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We the people of Panama don't want to bow to the Fox News anchor. It is the government that is carrying out the shameful role it is. Not without casualties, though: there's been a round of resignation at the Foreign Relations Ministry during the last few days. The Deputy Minister already quit.

🇵🇦We export bananas! So Janosch (German children author) was not too off about "Panama smells like bananas". They mostly go to the Netherlands, apparently. Otherwise, though, we're mostly a services country. We could sell ecotourism if we invested on it, but we have work to do. Costa Rica is ahead.

Experiences are not universal. Grenada celebrates their invasion day for whatever reasons it may be. Cheers to them; I respect the self-determination of peoples. But we just don't. Maybe a few *very* pro-American people, but some of them give it more credit for Panama's boom than the Canal reversion

It is so disliked here for how it was carried out and all the casualties and disappearances that happened (this means civilians even after discounting paramilitary pro-Noriega fighters). People hated and still hate Noriega, but the US isn't celebrated either. And it's a national mourning day.

Ariel Cajar @arielcajar.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Totally shameful (or should I say shameless) proposal from Bolota. In a different, actually rule-of-law country with better checks and balances, this could had cost him his seat after review from an ethics comittee. Unconstitutional and tailor-made law. He's unfit for the charge.

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Bukele doesn't own Trump. Trump owns Bukele. El Salvador is a US unincorporated territory under Governor Bukele; not a sovereign nation. Trump probably aims for the other two dollarized LatAm nations to follow suit: Panama & Ecuador. Already got Panama to comply and accept more US military presence.

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Granted, not only we are dollarized, but a lot of our banks are actually dependent on foreign accounts, a bunch which are US-based. Out of fear of sanctions which might freeze them, we comply. Of course, it isn't 1989. Doing that would put a noose on every country with Panamanian accs and shell co's

The ones with dollarized economies are the most exposed ones imo. Thus El Salvador, Ecuador and ourselves here in Panama. And in our case, a lot of psyops is employed against us to not be "resentful leftists" and not betray "our creator" (implying the US is).

Maybe because we're a mixed/non-White majority (great replacement), multicultural country (Democrat policy) and have subsidized public colleges (ditto)? Won't mention our public health bc it isn't universal plus it is collapsing & financially plundered rn, though.

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Panama's very right-leaning. I don't even know why progressive Americans, Canadians & Euros move here. Rampant queerphobia, religious zeal in public policy, anti-union sentiment among working class... But I guess having public transportation & subsidized public college earned us the label of commies

And beyond the environmental concerns, even from an economic perspective, it looked very cynical to present it as a solution for everything and threaten us with major economic depression if we closed it because *we have other more sustainable business opportunities and haven't seized them*.

There's also a lot of blame on Panama for not using more of its strategic position to attract viable non-US businesses and non-dollarized investments. For example, a few years ago politicians tried to sell us the idea of a giant open pit mine as a panacea for our economy. It didn't sit well with us.

Of course, the fear of politicians like Mulino as well as US-aligned local elites discounts the fact that choking Panama economically could have negative consequences for foreign third parties who store their money on Panamanian accounts and shell companies. Panama would *indeed* have leverage.

Besides, many local banks have their reserves backed abroad in the US, probably because it's cheaper than importing dollars into such a small country (4 million people of which a third live in Panama City). So angering Washington could nuke Panama's economy.

Panama has a major dependence on the US because of things such as the Balboa, a currency with no paper bills of its own that relies on federal reserve notes instead. It became even weaker when the gold standard was abandoned, as it became backed by the dollar itself alone rather than a mere peg.

Trump's late 2024 remarks, however, took him by surprise. And he's trying to find a way to remain a pro-US president while leaving a full transfer of the Panama Canal and the defunct Canal Zone to the US as well as permanent US military bases off the table. But those goals are mutually exclusive.

Don't trust me on this, but my personal view on Mulino is that he wants to serve two lords. Him being an anti-communist and a former anti-Noriega "civilista", plus willing to work with the US from the get go, he likely expected Trump to be a potential good partner.

I'm not saying this as a right winger myself, which I am not. I'm just stating the facts. Panama's foundation under a conservative president, Manuel Amador Guerrero, plus Cold War-era intelligence work, really pushed Panama into right wing territory across various topics.

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A country where a lot of people have polarized opinions against labor unions and the concept of unionization (though in such old school right wing way the working class instead tends to lean towards protectionism and asking for top-down minimum wage raises) What communism? We aren't even centrists.

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A country which has never elected a left wing president, where the only left wing party constantly loses legal status because their numbers are mediocre (plus they are tools for the Venezuelan PSUV), where there's no social democratic party either (PRD is de facto personalista and kleptocratic)...

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We don't trust the MAGA government that threatened us with taking the Canal away from us and restoring the Canal Zone, now with no land lease, no treaty, no nothing, just plain conquest like the American-Spanish War or the Mexican-American War. It is our government that does, though.

And, just like you didn't sanction this and we didn't sanction this, it is happening regardless of our volition. There's no such thing as the will of the people right now.

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But it is a two way street. We didn't approve this either. It is even likely illegal, as it has the de facto level of a treaty revision yet it didn't go through the National Assembly (our unicameral Congress) and then, if approved, gone into referendum vote only three months aftewards; never earlier

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Panama has a history of deploying its border guard against protestors, beyond its legal functions. Then now with a stronger US cooperation, I wouldn't discount a joint armed offensive against protestors. Of course, me saying this makes me sound and feel like a doomer or pessimist. Not sure about it.

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I do fear bad stuff happening this time because this administration is further trigger-happy than the Cortizo/Carrizo one, given Mulino was a Security Minister years ago and the current one, Frank Ábrego, is militaresque. And they *hate* the unions, who are at the forefront of any protests.

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Mulino is too pro US to care about partisan politics so he was willing to cooperate with whoever got to the White House, who happens to be Trump. Then his party, Realizando Metas, constantly goes to events at Mar-A-Lago, with them going there once again roughly while Hegseth came here We are fucked

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We are not Mulino. He and his cohorts aren't properly representing us. There was already a strike warning from labor unions, with construction and teachers on the lead, against an unpopular but "needed" pension reform. Now they are putting the memorandum on the forefront & might get more support now

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Might I clarify we did try to pull out before and even got to be a de facto independent country for a year in 1840 (an unrecognized one, though) until a treaty was signed with New Grenada a year after. Our relationship with Colombia was strained way before the French Canal even existed.

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Wow, the Peter Navarro/Ron Vara thing is incredibly stupid. No way we have been soft invaded in Panama by a bunch of inept clowns running a world power to the ground.

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We know about it, but the President and the Public Security Minister are pleased with it. They signed the thing themselves, I mean. There was no referendum and the Constitution demands one for this, actually, and only three months after a Legislative passing. None of that has taken place.

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By the way, I randomly stumbled upon your threads (not 100% randomly; I use Bluesky to see what foreigners are talking about Panama and chime in sometimes) and I thank you for getting acknowledged with local culture and politics and sharing about it. I also apologize for anything negative from us.

We are not a really well known country; partly our fault, I admit. We have not done the work to be known and earn us real allies (i.e. not the "US is our main partner" flimsy discourse) and we are a small country were a third lives in the capital alone. It really helps triggering despair right away.

Mulino is a MAGA tool. He would 100% give it up and then flee to Nicaragua before he can be trialed for treason. The "Panamanian government" is pro-Trump. There is no hint they want to defend Panamanian interests. The very party in government itself flies to Mar-a-Lago parties every now and then.

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Pero se dizque ofende cuando algún periodista le cuestiona si el que manda es él y no Washington. Ya que se quede allá en Perú y no regrese, que nada de lo que diga cuenta ya. Panamá ya no es un país, tiene un solo presidente y su nombre es Donald J. Trump. Más nadie.

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To be specific, it might be straight up unconstitutional. The Panamanian Constitution establishes a protocol for any kind of reform or treaty regarding the Canal, the lands around it (i.e. the former Zone, today roughly corresponding Ancon & Cristobal corregimientos) and the security of such land.

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Can confirm you there's an increased military presence, but it isn't a massive display (it isn't greater than 1000 soldiers afaik). What is true right now, though, is that some of us see Mulino & co. as traitors right now. There's some iffy legal stuff too. The memorandum *might* be illegal here.

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No, no, you got it wrong. The ports are on a limbo because China blocked the Hutchison sale to BlackRock. The Panama Canal Railway Company is what was bought up by Maersk. They got the trains; not the ports. Almost all containers on the trains are solely Maersk now btw; saw them today morning.

Only on China, at least for now. Our president (I'm Panamanian) is a total Washington tool. He will remain so until he gets Zelenskyy'ed. I already picture JD: "Did you ever thank us for the Canal? For taking down Noriega? For the 1903 secession from Colombia?"

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Yes, there are troops over here. US military presence is rising, at least visibly so, though joint exercises per se aren't a new thing. Defo not a "marine at every corner" situation right now, but they did cancel a concert today because of backlash. 'Twas part of a Marine Corps Reserve Band "tour".

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My president (Panama's) is, since day one. That's why he's onboard with Pete's demands. He can only say "the Panama Canal is Panamanian and it will remain so" rhetorically, but otherwise, in the ways that actually matter, he is willing to sink Panama alongside the US if asked to.

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My president (Panama's) loves the US, loves MAGA, hates China, likely hates Panama and certainly hates winning as well. And yet we all have to pay the price for it despite him winning with just 34.23% of votes in the name of another guy who couldn't run due to corruption charges.

The MAGA-servile Panamanian government and the US released a "joint statement" celebrating increased American military presence in Panama moving forward. The problem? Whereas Panama's official statement in Spanish reinforces Panama's sovereignty over the Panama Canal, the American text doesn't.

El secretario Hegseth acogió con gran satisfacción el compromiso del Presidente Mulino de convertir a Panamá en el primer país de nuestro hemisferio en abandonar la iniciativa de la Franja y la Ruta, y de reducir la problemática presencia de China en otras áreas. Además, el Secretario Hegseth reconoció el liderazgo y la soberanía irrenunciable de Panamá sobre el Canal de Panamá y sus áreas adyacentes.

Secretary Hegseth strongly welcomed President Mulino's commitment to make Panama the first country in our hemisphere to exit the Belt and Road Initiative, and to reduce China's problematic presence in other areas.

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