Panama symbolises the Sino-American struggle for influence
The superpowers use soft and hard power
Panama responded quickly to Donald Trump’s rhetoric about Chinese influence in the Panama Canal. On February 2nd it said it would not renew participation in the Belt and Road Initiative (bri), China’s global-development scheme, and it has launched an audit of the Hong Kong firm that runs the ports at each end of the canal. Leaders are reported to be considering cancellation of the contract.
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This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “Own goal?”
From the February 15th 2025 edition
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They will go to great lengths to try