Reuters
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday he had "zero doubt" that China has a contingency plan to shut down the Panama Canal in the event of a conflict with the U.S. and that Washington intends to address what it sees as a national security threat. Just days before visiting Central America on his first foreign trip as top U.S. diplomat, Rubio, in an interview with Sirius XM’s The Megyn Kelly Show, echoed some of President Donald Trump's concerns about Chinese influence over the strategic waterway. Trump, in his Jan. 20 inauguration speech, again accused Panama of breaking the promises it made for the final transfer of the canal in 1999 and of ceding its operation to China - claims that the Panamanian government has vehemently denied.