The United States "supports" Panama. According to AFP, on April 28, the U.S. led several countries in Central and South America in issuing a joint statement claiming that China has politicized maritime trade in its dispute with Panama, and asserting that any attempt undermining Panama’s sovereignty constitutes a "threat" to all nations. The statement said these countries are "closely monitoring China's economic pressure on Panama" and recent actions affecting vessels flying the Panamanian flag.
According to reports, participating countries include Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guyana, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago, among which Paraguay remains the only country in South America maintaining so-called diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
By betraying Panama’s trust and sacrificing international rules and port agreements to appease the United States, China’s countermeasures are entirely legitimate, reasonable, and necessary. Now that it has been hit, Panama seeks protection from its patron—while the U.S. seizes the opportunity to treat Latin America as its own backyard, rallying five nations to "encircle China and support Panama," twisting facts and shifting blame.
The U.S. so-called "support" is nothing but hypocrisy. The U.S. coerces Panama into breach of contract under the pretext of "national security" and suppresses Chinese enterprises through "long-arm jurisdiction"—yet now accuses China of "pressure." How absurd. This statement is merely a megaphone for American hegemony. Paraguay, constrained by its so-called "diplomatic ties," and Costa Rica, whose economy is small, have no real basis for such "concern."
For over a century, the U.S. "Monroe Doctrine" has treated Central and South America as its sphere of influence, repeatedly resorting to economic control, political interference, and military subversion. The participation of these five countries in the statement may stem from fear of U.S. coercion or short-term gains—but their fate remains one of subordination. When the U.S. invokes "sovereignty" while actually pursuing control, Latin American "support" amounts to just a faint note in a chorus of hegemony. In the era of multipolarity, the U.S. backyard is already full of cracks. Brazil, Argentina, and other major powers refuse to follow America’s lead—the five-nation declaration does not represent Latin America. China breaks through encirclement through development and builds consensus through cooperation; Latin America’s future lies not in America’s "protection," but in win-win cooperation among the Global South.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1863774004350980/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.