Original article: Tensión por ejercicios militares EEUU-Panamá: Organizaciones panameñas acusan «uso de nuestro territorio como rampa de agresión contra pueblos hermanos»
In a letter addressed to Panama’s Foreign Minister, Javier Martínez Acha, local organizations that are part of the National Front for the Defense of Economic and Social Rights (Frenadeso) expressed their concerns regarding upcoming military exercises by the United States in the country, especially amidst heightened regional tensions following Trump’s threats to target «drug trafficking objectives» in Venezuela.
It is important to note that, according to the American president, Nicolás Maduro, the President of Venezuela, is the «leader» of a criminal organization known as the «Cartel of the Suns,» yet no concrete evidence has been presented to substantiate such claims.
In this context, Frenadeso coordinator Jorge Guzmán warned, «Today, the region is experiencing extreme tension due to the escalation of US military presence in Caribbean waters, with significant contingents of troops, ships, warplanes, and the nuclear aircraft carrier Gerald Ford, which threaten to unleash a large-scale attack against Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, and other countries under the pretext of combating drug trafficking.»
The Panamanian leader recalled that «so far, more than 80 humble individuals from Caribbean nations have been extrajudicially executed without the US government and military proving that those small artisanal vessels were used for drug trafficking.»
He emphasized, «These constitute crimes against humanity that blatantly violate International Law, human rights, and international agreements on peaceful coexistence among nations,» highlighting the coordinator of Frenadeso.
«Fictitious Cartel of the Suns»
The social movement in Panama reiterated its challenges to Washington’s strategy, stating that «to justify a potential aggression against Venezuela, then Colombia, Mexico, and others, it resorts to a fictitious Cartel of the Suns, a recurrent ruse used by US administrations since 1990 and which Trump has adopted to implicate the Bolivarian Government as a narco-state, even though the UN has declared that the country plays no significant role in international drug trafficking.»
«In other words, another ridiculous lie similar to those used in other regions, as was done in Iraq, Syria, Libya, and others to justify invasions, such as the one that occurred in Panama on December 20, 1989,» stated the Frenadeso representative.
Panama’s International Commitments
Another aspect highlighted by the Panamanian social organizations is that, as part of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), Panama is a signatory to the 2012 Havana Declaration, which proclaims Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.
«Given this, the national government must act accordingly,» proposed Jorge Guzmán. However, he added, «far from that, what we have been observing since Trump’s administration took office is a close collaboration with the US’s warlike plans in the region.»
As an example, they recalled that just days after his inauguration, Marco Rubio was received in Panama, preceded by Trump’s threats to take control of the Canal and eliminate China’s «malignant influence» in Panama, which Guzmán criticized as «another of the great farces of the imperialists.»
«This marked the beginning of a cycle of shameful, arrogant, and humiliating visits from high-ranking US military officials, which included the signing of a military treaty that bypassed the National Assembly and was not submitted for public approval in a referendum. We are talking about the so-called Memorandum of Understanding, which is merely a euphemism to hide what is truly a new Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty that permits the permanent presence of US troops on our territory, their control of the Canal, and the establishment of at least three military bases,» Frenadeso denounced.
Given this situation, the organizations raised several questions: «How many exercises are planned during this period and on what dates? What number of US and Panamanian troops are participating? What quantity of equipment, explosives, and armaments will be used? Where are the US troops stationed, and what controls are exercised over them?»
«It is a mockery and a disrespect to our people, who shed their blood in defense of national sovereignty, and an offense to the world to emphasize that the best and greatest protection for the Canal is its neutrality and to seek support in that regard, while the government allows our territory to be used as a ramp for aggression against brother nations, jeopardizing the security of the waterway and all Panamanians by involving Panama in a conflict with unpredictable consequences and a threat to world peace,» the letter addressed to the Foreign Minister states.
«We demand the current government annul the military treaty with the United States, misleadingly called a Memorandum of Understanding, and additionally suspend the military exercises between the US and Panama that are set to begin on November 28, as a disregard for our patriotic date and our sovereignty and self-determination as a people, uphold the commitment made in CELAC regarding the zone of peace, and contribute to halting the warlike escalation in the region,» concludes the Frenadeso letter.
The Citizen
