MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chile, Panama: free trade talks.

Panama and Chile agreed Thursday to restart free trade negotiations that were set aside under former President Mireya Moscoso.

In a joint news conference in Panama City, Chilean Foreign Minister Ignacio Walker and his Panamanian counterpart, Samuel Lewis Navarro, said relations between the two countries were excellent and that it was time to take up free trade talks once again.

No official date has been set for the new talks, but Chilean officials will be visiting Panama soon to begin the groundwork for negotiations.

Free trade talks between the two countries started under former President Ernesto Perez Balladares, whose term ended in 1999. But they stalled under Moscoso over differences on opening up the banking and service sectors.

Panama and Chile have US$ 120 million in annual trade, Walker said.

He also said Chile is interested in participating in any expansion of the Panama Canal, although the country's exact role has yet to be defined. Panama is considering a plan to build new, bigger locks that would allow larger ships to pass through the canal.

Chile is the largest Latin American user of the canal, and the fourth-largest user in the world, after the United States, Japan and China.