LatinNews Daily - 27 May 2026

*Panama’s Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha has met with his Chinese peer, Wang Yi, in New York on the sidelines of a United Nations (UN) Security Council meeting. According to a statement by Panama’s foreign ministry, the two discussed issues of “maritime, trade and cultural cooperation”. It cites Martínez-Acha as expressing a “willingness to advance in technical channels of maritime cooperation”, reiterating Panama’s “full respect” for the one China principle recognising Beijing’s sovereignty claim over Taiwan, and its commitment to the “rule of law and independence in the decision-making of its democratic institutions” as well as the “interest of both nations in maintaining a mutually beneficial relationship”. The meeting comes amid heightened tensions between the two countries following a January 2026 Panamanian supreme court ruling striking down a concession for two ports on the Panama Canal, awarded to Panama Ports Company (PPC), a subsidiary of Hong Kong-headquartered CK Hutchison Holdings. This has since led to various arbitration proceedings launched by CK Hutchison Holdings, including against the Panamanian government led by President José Raúl Mulino as well as claims that China has detained Panama-flagged vessels.

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