Nashville Standard

United States Senator Bill Hagerty, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, secured a commitment from Kevin Cabrera during a recent hearing. Cabrera is nominated to be the U.S. Ambassador to Panama and pledged to utilize all available resources to ensure Panama's cooperation in reducing illicit drug trafficking into the United States.

Hagerty emphasized the role of transnational criminal organizations from countries like Colombia and Mexico in using Panama as a route for smuggling illicit drugs. "Transnational criminal organizations, from countries like Colombia and Mexico, have long used Panama to smuggle illicit drugs, and they’ve done it to the tune of billions of dollars," he stated. He highlighted that last year, an estimated 40 percent of cocaine produced in Colombia passed through Panama's exclusive economic zones.

During the hearing, Hagerty asked Cabrera if he would commit to ensuring that Panama continues its collaboration with the United States in combating these criminal activities. “Mr. Cabrera, do you commit to use all of the tools at your disposal to ensure that the Panamanian government continues to collaborate with the United States [in taking] strong actions against these criminal organizations and stopping the flow of illicit drugs into America?” he inquired.

Cabrera affirmed his commitment by acknowledging Panama as a significant ally in this effort. “[Panama is] a great ally in this and…[I look] forward to continuing that and using all the tools that are at our disposal to continue to [make] sure that we stop as many metric tons of drugs coming through that border through the Darién Gap,” Cabrera responded, linking drug trafficking efforts with migration issues.