Panama’s security strongman says relations with U.S. remain good.
(Newsroompanama.com) Panama’s Public Security Minister, José Raú Mulino says diplomatic relations between Panama and the U.S. remain good despite recent Wikileaks revelations.
Civil groups had called for the ousting of Mulino earlier in the year, following the killing of four demonstrators and the injuring of hundreds by National Police in Bocas Del Toro earlier in the year.
The Bocas events were widely publicized in the U.S. and attracted strong criticism from articles in Time and the Wall Street Journal among others.
But Mulino, says that in spite of the dissemination of embassy cables, in which former U.S. Ambassador to Panama, Barbara Stephenson criticized President Ricardo Martinelli, ties between the two countries are strong.
La Prensa reported that Mulino said: "Wikileaks has nothing to do with the official position of the United States government," and the transfer of Stephenson and the resignation of Jaime Alemán, Panama’s Ambassador in Washington, are not linked to the spread of the controversial cables published by Spain’s newspaper El Pais, The New York Times and publications around the world.
The cables revealed that Stephenson, recently promoted to head of mission in London, England, while in Panama informed her government that Martinelli asked her to help tap telephone conversations of his political opponents.
The Panamanian government rejected the report, claiming they were subjective views of the diplomat.
Mulino said the new U.S. Ambassador to Panama, Phyllis Powers, recently said that relations between the two countries are in good shape. He added that, a senior U.S. mission will shortly arrive in Panama to strengthen cooperation on security issues and other matters.
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Original Source: Newsroompanama.com
Date Retrieved: December 31, 2010.
