Panama's president: No deal to allow US warships to use canal for free

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday rejected U.S. claims that American warships and boats can transit the Panama Canal without paying a standard fee.

In a weekly news conference, Mulino disputed a statement from the State Department on free transit after Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to Panama earlier this week.

"I want to make it very clear to the country my absolute rejection of the statement from the State Department," he said. "It is based on a falsehood."

Mulino said there were "many more interests that unite" Panama and the U.S. and expressed interest in continuing dialogue with Rubio and the Trump administration.

The State Department said in a Wednesday post on social platform X that "U.S. government vessels can now transit the Panama Canal without charge fees, saving the U.S. government millions of dollars a year."

But Panama Canal authorities quickly denied it in a separate post, saying, "it has not made any adjustments" to transit fees but noted it was open to dialogue on the issue.

The Panama Canal is one of the main waterways connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Trump has pushed to regain control of the canal in recent months, decrying Chinese influence and high transit prices. The U.S. helped built the canal in the early 20th century but later turned it over to Panama.

Dozens of U.S. Navy ships transit the Panama Canal each year, and U.S. commercial and other vessels also make up a significant share of the traffic in the canal. The Panama Canal charges anywhere between $300,000 to $1 million, varying based on ship size.

After Rubio visited Panama this week, his office released a statement saying that he and Mulino discussed Chinese influence in the country and illegal migration. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also held a call with Mulino this week.

Mulino said Thursday that warships from different countries have passed through the Panama Canal for years "without hindrance."

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