The United States ambassador to Panama, Kevin Marino Cabrera, expressed his country’s support for the transition in the operation of the Balboa and Cristóbal ports, which will pass from Panama Ports Company to temporary concessions under Maersk and MSC. Cabrera emphasized that this was a decision made by an independent body. “We support the people of Panama and their right to have their judicial system make its own decisions, as they have done in this case,” he reiterated. “We support the government of Panama… this is a state governed by the rule of law, this was a decision of the Panamanian Court and we, for our part, think it is very good for the people of Panama,” the diplomat stated. When asked about potential threats of arbitration or legal action against Panama by China following the court decision, Cabrera declined to elaborate on the matter. “Look, I have no comment on that.” The diplomat’s statements come amid the port transition process promoted by the Panamanian government, which contemplates temporary concessions for up to 18 months while a new permanent contract is structured and tendered for both terminals, considered strategic for international trade. In his remarks, the ambassador also questioned the performance of the previous operators. “Obviously, they were operators who weren’t doing a good job; we’ve already issued a statement several times,” he noted.
