Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Panama not to allow third-party interference in its relationship with Beijing as the United States pushes back against China’s influence around the Panama Canal.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
China is moving to defend its influence over the Panama Canal as Washington intensifies scrutiny of Beijing’s role around one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha that Panama should not allow outside governments to interfere with China-Panama relations, according to the South China Morning Post, which cited a Chinese Foreign Ministry readout released Wednesday.
The exchange took place as a dispute continues over port operations connected to the Panama Canal, with the United States increasingly involved in efforts to counter Chinese influence in the region.
Wang met Martinez-Acha while attending a high-level United Nations Security Council meeting in New York, according to the South China Morning Post.
“China has always maintained that China-Panama relations are not directed against any third party and should not be interfered with by any third party,” Wang said, according to the outlet.
The Panama Canal remains central to global commerce and U.S. strategic interests. The canal stretches nearly 40 miles from shoreline to shoreline, according to Encyclopedia Britannica. The Panama Canal’s official connectivity data says the waterway handles 5% of global trade, with 70% of that trade either originating in or bound for the United States.
Beijing’s influence in Latin America has grown through years of major investment. Chinese entities invested $148.9 billion in Latin America between 2005 and 2022, according to a June 2023 congressional report.
The Trump administration has responded by seeking to reassert U.S. influence in the Western Hemisphere through what officials have called the “Donroe Doctrine.” The effort has included military operations and economic pressure, including blockade-related tools.
“President Trump’s Donroe Doctrine makes it clear that every dollar of U.S. foreign assistance must advance our national interest,” the State Department posted on X.
U.S. Southern Command has also warned publicly about Chinese pressure involving Panama.
“Panama is a cornerstone of security in the Western Hemisphere and a vital pillar of the global maritime trading system,” U.S. Southern Command said in a post on X. “China’s recent interference with Panama’s sovereignty over its supreme court decision is a threat to the entire hemisphere.”
The Panamanian Embassy in Washington, the Panama Canal Authority and the Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment, according to the submitted report.
China’s role around the canal has included major infrastructure projects. A Chinese group was contracted to build a bridge over the Panama Canal worth more than $1.4 billion, the Center for Strategic and International Studies reported, citing France 24.
The canal dispute also intersects with concerns about Iran. Tehran has been accused of using proxy firms based in Hong Kong to register ships in Panama in order to evade U.S. sanctions, according to Panamanian court documents previously obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“The United States has found that Iranian vessels are sometimes flagged by Panama in order to avoid sanctions so that they could sell the fuel that they have and then they can take that money and then use it as they wish,” Louis Sola, chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission, said during a Senate Commerce Committee hearing in January 2025.
China is also pursuing infrastructure elsewhere in Latin America that could alter shipping routes across the hemisphere. A Chinese port in Peru and a proposed railroad in Brazil could eventually create an alternative route for moving cargo across the Americas, potentially reducing reliance on the Panama Canal. The Brazilian railroad has not been completed, Reuters reported.
The latest warning from Wang reflects Beijing’s effort to keep Panama from aligning more closely with Washington as the canal port dispute unfolds. For the United States, the issue is not only about commercial shipping but also about military access, sanctions enforcement, hemispheric security and China’s expanding role in Latin America.