Particle.news
Download on the App Store
7 ARTICLES
·
yesterday

Panama to Rebuild China Friendship Monument After Overnight Demolition

Beijing condemned the local teardown, which Panama’s president denounced as irrational.

This view shows the site where a Chinese monument once stood before it was demolished in Arraijan, Panama on December 28, 2025. A Chinese monument located at the entrance of the Panama Canal was demolished on December 27, 2025, night by order of a local authority, amid pressure from the US to reduce the presence of the Asian giant in the interoceanic waterway. (Photo by Daniel DE CARTERET / AFP)
A man takes a photo with his phone of a part of the site where a Chinese monument once stood before it was demolished in Arraijan, Panama on December 28, 2025. A Chinese monument located at the entrance of the Panama Canal was demolished on December 27, 2025, night by order of a local authority, amid pressure from the US to reduce the presence of the Asian giant in the interoceanic waterway.
Image
FILE - A police officer walks by a monument honoring 150 years of the Chinese community in Panama City, June 13, 2017. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco, File)

Overview

  • Arraiján municipal authorities ordered the night demolition of the 2004 China–Panama friendship monument near the Bridge of the Americas, citing structural risk and a technical, legal basis.
  • President José Raúl Mulino condemned the action, directed an immediate investigation, and said the national government will reconstruct the monument.
  • China’s embassy and Foreign Ministry lodged formal protests, called for a thorough probe and sanctions, and the Chinese ambassador inspected the site and decried the damage to ties.
  • Videos showed police stopping members of the Chinese-Panamanian community from reaching the lookout, and local anger prompted protests and some business shutdowns.
  • The dispute plays out against U.S. pressure over Chinese influence around the Panama Canal, with Panama signaling it will exit the Belt and Road Initiative and President Trump warning of punitive steps.