Hegseth travels to Panama as US deepens defense cooperation

Defense Hegseth travels to Panama as US deepens defense cooperation Comments: by Filip Timotija - 08/11/26 3:42 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Filip Timotija - 08/11/26 3:42 PM ET Comments: Link copied

NOW PLAYING

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to Panama on Wednesday where he will meet with the country’s President José Raúl Mulino and hold a meeting with Colombian senior officials as the U.S. deepens its defense cooperation with the Central American nation.

Hegseth, who visited Panama last year, will deliver remarks at the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C) Forum, a U.S.-led multinational coalition envisioned to coordinate security and military efforts among member nations to counter transnational criminal organizations, notably drug cartels operating in Central and South America, the Pentagon announced on Tuesday.

The A3C, also known as the Shield of the Americas, was launched in early March this year. President Trump named Kristi Noem as the U.S. envoy to the alliance after removing her as the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

During his first visit to Panama in April 2025, Hegseth signed two documents: a memorandum of understanding to bolster security cooperation with Panama City and a joint declaration regarding the security and operation of the Panama Canal.

“The era of capitulating to coercion by the communist Chinese is over,” Hegseth said at the time, adding that China’s “growing and adversarial control of strategic land and critical infrastructure in this hemisphere cannot and will not stand.”

“The Panama Canal is key terrain that must be secured by Panama, with America, and not China,” the Defense secretary said.

Hegseth’s trip last year came as Trump repeatedly mused that the U.S. should take back control of the Panama Canal.

On Tuesday, a Navy MH-60 helicopter fired two Hellfire missiles into the steering area of the Panama-flagged cargo tanker Vela Nova, disabling the vessel that U.S. defense officials said was attempting to breach the U.S. naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Pentagon also said that Hegseth will meet with U.S. service members at the Jungle Operations Training Course and observe PANAMAX training events.

The U.S. military revived jungle warfare training last fall in Panama for the first time in over two decades to prepare troops in survival and combat tactics in dense, tropical environments, The Hill reported last November.

PANAMAX 2026 is a U.S. Southern Command (Southcom)-sponsored multinational exercise that focuses on simulated threats to the Panama Canal and the area.

The gathering, which is hosted by Panama, began on Aug. 3 and is set to wrap up on Thursday with 18 partner nations participating, including Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Jamaica.

Earlier this month, Southcom established Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere, a joint task force meant to synchronize U.S. military operations with partners and allies to strengthen regional security, quickly respond to crises in the Western Hemisphere and counter threats in the region.

The task force is envisioned to better integrate military capabilities with the 18 partner nations of A3C.

“JTF-WHEM strengthens our ability to work alongside trusted allies and partners, synchronize military capabilities and apply sustained pressure against the networks that threaten our collective security,” Southcom Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan said in a statement.

Donovan traveled from the Caribbean Sea to the Eastern Pacific through the Panama Canal aboard Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Gridley earlier this month, marking his first visit to Panama since taking the top role at Southcom.