According to the blog post below, the Panamanian government quickly clarified that the new planned navy bases were Panamanian bases, not U.S. bases. But this makes no difference. The base in Manta, Ecuador was also an Ecuadorian base, but the U.S. had agreements to utilize the base. This is consistent with the new basing strategy of the U.S. which includes leased bases on foreign soil. The U.S. presence is still a violation of sovereignty and a provocative presence.
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http://www.panama-guide.com/article.php/20090929125340415
Flap Over New Navy Bases in Panama Continues
Tuesday, September 29 2009 @ 12:53 PM EDT
Contributed by: Don Winner
By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com – Panama’s Minister of Government and Justice Jose Raul Mulino further clarified their plans to install new new naval bases along Panama’s Pacific coast in order to improve their capability to combat drug trafficking at sea. They will build new facilities at Bahía Piña in the Darién province near the border with Colombia, and in Punta Coca in the province of Veraguas. (See annotated photo map below.) These bases will be used as launching points to search for vessels carrying drugs from South America towards Mexico and markets in the United States. Mulino said Panama will install these bases “to continue our commitment to the security of our territory. These bases will be clearly Panamanian which will be used by the different security institutions such as the National Border Service, the National Police, and the Naval Air Service.” There was a minor flap yesterday when the news wires picked up the idea that these bases would be built and used by the United States, which is not the case. Panama’s Vice President Juan Carlos Varela clarified yesterday that these will be Panamanian bases, built by Panama and operated by Panamanians. The US Navy and Coast Guard assist Panama in patrolling these waters of the Pacific ocean to detect and interdict drug trafficking vessels, as they have been doing for decades. However the specter of any kind of US military presence in Panama causes instantaneous reactions here and the lunatic fringe took the opportunity to spew. With one glance at the image below you can appreciate the positioning of these new bases, strategically placed to help extend the reach of the available surface forces out into the waters of the Pacific.
