Panama President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday announced that he will speak with President Donald Trump on Friday, amid confusion over whether U.S. vessels can travel through the Panama canal free of charge. 

Mulino met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday about Trump's concerns relating to Panama Canal operations. He also spoke to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday, where he allegedly told Hegseth that he could not set the fees for U.S. ships to transit the canal nor exempt anyone from them, because of the country's Constitution, per CBS News.

Trump, who has previously accused Panama of "overcharging" the U.S. for its use of the canal, will speak with Mulino on Friday afternoon, the Panamanian president said.

"I was told a few minutes ago by a senior official that I will be speaking with President Trump tomorrow at 3:30 p.m.," Mulino posted on X.  

The meeting comes after the State Department on Wednesday night claimed that Panama had agreed to stop charging the U.S. for using the canal, which Mulino claimed was based on a "falsity." 

"[The statement] really surprises me because they're making an important, institutional statement from the entity that governs United States foreign policy under the president of the United States based on a falsity," Mulino told CBS. "And that's intolerable."

Rubio also claimed in his meeting with Mulino over the weekend that China's influence over the canal was "unacceptable" and "represents a violation of the Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal."

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.