According to a report from the government institution, some 50 U.S. Marines will participate in a training program from tomorrow until February 26 at the Jungle Warfare School in the Caribbean province of Colon and at the Captain Noel Rodriguez Naval Base in the capital.

For groups such as the National Front for the Defense of Economic and Social Rights (Frenadeso), these types of maneuvers are authorized by a memorandum of understanding signed last April between Panama and Washington, which they consider detrimental to national sovereignty, as it allows the presence of foreign troops and the establishment of military bases. In a statement issued by Frenadeso, signed by its coordinator Jorge Guzman, it is asserted that this type of training is not “cooperation,” but rather interference and aggression against national sovereignty.

The memorandum signed in 2025, the statement specifies, is an act of surrender intended to normalize the foreign military presence and transform Panama into a platform for geopolitical operations against sister nations like Venezuela, under the pretexts of security, migration, or drug trafficking.

In the statement, which Prensa Latina reached ay, the group demanded the immediate cessation of these training exercises and the genuine defense of independence.

“Panama is a sovereign and neutral country, not a ramp for imperial aggression,” the document states.

Since December 2025, this type of US military presence has intensified in Panama, under the pretext of fighting drug trafficking and following threats from President Donald Trump to retake control of the interoceanic waterway, including the use of force, due to an alleged “malign influence” from China on the route—something denied by authorities from both nations. jdt/oda/ga