On February 6, Director of the Hong Kong (China) Department of Economic and Trade Development Qiu Yinghua summoned the Panamanian Consul General in Hong Kong (China) to condemn the Panamanian court's ruling to cancel the contract to operate 2 ports in the Panama Canal of CK Hutchison Company based in Hong Kong (China).
According to a post on February 6, the Director of the Hong Kong Department of Economic and Trade Development (China) expressed "deep dissatisfaction and strong opposition" to the Panamanian Supreme Court's decision in a meeting with the Panamanian Consul General Jose Ramon de Jesus Varela Fabrega.
Mr. Qiu Yinghua said that CK Hutchison Company has invested heavily and created many jobs in Panama for many years. He criticized Panama for "destroying its national prestige" and will cause widespread damage to the country's business environment and economic development, while seriously weakening international trade rules.
He called on the Panamanian government to respect the spirit of the contract and create a fair and legitimate business environment for legitimate companies operating locally.
Hong Kong companies operating and investing in Panama need to be treated and protected fairly and reasonably," he said.
The move by the Hong Kong (China) Bureau of Economic and Trade Development comes after the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office of China warned Panama about paying a heavy price for this decision.
CK Hutchison also protested against Panama's ruling, in which the Panama Ports Company branch of this company brought the case to international arbitration.
On February 5, Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino called the court's ruling the final decision and did not think the situation would escalate.
China is the second largest user of the Panama Canal after the United States. China is asking state-owned companies to stop negotiating new projects in Panama within the framework of broader retaliatory moves by Beijing.
