Panamanian lawmaker urges Taiwan to establish trade office

Panamanian lawmaker Jhonathan Vega has called on Taiwan to establish a trade office in Panama to strengthen bilateral relations and expand economic cooperation amid attempts to rebuild informal ties following a break in formal ties in 2017.

In an interview with the Central News Agency on the sidelines of the Nov. 5-6 annual summit of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China in The Hague, Vega said in Spanish that a Taiwan trade office would provide a channel for closer exchanges, particularly in trade and job creation.

He also highlighted the Panama Canal’s strategic role as a key hub for international trade and a channel for communication among countries.

Panamanian lawmaker Jhonathan Vega is pictured in The Hague on Friday.

Photo: CNA

Panama switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China in 2017, severing ties with Taipei. No Panamanian parliamentary delegations visited Taiwan in the years that followed until November 2025.

Since then, lawmakers have made two more visits, in February and July 2026, marking three visits in less than a year that some believe signals a gradual warming of ties.

Vega said support for closer ties with Taiwan had long existed among lawmakers in Central America. He cited Taiwan’s democracy, leadership and technological advances, including in the semiconductor sector, as reasons for support in Panama’s legislature.

In September, Panama’s National Assembly established a cross-party parliamentary group comprised of 50 members of the 71-seat assembly to promote exchanges with Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan.

Asked about the possibility of Taiwan and Panama establishing representative offices in each other’s territories, Vega said the decision rested with the executive branch.

While President Jose Raul Mulino had expressed reservations, Vega said he believed the situation could change, noting that trade between the two sides remained active.

Vega was among a group of Panamanian lawmakers who visited Taiwan in November 2025. Asked about reports that Chinese officials had pressured lawmakers over the visit, he said Panama was a democracy and would make its own decisions about overseas visits.

Vega also thanked Taiwan for the invitation, saying his visit had given him an opportunity to learn about the country and see aspects of its development that Panama could draw on.