Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal met Panama’s Foreign Minister Javier Eduardo Martinez-Acha Vasquez on Wednesday to discuss ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation across trade, investment, logistics and digital technologies, as both countries sought to deepen their economic partnership.

The meeting came during Vasquez’s first official visit to India and follows a series of high-level engagements aimed at expanding cooperation in sectors including maritime connectivity, digital governance and business-to-business ties.

Goyal, Vasquez Discuss Trade and Digital Cooperation

Sharing details of the meeting, Goyal said the two sides held productive discussions on strengthening the India-Panama partnership across multiple sectors.

“We held productive discussions on deepening the India-Panama partnership across trade, investment, logistics, digital cooperation and business-to-business engagement,” Goyal said in a post on X.

It was a pleasure meeting Mr. Javier Eduardo Martinez-Acha Vasquez, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Panama, on his first official visit to India. 🇮🇳🇵🇦

We held productive discussions on deepening the India-Panama partnership across trade, investment, logistics,… pic.twitter.com/V7orGjs9kl

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 22, 2026

The Commerce Minister said both sides explored ways to improve market access, create new opportunities for bilateral trade and leverage India’s Digital Public Infrastructure, including the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), to expand cooperation in digital payments and digital governance.

Maritime Cooperation Also on Agenda

Earlier on Wednesday, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal held bilateral talks with Vasquez to enhance maritime cooperation between the two countries.

According to the discussions, logistics, shipping, maritime security, skill development and digital transformation were identified as key areas for expanding the strategic partnership.

Panama Calls India a ‘Superpower’

During his visit, Vasquez described India as “already a superpower” and advocated elevating bilateral ties into a long-term strategic partnership.

Speaking during delegation-level talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday, he said it was a privilege to visit India at a time when the country was playing an increasingly significant role in shaping the global order.

Highlighting Panama’s strategic location, Vasquez said the country could serve as India’s gateway to Latin America for trade, investment and global supply chains.

“We may be a small country geographically, but we have always believed that our value is measured by the connections we create, not by the size of our territory. Just as India connects ideas, Panama connects markets. The Panama Canal is more than an engineering achievement. It is a platform for trusted global commerce,” he said.

Emphasising Panama’s role in India’s international economic engagement, he added, “We would like India to see Panama as a strategic extension of its international economic outreach. Panama is, as you mentioned, India’s main gateway to Latin America and to Central America.”

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