US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has walked back the assertion of the State Department that Panama “has agreed to no longer charge fees” to US government vessels transiting the Panama Canal after outcry from the Panamanian government.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has told Panama’s president that the country must reduce Chinese influence over the Panama Canal area or face potential retaliation from the Trump administration.

PANAMA CITY — President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday denied a claim by the Trump administration that the Central American country had agreed to eliminate tolls for U.S. government ships using the Panama Canal, in an apparent setback to U.S. diplomatic efforts.