Rubio's stop in Panama also comes as Trump in recent weeks has said he wants the Panama Canal back under U.S. control, claiming that “American ships are being severely overcharged and not treated fairly in any way,

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.

Colombia stopped resisting President Donald Trump’s deportation of its unwanted nationals. But America First bullying may yet provoke a backlash. The row casts a pall over the first trip abroad by Marco Rubio,

Traditionally, when US secretaries of state make their international debuts, they travel to major US allies and offer bromides about working together.

Marco Rubio will travel to Panama on his first trip abroad as secretary of State. The visit comes as Donald Trump looks to reclaim Panama's canal.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to Central America comes after President Donald Trump has repeatedly promised to take the Panama Canal back.

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

The Trump administration plans to designate El Salvador as a Safe Third Country, redirecting asylum seekers from the U.S. to El Salvador.- Watch Video on English Oneindia

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 briefed on the plan.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is traveling to Panama late next week in his first official diplomatic trip late, amid heightened tensions over President Trump’s threats to retake the Panama

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.