US Navy ships will go through the Panama Canal for free, an American official said following Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to the Central American country during the weekend, Bloomberg reported. Panamanian authorities did not comment on the claim.
Panama's canal authority did say late Sunday that it will "optimize transit priority" of US Navy ships through the waterway. It is one of the concessions made by President Jose Raul Mulino following the visit from Rubio, who had warned of "consequences" if the country did not take actions regarding what the US has described as China's large influence over the canal.
