Marco Rubio heads to Panama for his first trip as secretary of state

Newly sworn in Secretary of State Marco Rubio Fox News reports that he will go to Panama for his first international trip as the country’s top diplomat.

While details are still being worked out, the visit could take place next week.

The planned trip comes after repeated vows President Donald Trump — who returned to the White House on Monday — to retake the Panama Canal.

Trump again mentioned the Panama Canal in his inaugural address on Monday, claiming the canal is now in Chinese hands and vowing to take it back.

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks after being sworn in by Vice President JD Vance in the Vice President’s Ceremonial Office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, on the White House campus in Washington, DC. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

“China controls the Panama Canal. And we didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama and we’re taking it back,” Trump said.

President of Panama José Raúl Mulino responded strongly to Trump’s comments on Wednesday: “We completely reject everything that Mr. Trump said. First, because it is a lie, and secondly, the Panama Canal belongs to Panama and will always belong to Panama.”

The Marshall Islands cargo ship Cape Hellas (L) and the Portuguese cargo ship MSC Elma sail in Lake Gatun near the Agua Clara Locks of the Panama Canal on December 28, 2024. (ARNULFO FRANCO/AFP via Getty Images)

The United States built the canal in the early 1900s under then-President Theodore Roosevelt as it sought ways to facilitate the transit of commercial and military ships between its shores. Washington relinquished control of the waterway to Panama on December 31, 1999, under an agreement signed by then-President Jimmy Carter in 1977.

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Rubio’s visit was first reported by Politico and could include other Central American countries such as Guatemala and El Salvador, where Rubio is expected to touch on curbing mass migration, a top priority he outlined earlier this week.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is sworn in by Vice President JD Vance as his wife Jeanette Rubio looks on in the Vice President’s Ceremonial Office in the Eisenhower Executive Office building on the White House campus, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Washington. . (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told Fox News that “Secretary Rubio is prioritizing the region because it’s where we live,” adding that “we’re not going to ignore the region like other administrations.”

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He added: “Engaging with our neighbors is a critical element in addressing migration, supply chains and economic growth, and is key to Secretary Rubio’s foreign policy efforts to make America strong, prosperous and secure.”

Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw and The Associated Press contributed to this report.