Anonymousabout 3 hours ago
China's detention of 91 Panama-flagged ships in March 2026 — a fourfold spike from the prior month — followed Panama's Supreme Court invalidating CK Hutchison's port concessions under U.S. pressure, triggering Secretary of State Rubio to declare hemispheric sovereignty "non-negotiable" and rally a six-nation coalition against Beijing. The escalation places Panama, whose canal handles 5% of global maritime trade and generates up to a quarter of government revenue, at the center of a geopolitical contest with no clear offramp.