Secretary of State Marco Rubio embarks soon on his inaugural trip as the United States’ top diplomat. His first stop, Panama could prove to be the most contentious on the itinerary.

Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino on Thursday ruled out discussing control over the Panama Canal in a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is set to visit the Central American country in his first official trip abroad this weekend.

This is not about acquiring land for the purpose of acquiring land,” Rubio. “This is in our national interest and it needs to be solved.”

Rubio defended Trump's proposed territorial expansions as a 'national interest,' while Denmark and Greenland firmly rejected offers amid concerns over potential military action.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed zero doubt that China has a contingency plan to shut down the Panama Canal in a potential conflict with the U.S. Speaking on The Megyn Kelly Show, Rubio emphasized

The new Secretary of State already has said the Hong Kong-based operator of Panama Canal-adjacent ports could be a “big national security and defense problem.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio states Trump's interest in Greenland and the Panama Canal is driven by national security concerns regarding China.

A key focus of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Central America this week — his first trip as America’s top diplomat — will be to counter China’s growing influence in the region, the State Department’s top spokesperson said this week,

Marco Rubio plans his first foreign tour as Secretary of State, focusing on migration and the Panama Canal amid U.S.-Panama tensions.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to visit Panama — the country whose canal President Donald Trump has suggested he’d seize — as early as next week, according to three U.S. officials ...

Newly sworn-in Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel to Panama for his ... to the White House on Monday – to take back the Panama Canal. Trump mentioned the Panama Canal again during ...