chinese control of canal ports unconstitutionallist 2 of 3How strong are Latin America’s military forces, as they face US threats?list 3 of 3US pressure mounts at Panama-canal" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="8414" data-entity-type="location">Panama Canal over Venezuelan oil shipmentsend of listIn his post, Mulino pushed back against Beijing, insisting that Panama was a country that upholds the rule of law “and respects the decisions of the judiciary, which is independent of the central government”.He added that the Panamanian Foreign Ministry would issue a statement on the matter “and adopt the corresponding decisions”.The loss of CK Hutchison’s port concession on the Panama-canal" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="8414" data-entity-type="location">Panama Canal has come to symbolise the battle for influence and trade between the US and China in Latin America.Tensions came to a head last year after President Trump threatened to take control of the Panama-canal" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="8414" data-entity-type="location">Panama Canal, even warning of military action, and called for the cancellation of CK Hutchison’s contracts.Last week, Panama’s Supreme Court ruled that CK Hutchison’s concession was “unconstitutional”, a decision that the Chinese government’s Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office (HKMAO) described as “absurd” and “shameful”, while also warning that the Latin American country would pay “heavy prices both politically and economically”.