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Panama Multilateral Relations
Panama has long emphasized the role of multilateral forums and
bodies in its foreign relations, using them to enhance its
prestige, secure economic assistance, and marshall support for its
dealings with the United States. In 1973 the UN Security Council
held a meeting in Panama to discuss the canal issue, and the Panama
Canal treaties were signed in a special ceremony at the OAS.
Panama has been an active member of the OAS since its
inception. It repeatedly has used this forum to criticize United
States policies, especially those regarding the canal, and to seek
Latin American support for its positions. That this trend has
continued was demonstrated by the 1987 OAS resolution criticizing
United States interference in Panama's internal affairs.
The UN provided Panama with a platform from which it was able
to address a broader audience. In 1985 Panama's vice president,
Jorge Ilueca, served as president of the UN General Assembly.
Within the UN, Panama frequently adopted a position on economic
matters similar to that of other small, Third World nations. On
political matters, it generally took a position closer to that of
the United States, but it did break with the United States over the
Falklands Islands issue in 1982 and was openly critical of United
States Central American policy. In both cases, Panama sponsored
resolutions in the UN Security Council that were at variance with
United States policy. Over time, the trend has been to move slowly
away from the positions held by the United States and toward those
of the Nonaligned Movement.
Panama was an active member of the Nonaligned Movement and
acted in it much as it did in the UN. Other multilateral
organizations in which Panama maintained an active participation
were the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
Dealings with international financial organizations and
problems connected with Panama's debt formed a major part of
Panama's foreign policy agenda. In 1987 Panama took part, with
seven larger Latin American nations, in a major economic summit in
Acapulco, Mexico. Efforts to use this forum to win support in its
conflicts with the United States were largely unsuccessful, but
Panama did contribute to the discussion of the debt crisis and
supported the group's resolutions, which were highly critical of
Western economic policies. Panama has borrowed extensively from the
World Bank (see Glossary),
the IMF, and the Inter-American
Development Bank, a practice that may be jeopardized by its dispute
with the United States. Panama's 1985-87 agreement with the IMF has
expired, and the World Bank has suspended payments on a major
structural adjustment loan because of Panama's failure to comply
with a mandated austerity program.
Data as of December 1987
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