US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has expressed no doubt that China would block the Panama Canal in the event of a military conflict with the US. Rubio reiterated concerns of US President Donald Trump about China’s influence on the waterway in an interview with the Megyn Kelly Show on Thursday, just days before he is set to visit Panama as part of his first overseas trip.
Rubio, a long-time critic of China, pointed to a Hong Kong-based company that operates the ports at the Atlantic and Pacific mouths of the canal, citing a risk for the US and a threat to the country’s national security, as the company “does everything the Chinese government tells it to do”.
“If the Chinese government orders them to close the Panama Canal in a conflict, they will have to do so” Rubio said, expressing no doubt that the company has a contingency plan in place. “That’s a direct threat.”
While not repeating Trump’s promise to reclaim the canal, Rubio emphasized that the US is taking the issue seriously and that the problem needs to be addressed. Rubio believes the canal is already in Chinese hands, stating that “it can’t just go on like this” and expressing hope that the issue will be resolved soon.
In his inauguration address on January 20, Trump had accused Panama of breaching the 1999 treaty and giving control of the canal to China, vowing to reclaim the waterway. The Panamanian government has repeatedly denied the allegations, with President José Raúl Mulino stating that the canal belongs to Panama and that he will not discuss the issue with Rubio.
While the Panama Canal itself is operated by Panama, the ports on either side of the waterway are operated by the Hong Kong-based company CK Hutchinson. Other ports in the area are under the control of private companies from the US, Singapore and Taiwan.