BlackRock Acquires Stake in Panama Canal... Foreign Media Calls It "Trump's Victory"

Rubio Visits Panama as U.S. Secretary of State;
Panama Decides to Sell Stake to U.S. Within a Month
Move Seen as U.S. Effort to Counter China in Latin American Maritime Trade

A consortium led by BlackRock, a major U.S. asset management firm, has decided to acquire the operating rights of the Panama Canal, which has been a source of conflict between U.S. President Donald Trump and the Panamanian government. Foreign media described BlackRock's purchase of the Panama port as a 'victory for Trump,' interpreting it as a result of the U.S. strategy to counter China's growing influence in Latin American maritime trade.

Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings announced in a press release on the 4th (local time) that it would sell its Panama Canal port operations business to a consortium of U.S.-based asset management companies BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), and TiL Group. The stake CK Hutchison is selling is 90% of Panama Port Company (PPC), which operates the Balboa and Cristobal ports of the Panama Canal. Additionally, it sold other assets including an 80% stake in 43 port operations across 23 countries worldwide, excluding China and Hong Kong. The total value of the stakes and assets sold amounts to $22.8 billion (approximately 33.2 trillion KRW).

This transaction took place about a month after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Panama on the 2nd of last month. Secretary Rubio, who chose Panama as his first destination after taking office, met with Panamanian President Jos? Ra?l Mulino and pressured Panama to reduce Chinese influence over the Panama Canal, warning, "If there is no change, measures will be taken."

Earlier, on January 20, President Trump criticized both Panama and China in his inauguration speech, saying, "The canal was foolishly handed over to Panama. A lot of money was spent on building the canal, and 38,000 lives were lost. We were treated very badly because of a foolish gift, and Panama's promises were broken." President Trump claimed that the operating rights of the Panama Canal were in China's hands and warned, "We handed the canal to Panama, not China. So we are trying to reclaim what was handed over to Panama." This marked the beginning of the conflict between the U.S. and the Panamanian government over the Panama Canal.

However, with BlackRock, which is based in the U.S., acquiring the port operating rights, the power struggle between the U.S. and the Panamanian government is expected to be temporarily resolved. Benjamin Gedan, head of the Latin America program at the Wilson Center, described this as "an elegant way out of a seemingly unsolvable crisis," while The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) noted that "it will partially alleviate domestic criticism that the container port had become a Chinese foothold."

AP Yonhap News

Foreign media interpreted this deal as stemming from President Trump's pressure and the U.S.'s efforts to curb China's influence. The Guardian stated, "This agreement, reached just a month after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Panama City, represents a quick and significant victory in the U.S. president's aggressive negotiations toward Panama."

The New York Times commented, "As the Trump administration pursues a 'America First' foreign policy, this is an indicator of the spoils that U.S. companies can gain," evoking memories of the power Wall Street banks once enjoyed in Latin America.

As the media attributed political significance to the deal, calling it a 'victory for Trump,' the Panamanian government and CK Hutchison moved to downplay the geopolitical implications. Panamanian President Jos? Ra?l Mulino appeared to minimize the geopolitical meaning of the deal by posting on his social media (SNS), "This transaction is a global deal between private companies based on mutual benefit."

CK Hutchison also claimed that BlackRock's purchase of the Panama port was unrelated to President Trump's move to reclaim the canal, stating, "We want to emphasize that this transaction is purely commercial in nature and has nothing to do with recent political news reports related to the Panama port." The Guardian of the UK criticized this claim, saying, "Few people believe that."