Monday
Monday 10th February 2025.
February 9, 2025
On Friday, January 7, Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Zhao Zhiyuan formally protested to Panama’s ambassador to the Asian country, Miguel Lecaro Bárcenas, over Panama’s decision not to renew the cooperation agreement with China on the New Silk Roads infrastructure project.
Zhao said his country “deeply regrets” the decision of the Central American nation and noted that, under the framework of the New Silk Roads, “practical cooperation between China and Panama in various fields has developed rapidly, achieved a series of fruitful results and brought tangible benefits to the Panamanian nation and people.”
“Turning back and sailing against the wind on the New Silk Roads goes against the expectations of the Chinese and Panamanian peoples and does not favor the vital interests of Panama,” the official said, according to a statement published Saturday by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on its website.
Zhao stressed that “China respects Panama’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and advocates that all countries, large and small, should be equal, respect each other and keep their promises.”
“China firmly opposes the US efforts to deliberately undermine China-Panama relations and smear and undermine New Silk Road cooperation through pressure and threats,” Zhao said, expressing his hope that “Panama will make the right decision based on the overall situation of bilateral relations and the long-term interests of the two peoples, eliminating external interference.”
For his part, the Panamanian ambassador asserted that his country “attaches great importance to its relations with China,” according to the Asian country’s Foreign Ministry.
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino announced that he will let the cooperation agreement with China on the New Silk Roads infrastructure project expire after meeting last Sunday with the new US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio.
Mulino explained that he had conveyed to Rubio his decision not to renew the New Silk Roads memorandum of understanding, signed with China in November 2017, under the mandate of the then Panamanian president, Juan Carlos Varela.
On several occasions, US President Donald Trump has threatened to “take over” the Panama Canal and criticised the decision of the late President Jimmy Carter (1977-1981) to negotiate the treaties that allowed the transfer of the canal to Panama, a process that was completed in 1999. In addition, Trump has claimed that the canal is under Beijing’s control.
China, meanwhile, has insisted that it does not participate in the management or operation of the Canal, which it recognises as a “neutral international infrastructure” in whose affairs it has “never interfered”.
The New Silk Roads is an investment and trade cooperation initiative promoted by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 to link China with Europe, the Middle East, Africa and, more recently, Latin America, something that has raised concerns in Washington given the growing influence of the Asian giant in the region.
Nearly half of the country’s public institutions did not upload key information to the monitoring site of the National Authority for Transparency and Access to Information (ANTAI) in January 2025.
A report from the entity indicates that 45% of the 105 central government institutions monitored did not report information on the site regarding payroll, travel expenses, representation expenses, among other public data.
In contrast, 55% did. However, no institution was 100% compliant. The report indicates that only six entities reported information in the range of 91% to 95%.
These include the Electoral Tribunal, the Superintendency of Banks of Panama, the National Decentralization Authority, the Public Services Authority, the Superintendency of the Securities Market and the Superintendency of Insurance and Reinsurance of Panama, all with a compliance rate of 95.83%.
The Autonomous University of Chiriquí achieved 87.5% compliance.
On the other hand, among the institutions that did not comply, according to the ANTAI report, are the Civil Aeronautical Authority, the Maritime Authority, the Ministry of Government, the National Mortgage Bank and the Ministry of Women.
The package of reforms to Law 51, the organic law of the Social Security Fund (CSS) , now goes to the plenary session of the National Assembly, where the 71 deputies will discuss it in the second debate. The Assembly’s Labor, Health and Social Development Commission approved it in the first debate on Friday night.
Deputy Miguel Ángel Campos , from the independent Vamos party and who served as secretary of the commission for many sessions, explained some of the changes to La Prensa . The retirement age is maintained (62 years for men and 57 years for women), it was determined that the board of directors will be made up of 11 members and that the substitutes will not be able to collect allowances when the main member is present and active in meetings. In addition, it was established that the members of the board must have a university degree and at least 10 years of experience in areas such as public administration, law, economics, finance, health, pensions or social security.
As regards the administration of funds, it was agreed that the CSS may manage its own resources, but may delegate their execution to the National Bank or the Savings Bank. It will also be permitted to invest a small percentage abroad if local returns are not sufficient.
In this regard, CSS director Dino Mon said that the financial department of the same entity can make this type of investment. He believes that CSS is an autonomous entity and therefore cannot be subject to the interests of financial institutions such as the National Bank and the Savings Bank.
One of the most significant adjustments is the reduction of the amount from which the general director requires authorization from the board of directors to make contracts. In the original project, the limit was $3,000,000, but with the modification it is reduced to $1,000,000, while maintaining the requirement of approval by the board.
It is specified that the authorization is for the purchase of medical devices and supplies, medical equipment and services related to human health.
The bill also establishes that members of the board of directors may not be part of other boards of directors of autonomous or semi-autonomous institutions, boards of trustees, financial intermediaries or state-owned companies. The only exception applies to the Minister of Economy and Finance and the Minister of Health.
They may not be related to each other or to the Director General within the fourth degree of consanguinity or second degree of affinity. This restriction also applies to the President and Vice President of the Republic, Ministers and Vice Ministers of State, as well as to the principal and alternate deputies of the National Assembly.
The recent attempt by Supreme Court justices to obtain a $4,000 salary increase has unleashed a wave of criticism in different sectors of the country. The proposal, considered inopportune in a context of fiscal restrictions, has generated an intense debate on the management of public resources and the priorities of the judicial system.
Among the dissenting voices is that of the deputy of the independent coalition Vamos, Jhonatan Vega, who questioned the measure, pointing out that the increase lacks justification in a country where deficiencies persist in key areas such as education and health.
Vega, who is also a member of the National Assembly’s Budget Committee , criticized the lack of review of the budget hearings and the absence of debates on the general State budget for 2025. “We never saw the budget hearings and the results are there,” he said, questioning the process that allowed the increase to be approved without prior analysis by the deputies.
As will be recalled, the Budget Committee held only 10 of the 96 budget hearings scheduled for 2024, an omission that generated concern among different political and economic sectors in the country.
In fact, the Vamos deputy stressed that the lack of these hearings, essential for transparency and control of public spending, has left the allocation of resources to various state institutions unscrutinized, including the CSJ, which included this salary adjustment in its 2025 budget, but could not be analyzed in the Budget Commission.
In October 2024, opposition to the suspension of hearings was led by the independent deputy Betserai Richards, who, together with four deputies from the Vamos coalition, denounced the intention of his colleagues in the Budget Committee to “approve a 2025 budget without due review” and discussion.
The Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama (Cciap) expressed its support for the recent position of the National Government in response to the statements of the United States Department of State, which assured that the warships of the North American nation would have free passage through the Panama Canal.
They also stressed that Panamanian diplomacy has been handled appropriately within the framework of bilateral relations with the new US administration, acting in good faith and in the spirit of international cooperation.
However, the union stressed that it is essential that, when erroneous statements about Panama are made at an international level, they are officially and categorically denied. “Not doing so would have meant leaving in the air statements that do not reflect reality and that could affect the image and interests of the country,” they indicated in their weekly column.
They also stressed the importance of diplomacy being based on truth and mutual respect. “Panama cannot allow inaccurate narratives to be constructed that distort its position in the international community,” they added, highlighting the need to protect national sovereignty against attempts at instrumentalization by third parties.
The statement also stressed that Panama must continue to be a model of global cooperation and development, contributing to trade and international stability. However, it warned that this commitment to the world cannot compromise the country’s independence and self-determination.
The ICAP also highlights that one of the best examples of the country’s institutional management capacity is the administration of the Canal. “Panama has demonstrated that it can successfully manage one of the most important trade routes on the planet, reaffirming its capacity and commitment to the international community,” they said.