Strengthening of Diplomatic and Economic Ties Between Panama and China (Post Taiwan Era)

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China says it does not want to affect "third party" interests in Latin America

Mon, 05/07/2018 - 21:50

The advance of China in Latin America has no "hidden agendas" and its presence in the region does not seek to affect the interests of third countries, said the ambassador of the Asian country in Panama, Wei Qiang.

"The last thing we would like to do by increasing our presence here is to damage the traditional ties of cooperation that this region has with third parties, nor do we want to harm the interests of others," said the Chinese diplomat, referring to the historic relationship between the United States and Latin America.

Qiang, who participated in a colloquium at the Panamanian Foreign Ministry on the new relations between Panama and China, assured that the expansion of the Asian giant in Latin America is not a "geopolitical game" nor does it have "hidden agendas".

"China, despite today being the second economy in the world, is still a developing country and our interest is to unite with the other developing countries to achieve our common goal of shared development in a type of win-win cooperation," he explained.

Last week The Dominican Republic became the last country in the region to establish diplomatic relations with China and break its ties with Taiwan, while next June 12 it will be one year since Panama did so as well.

Panama and China already had an important trade exchange before establishing relations, but it is expected to grow significantly when both countries sign a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which will begin to negotiate predictably during the second half of this year.

The Asian country is the first supplier of the Colón Free Zone, the largest free zone in the hemisphere, located in the Panamanian Caribbean, and the second most important user of the Panama Canal, through which about 6 percent of world trade passes, after the USA.

Qiang rejected the theory that trade relations are always more lucrative for China and said that although the Asian giant was one of the biggest beneficiaries of the "commodities" cycle, "it also helped Latin America to save itself from the last economic crisis."

However, the diplomat added, China's trade scheme in Latin America "has been undergoing great changes for the better" in recent times.

"Currently both China and Latin America are in the same boat in the middle of turbulent and very challenging waters, in a world full of uncertainties." In this situation, both China and Latin America face the great challenge of strengthening and improving our autonomy," concluded the first Chinese ambassador to Panama.

The commercial exchange between China and Latin America has multiplied in the last decade, and last year reached 266,000 million dollars, according to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

In the financial area, China has provided resources in the last decade amounting to 141,000 million dollars (114,300 million euros), an amount greater than that received by the countries of the region from institutions based in Washington such as the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank (WB).

 

http://www.panamatoday.com/international/china-says-it-does-not-want-affect-third-party-interests-latin-america-6795

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Varela receives a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China

Thu, 07/19/2018 - 15:20

Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela received today Li Qiang, the high Member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), with whom he discussed the progress of relations between the two countries and the possibility of establishing a direct flight Panama-Shanghai.

The meeting of Varela and Li, who is also Secretary of the CPC Municipal Committee in Shanghai, printed "a new impetus" to bilateral ties, formally established a little over a year ago to the detriment of Taiwan, said the Presidency of Panama in an official statement.

The possibility of a direct flight between Panama and Shanghai was one of the topics addressed in the meeting, highlighting that "the 'hub of the Americas' would be connected" from the international airport of Tocumen, which serves the Panamanian capital, "with one of the five most important air centers in Asia, thus increasing the number of tourists that will visit both destinations".

On April 5, the first direct flight between Beijing and Panama City was inaugurated, operated by the state airline Air China, frequently on Thursdays and Sundays, with a stopover in Houston (USA).

The opening of that air connection as well as the signing of agreements in tourism have meant that Panama plans to receive in 2019 "about 150,000 tourists from China", a figure far from the 22,000 registered in 2017.

Li and Varela also addressed issues related to strengthening cooperation in logistics, port, tourism, politics and education, according to official information.

The Panamanian leader "highlighted the clear political will of both governments, with a bilateral agenda based on trust, respect and the pursuit of the common good, which backed by more than twenty agreements already signed, advances on specific issues for sustainable development, such as investment, tourism and the logistics, financial, maritime and commercial sectors," he added.

"The Chinese high politician expressed his confidence that the alliance between Panama and China, countries characterized by their strategic geographical position and their important role in international trade, will contribute significantly to the development of both nations, to global governance and global connectivity," according to the official statement.

Panama and China held last week in the Panamanian capital the first round of negotiations for the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA).

China is the first supplier of the Colon Free Zone (CFZ), the largest in the hemisphere and located in the Caribbean of Panama, and the second user of the Interoceanic Canal, through which about 6 percent of world trade passes.

 

http://www.panamatoday.com/panama/varela-receives-member-central-committee-communist-party-china-7360