International
Mulino reiterates that he would be willing to give asylum to Maduro in Panama to solve the crisis
The president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, reiterated that he would be willing to give political asylum to the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, to solve the crisis in the Caribbean country after the questioned presidential elections on July 28.
“If that is the contribution quota to get out of this that Panama has to do, putting our soil for this man (Maduro) and his family to leave Venezuela, Panama would do it, without any doubt,” Mulino said in an interview with CNN, in which he maintained his position of offering that asylum in order to be a facilitator to the crisis.
Mulino also did not rule out the option of offering political asylum to other members of Chavismo, if necessary.
“As far as Panama can cooperate (it will). And if that is the quota of cooperation (extending asylum) that we have to do, I would do it,” added the Panamanian president, who has been a strong critic of the Venezuelan elections, even before it was held and the situation unleashed behind them.
Mulino “transmitted” to the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula, through the Foreign Ministry, the disposition of Panama “to be the bridge or transition of leaving Venezuela to a third country,” although, he added, he does not believe “that he can stay in Panama (Maduro),” since that “it would cost him a lot to sell it to the population, but it is not the first time that Panama has helped a crisis of this nature.”
The Brazilian president, along with the Colombian, Gustavo Petro, and the Mexican, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, have opted for a more cautious position after the announcement of Venezuela’s electoral results, by abstaining or absent from voting in the Organization of American States (OAS) on a frustrated resolution that required the publication of the minutes.
The Venezuelan National Electoral Council (CNE) proclaimed the current president of that country, Nicolás Maduro, as the winner with more than 51% of the votes, but without providing any evidence, unlike the platform of the majority opposition, which has shown electoral records that show the winner of his candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia, with a wide margin.
Mulino said on several occasions during the interview that “it is not the first time that Panama faces this type of problem with political characters on the run” and that “there have been other leaders fleeing, who have fallen here, with the idea of Panama of providing a solution to the political and internal problems.”
The president recalled the cases of former Argentine President Juan Domingo Perón in 1956, Guatemala’s Jorge Serrano Elías (1990-1993) and the former Haitian coup general Raoul Cedrás (1991-1994), to whom Panama granted asylum.
Panama recognized Edmundo González as the “president-elect” after considering the elections in Venezuela fraudulent. Both countries suspended diplomatic relations and closed airspace.
International
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump criticized what he described as unfair fees imposed on American ships passing through the Panama Canal and threatened to demand that Washington take back control of the strategic waterway.
“Our Navy and commerce have been threatened in a very unjust and reckless way. The rates that Panama charges are ridiculous,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The president-elect also denounced the growing influence of China in the canal, a situation he called concerning as U.S. businesses depend on the waterway to transport goods between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
“This complete scam against our country will end immediately,” he stated.
The Panama Canal, completed by the United States in 1914, was handed over to Panama under the 1977 treaty signed by Democratic President Jimmy Carter. Panama took full control of the commercial passage in 1999.
“It was exclusively for Panama to manage, not China or anyone else,” Trump said. “We would never allow it to fall into the wrong hands!”
“If Panama cannot guarantee a ‘safe, efficient, and reliable’ operation of the canal, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us in its entirety, without a doubt,” the Republican added.
Panamanian authorities did not immediately respond to Trump’s statements. While he will assume office on January 20, Trump has been exerting his political influence in the final days of President Joe Biden’s administration.
Five percent of global maritime trade passes through the Panama Canal, which allows vessels traveling from Asia to the U.S. East Coast to avoid the long and dangerous route around the southern tip of South America.
The countries that use the Panama Canal the most are the United States, China, Japan, and South Korea.
In October, the Panama Canal Authority reported earnings of nearly $5 billion in the last fiscal year.
International
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised more “destruction” in Ukraine on Sunday, in response to a drone strike that hit a residential building in the city of Kazan, located in central Russia, on Saturday.
Russia accused Ukraine of launching a “massive” drone attack, which struck a luxury apartment block in Kazan, about 1,000 kilometers from the border.
Videos shared on Russian social media show drones hitting a high-rise glass building. No casualties have been reported as a result of the attack.
In his statements, Putin addressed the local leader of Tatarstan, the region where Kazan is located, during a virtual ceremony marking the opening of a road.
The attack in Kazan is the latest in a series of increasingly frequent bombings in this nearly three-year-old conflict. Ukraine has not commented on the attack.
Putin had previously threatened to strike the center of Kyiv with a hypersonic ballistic missile in response to Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the recent Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy facilities were retaliation for Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied missiles to target Russian territory.
International
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
At least nine people were killed on Sunday after a small aircraft crashed in a commercial area of the tourist city of Gramado, in the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, authorities confirmed.
“There are nine confirmed deaths according to Civil Defense services, and there are no survivors from the plane,” said Cléber dos Santos Lima, director of the Interior Police Department of the Civil Police of the state, in a statement to AFP.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the exact number of passengers and crew aboard the aircraft, a turbo-prop Piper Cheyenne 400. However, Civil Defense had previously stated that “preliminarily, the plane was carrying ten people.”
The plane crashed on Sunday morning “into the chimney of a building, then onto the second floor of a house, and finally fell onto a furniture store,” according to a statement from the Rio Grande do Sul Public Security Secretariat.
Trump criticizes Panama Canal fees and demands U.S. control over strategic waterway
Putin vows retaliation following drone attack on luxury building in Kazan
Small plane crashes in Gramado, Brazil, killing nine people
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
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