What demands did the United States make of the Panamanian government?

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Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino said after talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the country will not continue with the memorandum of understanding with China as part of the "One Belt, One Road" initiative. PBS reported this.

The talks did not threaten the US to take back the Panama Canal by force.

"However, US President Donald Trump has decided that China's presence in the canal area violates the terms of the treaty that handed over the waterway to Panama in 1999. Because the agreement provides for the permanent neutrality of the canal," the Panamanian president said.

Rubio told the Panamanian leader that the US president does not want the status quo in the Panama Canal to be maintained under China's influence in the region. He demanded that Panama take measures to reduce China's influence on the canal. Otherwise, the United States will take the necessary measures in accordance with the agreement on the exploitation of the canal between the two countries.

"My government will not extend the 2017 memorandum of understanding on the "One Belt, One Road" initiative," Jose Raul Mulino said.

The United States completed the construction of the 82-kilometer canal in 1914, but returned it to Panama in 1999 under an agreement signed by former President Jimmy Carter. Trump calls this step "foolish."

"One Belt, One Road" is an initiative put forward by China in 2013 to combine the "Silk Road Economic Belt" and the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road" projects.

The goal is to activate international trade and investment projects involving more countries and to use the capital of interested countries, as well as develop infrastructure to strengthen economic cooperation and trade.

The "One Belt, One Road" initiative aims to connect land and sea trade routes to transport goods quickly and cheaply to Southeast Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”