Cuban American confirmed to the US ambassador position in Panama

The Cuban American Kevin Marino Cabrera will be the new United States ambassador to Panama, after being confirmed Wednesday in the Senate, with 51 votes in favor and 45 against.

The 34-year-old politician, born in Miami of Cuban parents, had been commissioned by Miami-Dade County before being nominated by President Donald Trump for that important diplomatic position.

In his social networks, the Cuban American thanked Trump’s support and the senators who approved his nomination.

Cabrera will be a strategic position for the United States, taking into account the interest that the current administration in the control of the Panama Canal has put.

Precisely this Wednesday, US Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, said the Panama Canal and the channel areas «cannot and will not be controlled by China.»

«We are working very closely with our partners in Panama to ensure the channel. We will work with everyone on this way,» said the head of the Pentagon.

In a joint statement between the governments of Panama and the US, both countries promised to «advance in the agreements between the United States and the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) for the continuous safe, protected and neutral operation of the Panama Canal.»

President Trump, by nominating Cabrera, described him as «a fierce fighter for the principles of America first.»

The president has placed other Cuban-American politicians in key positions within his government, among which Marco Rubio, at the head of US diplomacy, as secretary of state, and Mauricio Claver-Carone, who is his special envoy for Latin America.