News comes after US secretary of state visited Panama to pressure the country over its ties with Beijing

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has welcomed Panama’s decision to let its participation in China’s global infrastructure plan expire, calling the move “a great step forward” for its ties with the United States.

Any move by Panama to distance itself from Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) represents a win for Washington, which has argued that Beijing uses the scheme for “debt trap diplomacy” to cement its global influence.