U.S. to help Panama build naval bases?
According to various press reports, primarily by Panamanian newspaper La Prensa, by October 30th the government of Panama will sign an international cooperation agreement with the United States to build naval bases in Bahía Piña, in the province of Darién, and Punta Coca, in the south of Veraguas, both on the Pacific coast. According to La Prensa, a preliminary agreement was reached during recent talks between President Ricardo Martinelli and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the UN General Assembly sessions in New York. Vice President and foreign minister Juan Carlos Varela denied that the meeting between President Ricardo Martinelli and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton dealt with the subject of U.S. bases in Panama. La Prensa reports that the U.S. Department of State has denied the extistence of the deal, and U.S. Southern Command has said that it is unaware of the supposed agreement. Both Varela and Minister of Government and Justice José Raúl Mulino promised that the bases will not house U.S. forces, that they will instead utilize "100% Panamanian forces." (Panama has no armed forces, but its National Police have a Maritime Service, akin to a Coast Guard.) The bases will be used to combat narcotrafficking and organized crime. The Panamanian announcement raises concerns, as it follows revelations that the United States and Colombia are nearing signature on a deal to let U.S. military personnel use at least seven bases inside Colombia. It appears likely that the deal with Panama involves the use of U.S. funds to build bases for Panama's own forces, with no barracks or separate facilities for the long-term presence of U.S. personnel or contractors. But until either government explains the arrangement more fully, we cannot state that with certainty. A deal that would allow bases to house U.S. personnel would be hugely controversial in Panama, after the 1999 exit of U.S. troops from several bases there ended an often unwelcome presence that dated back to 1903. The political cost makes a "Cooperative Security Location" arrangement - similar to those the United States maintains with El Salvador, Aruba/Curaçao, Ecuador until recently, and soon Colombia - appear unlikely. We estimate that Panama's national police will receive about $7.5 million in U.S. assistance next year. The base construction agreement could increase that amount.