U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's trip to Central America, including Panama, is partially about countering China, a State Department spokesperson told Fox Business, as new President Donald Trump is pushing to "take back" the Panama Canal.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to Central America aims to counter China's growing influence. Amid President Trump's agenda to 'take back' the Panama Canal, concerns rise over U.S. intentions.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Central America for his first trip as the top US diplomat. Rubio is expected to depart late next week for Panama, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Panama and four other countries in Central America and the Caribbean starting late next week during his first overseas trip as Washington's top diplomat,

Mr Rubio will visit Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. Read more at straitstimes.com.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will pay his first trip starting next week to Central American nations including Panama, where President Donald Trump has threatened to seize the Panama Canal, a spokeswoman said Thursday.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to visit Panama and other countries in Central America amid President Donald Trump’s push to reclaim the Panama Canal and Washington’s efforts to curb illegal migration.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio will make his first official trip abroad next week to Central America, including a stop in Panama, which President Donald Trump has riled with talk of trying to reclaim the Panama Canal.

WASHINGTON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Panama and four other countries in Central America ... Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said on Thursday.

Marco Rubio will make his first trip as US secretary of state to Central American nations including Panama, a spokeswoman said Thursday, after President Donald Trump threatened to seize the Panama Canal and clamped down hard on migration.

Other stops on Rubio’s trip will include Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic, according to State Department spokesperson Tammy ... and Central America,” Bruce told ...

Donald Trump's administration has launched what it calls 'the largest massive deportation operation in history', dismantling key migration programmes and triggering diplomatic tensions across Latin America.